theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Andrew Griffith:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what comparative assessment he has made of levels of regulation on businesses in (a) the UK and (b) other G20 countries. \p Justin Madders: The UK is an excellent place to do business, and in 2023 scored in the top 3 G20 countries on regulatory quality according to the World Bank [Regulatory Quality: Percentile Rank | Data]. However, businesses have told us that regulation can be too complex, stifle progress and innovation, with 45% businesses agreeing that regulation was an obstacle to their success in 2022, according to DBT’s Business Perceptions Survey. Our Action Plan for Regulation aims to reduce these burdens for businesses, including by cutting the administrative costs for business by 25% by the end of this Parliament.
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Andrew Griffith:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has had discussions with devolved Administrations on coordinating business regulation to reduce duplication. \p Justin Madders: To deliver growth across the UK, and support businesses and consumers, UK Government officials have been engaging with officials from the Scottish and Welsh Governments, and Northern Ireland Executive, on its Action Plan to overhaul our regulatory system, including the target to reduce the administrative cost of regulation to business by 25% by the end of this Parliament. Whilst the territorial scope relates to reserved matters, the Government is committed to collaborating with the devolved governments, including at Ministerial level using intergovernmental structures where appropriate, to ensure that reforms benefit the maximum number of people around the UK.
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Andrew Griffith:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has made an estimate of the time spent by businesses on regulatory paperwork annually. \p Justin Madders: Determining the cumulative administrative costs of regulation that businesses face has not been done for 15 years. That’s why we are undertaking a baselining exercise to understand the administrative costs of regulation to businesses. This baseline will inform how we implement the target of reducing administrative burdens by 25% by the end of the Parliament, as announced in the March Action Plan for Regulation. We have considered different analytical options and looked to identify the most proportionate methodology to calculate the baseline for costs. We will announce a final baseline in due course.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Gregory Stafford:To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he plans to include measures to help protect steelmakers from subsidised steel imports from (a) China and (b) the wider Far East in the forthcoming trade strategy. \p Mr Douglas Alexander: Steel is a top priority for this government. The UK applies 10 anti-dumping measures and two anti-subsidy measures on steel imports from China, and a safeguard measure on global imports for 14 steel categories. This measure was adjusted on 30 June to provide more effective protection for domestic producers.

On 26 June the government published its Trade Strategy, announcing we will sharpen our trade defence toolkit to better protect critical sectors, such as steel, from harm. Alongside this we launched the Steel Trade Measures Call for Evidence to prepare us for the expiry of the steel safeguard in June 2026.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that patients who live in England and treated in Wales are impacted by changes to NHS organisation in England. \p Ashley Dalton: There are special cross-border arrangements for patients who live on the English-Welsh border to ensure that they receive healthcare without confusion or delay and that patient data can be accessed by relevant professionals.

To drive reform of the health and care system, we are creating a new operating model for the health and care system, with a smaller, more agile centre. The changes will allow the national centre to operate very differently to the current arrangements and support delivery of the 10-Year Health Plan. Throughout this work we will retain focus on delivery, patient safety, and on driving reform across the whole of the health and care system.

As part of these wider changes, NHS England has also asked integrated care boards (ICBs) to act primarily as strategic commissioners of health and care services and to reduce the duplication of responsibilities within their structure, with the expectation of achieving a reduction in their running cost allowance.

ICBs have developed their plans in accordance with the guidance set out by the Model ICB Blueprint. NHS England is working with the ICBs to review and implement these plans. These plans should affirm the critical role of the ICBs as strategic commissioner, with their core functions centred in population health management, including understanding local context, developing a long-term strategy, allocating resources, and evaluating impact. ICBs, as strategic commissioners, continue to have the duty to arrange health services that meet the needs of their population and to manage cross-border arrangements.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Ayoub Khan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 3 July 2025 to Question 62444 on Asthma: Medical Equipment, how many pharmaceutical companies are registered as marketing authorisation holders for dosage counters in emergency inhalers. \p Karin Smyth: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency understands the term “emergency asthma inhalers” in this context to refer to inhalers containing short-acting beta agonist, such as salbutamol and terbutaline, licensed for the rapid relief of symptoms during acute asthma attacks or bronchospasm, as well as for the prevention of exercise-induced bronchospasm.

There are typically two types of inhalers used, pressurised metered dose inhalers (pMDI), often described as an ‘aerosol’ or ‘spray’ inhaler, and dry powder inhalers (DPI). Pressurised metered dose inhalers may be used more commonly in the United Kingdom.

All the currently licensed DPIs containing salbutamol or terbutaline include dose counters or dose indicators. There are four registered marketing authorisation holders in total.

None of the currently licensed pMDIs containing salbutamol for this emergency indication include dose counters or dose indicators. There are currently no licensed pMDIs containing terbutaline.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to answer Question 59411, tabled on 12 June 2025. \p Karin Smyth: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 July 2025 to Question 59411.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential (a) health and (b) economic impact of trained healthcare workers leaving their home country to work in the UK on nations in (i) Eastern Europe and (ii) the Global South. \p Ashley Dalton: We hugely value our health and social care workers from overseas who work tirelessly to provide the best possible care and enhance our health and care workforce with their valuable skills, experience and expertise. Internationally educated staff remain an important part of the workforce, and our Code of Practice for International Recruitment ensures stringent ethical standards when recruiting health and social care staff from overseas. This includes prohibiting active recruitment from red list countries to the National Health Service, social care, or independent sectors under our Code of Practice.

The Government also remains committed to growing homegrown talent and giving opportunities to more people across the country to join the NHS. Following publication of our 10-Year Health Plan on 3 July 2025, we will produce a refreshed workforce plan, setting out how we will train and provide the staff that the NHS needs to care for patients across our communities and treat them on time again. As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan, we will work across Government to prioritise medical graduates from the United Kingdom for foundation training, and to prioritise UK medical graduates and other doctors who have worked in the NHS for a significant period for specialty training. The plan also outlines that we will now make it a requirement for newly qualified dentists to practice in the NHS for a minimum period. We intend this minimum period to be at least three years.

The Immigration White Paper also set out reforms to legal migration, so that we can restore order, control and fairness to the system, bring down net migration and promote economic growth. The changes set out include a complete overhaul of the relationship between the immigration system, training and the labour market to support sustainable growth as well as a sustainable immigration system.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Bob Blackman:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the recommendations of the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease's 2025 annual report on Global Strategy for the Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England is aware of the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease that sits among other welcome approaches to improving care and outcomes for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). NHS England clinical policy for people with COPD is largely formed by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and professional society recommendations such as from the British Thoracic Society and Primary Care Respiratory Society. Broader initiatives and evidence may be considered where appropriate.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Dawn Butler:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether Faculty will have access to NHS patient DNA data through Government contracts. \p Karin Smyth: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
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Dawn Butler:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether Palantir will have (a) exclusive and (b) other access to NHS patients’ DNA data as part of its contracts with the Government. \p Karin Smyth: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Ayoub Khan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to incorporate targets to provide asthma sufferers with a Personalised Asthma Action Plan into future iterations of the 10 Year Health Plan for England. \p Ashley Dalton: The provision of Personalised Asthma Action Plans is already incentivised by the Quality Outcomes Framework (QOF) indicator AST007. This indicator measures the percentage of patients on the asthma register who have had a review in the past 12 months. This review must include:

- an assessment using a validated asthma control questionnaire;

- a record of the number of exacerbations;

- an assessment of inhaler technique; and

- a written personalised asthma plan.

The latest QOF data shows that for England, the percentage of asthma patients on the register receiving this care has increased from 52.5% in 2021/22 to 64.6% in 2023/24.

Further details on the QOF asthma indicators are available on pages 41 to 46 of NHS England’s 2025/26 QOF guidance, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/quality-outcomes-framework-guidance-for-2025-26.pdf

Therefore, there are currently no plans for future iterations of the 10-Year Health Plan for England.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Rachel Gilmour:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take to reduce NHS staff burnout. \p Karin Smyth: The health and wellbeing of National Health Service staff is a top priority. NHS organisations have a responsibility to create supportive working environments for staff, ensuring they have the conditions they need to thrive, including access to high quality health and wellbeing support.

As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, we will roll out Staff Treatment hubs to ensure all staff have access to high quality occupational health support, including for mental health.

To further support this ambition, we will work with the Social Partnership Forum to introduce a new set of staff standards for modern employment, covering issues such as access to healthy meals, support to work healthily and flexibly, and tackling violence, racism, and sexual harassment in the workplace.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to issue new guidance to NHS Trusts advising them not to set up wholly owned subsidiary companies to avoid paying VAT. \p Karin Smyth: The current NHS England guidance dated February 2024, titled Guidance for assuring and supporting complex change – subsidiaries guidance for trusts forming or changing a subsidiary, sets out the VAT position of wholly owned subsidiaries and confirms that “the commercial rationale is not dependent on the subsidiary enabling a VAT treatment that differs from the trust’s current arrangements”.

There are no plans for this guidance to be updated.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to make an assessment of the potential merits of NHS Trusts setting up wholly owned subsidiary companies to avoid paying VAT. \p Karin Smyth: The current NHS England guidance dated February 2024, titled Guidance for assuring and supporting complex change – subsidiaries guidance for trusts forming or changing a subsidiary, confirms that the Department “reminded all NHS provider finance directors in September 2017 of their responsibilities around tax, advising that tax avoidance arrangements should not be entered into under any circumstances. We expect all NHS providers to follow this guidance when considering any new arrangements or different ways of working”

A perceived VAT advantage of setting up a wholly owned subsidiary cannot be the only reason for its creation. Subsidiary proposals should be driven by a robust commercial strategy that delivers clear financial, operational, and patient benefits.

No assessment is planned or deemed necessary.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce the regional differences in IVF provision. \p Karin Smyth: Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards (ICBs) and are based on the clinical needs of their local population. We expect these organisations to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines, ensuring equal access to fertility treatment across England.

NICE is currently reviewing the fertility guidelines and will consider whether the current recommendations for access to National Health Service-funded treatment are still appropriate.

In the light of broader pressures on the NHS and on-going changes within NHS England, we have been looking again at achievable ambitions to improve access to fertility services and fairness for all affected couples.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to review the (a) scope, (b) eligibility, (c) criteria and (d) compensation level of the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme. \p Ashley Dalton: I would like to express my deepest sympathies to those individuals who have experienced harm following vaccination, and to their families.

Ministers continue to consider options for reforming the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme.

In parallel, the Department has been working with the NHS Business Services Authority, the administrators of the scheme, to take steps to improve the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme, including through processing claims at a faster rate.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Shivani Raja:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve data transparency for vaccination uptake figures for the maternal respiratory syncytial virus vaccination programme by reducing the four-month lag in reporting. \p Ashley Dalton: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) maternal vaccine uptake methodology is published on the GOV.UK website, and includes an explanation of the data sources and their reporting lags, in the monthly RSV maternal vaccination coverage reports, which are available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rsv-immunisation-for-older-adults-and-pregnant-women-vaccine-coverage-in-england

The data collection methodology chosen ensures that robust and precise coverage estimates are calculated for the maternal programme.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Ruth Cadbury:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with NHS England on screening new born children for Spinal Muscular Atrophy. \p Ashley Dalton: The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) has been working with partners to scope an in-service evaluation of newborn screening for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in real world National Health Services in the United Kingdom.

The research brief that will inform this in-service evaluation has now been published, and the call for applicants is live.

Results from the in-service evaluation, along with a new SMA screening modelling study, will inform any recommendation made by the UK NSC on whether to screen newborn babies for this condition.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Shivani Raja:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his planned timeline is for the publication of an assessment of the (a) efficacy and (b) impact of the maternal vaccination programme for respiratory syncytial virus. \p Ashley Dalton: The UK Health Security Agency undertakes monitoring and evaluation of immunisation programmes, including the effectiveness of vaccines. Monitoring and evaluation work has begun for the new respiratory syncytial virus programmes which launched in September 2024 to protect infants through maternal vaccination and for direct protection of older adults. Findings will be published in due course.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Mrs Elsie Blundell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that men’s mental health organisations in the north of England are consulted on the forthcoming men’s health strategy. \p Ashley Dalton: The Men's Health Strategy will seek to improve the health and wellbeing of all men in England and will be informed by a call for evidence that is open to the public, academics, health and social care professionals, and stakeholder organisations in England. The call for evidence closes on 17 July 2025. We encourage all men’s mental health organisations in the north of England to complete the call for evidence and have their say on ways to tackle the biggest health problems facing men. We will continue to engage with stakeholders during development of the strategy.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Ayoub Khan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of (a) all people with and (b) children with asthma have a personalised asthma action plan in Birmingham Perry Barr constituency. \p Ashley Dalton: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the British Thoracic Society (BTS), and the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) published the guideline Asthma: diagnosis, monitoring and chronic asthma management in November 2024, which covers diagnosing, monitoring, and managing asthma in adults, young people, and children. The guideline emphasises the importance of personalised asthma action plans (PAAPs) for effective asthma management.

The Department and NHS England welcome the updated guideline and have been engaging with health system partners to support its implementation across the country, including the use of PAAPs.

NHS England’s National bundle of care for children and young people with asthma aims to support integrated care systems to deliver high quality asthma care and has resources available to support the use of PAAPs in children and young people.

NHS England has also been working jointly with the Health Innovation Networks to form a national respiratory partnership to improve asthma outcomes, including through implementation of the collaborative NICE, BTS, and SIGN asthma guideline.

The Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) incentivises use of PAAPs through indicator AST007, which measures the percentage of patients with asthma on the register, who have had an asthma review in the preceding 12 months that includes an assessment of asthma control, a recording of the number of exacerbations, an assessment of inhaler technique, and a written personalised action plan. The latest QOF data shows that for England, the percentage of asthma patients on the register receiving this care has increased from 52.5% in 2021/22 to 64.6% in 2023/24.

According to the QOF data for the end of 2023/24, general practices in the Perry Barr constituency had 5,437 patients on the asthma register. Of these, 4,253 had received an asthma review in the previous 12 months, and 3,361, or 61.8% of patients on the register, had a written personalised asthma plan. Data for this indicator is not broken down by age, and determining these numbers for children would require contacting individual general practices, as they are the data controllers for this patient information.

Further information on the QOF asthma indicators are available on pages 41 to 46 of NHS England’s 2025/26 QOF guidance, which is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/quality-outcomes-framework-guidance-for-2025-26.pdf
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that people with incurable secondary breast cancer have access to world-leading treatments. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England announced in April 2025 that eligible women with secondary breast cancer could soon have access to a new targeted treatment, capivasertib, used alongside fulvestrant, on the National Health Service.

In May, NHS England announced the world’s first roll out of liquid biopsy testing, which is now available for all eligible breast cancer patients, and which aims to speed up diagnosis and inform better treatment options for those with breast cancer.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to encourage young women to attend cervical cancer screenings. \p Ashley Dalton: The NHS Cervical Screening Programme in England provides all women and people with a cervix between the ages of 25 and 64 years old with the opportunity to be screened routinely to detect human papillomavirus (HPV) infection or cervical abnormalities at an early, more treatable stage. The screening test does not look for cancer, but for HPV, which causes nearly all cervical cancers. As it takes approximately ten years for HPV to cause cancerous cells, it is rare for women below the age of 25 years old to develop cervical cancer. This is why the age limit is set as it is.

NHS England launched its first ever cervical cancer elimination creative campaign and communications toolkit for Cervical Screening Awareness Week, which took place between 16 and 24 June 2025. The campaign included digital resources that create a strong sense of shared responsibility and aim to increase awareness of the elimination goal, educate the public, and build confidence in cervical screening.

In March 2025, NHS England published its Cervical cancer elimination plan by 2040 – plan for England, setting out how the National Health Service will improve equitable uptake and coverage across cervical screening to meet the goal to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040. NHS England will build on what is already working well to drive vaccination and screening uptake and coverage, focussing on five cross-cutting themes: increasing access; raising awareness; reducing inequalities; improving digital capabilities; and strengthening workforce capacity. Further information on the Cervical cancer elimination plan by 2040 – plan for England is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/cervical-cancer-elimination-by-2040-plan-for-england/

From early 2026, screening providers in the NHS Cervical Screening Programme in England will be able to offer HPV self-sampling kits to women if they have not attended their appointment for six months or more following routine invitation.
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Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support (a) research and (b) development into medical treatments for people affected by COVID-19 vaccine injury. \p Ashley Dalton: The Department commissions research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including treatments for vaccine side effects. Since the start of the pandemic, the NIHR has allocated more than £110 million of funding for COVID-19 vaccine research, including consideration of issues around vaccine safety. As part of this, the Department commissioned a £1.6 million programme of work through the NIHR, to understand the mechanisms underlying the occurrence of COVID-19 vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia syndrome, a rare condition of blood clotting with low platelets following vaccination for COVID-19. This research was published in July 2025.

In the very rare event where an individual may have suffered a severe adverse reaction to a COVID-19 vaccine, care and treatment will be best met and managed by National Health Service local specialist services, augmented as appropriate by national specialist advice.
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Kevin Bonavia:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase levels of research into Parkinson's disease. \p Ashley Dalton: Government responsibility for delivering Parkinson’s disease research is shared between the Department of Health and Social Care, with research delivered via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, with research delivered via UK Research and Innovation.

Between the financial years 2019/20 and 2023/24, the Government spent a total of £79.1 million on research into Parkinson’s disease. Research spend is calculated retrospectively, with a time lag due to annual reporting lapses, and so 2023/24 is the most recent financial year we have data for.

As well as funding research itself, the NIHR invests significantly in research expertise and capacity, specialist facilities, support services, and collaborations to support and deliver research in England. Collectively, this forms NIHR infrastructure. NIHR infrastructure enables the country’s leading experts to develop and deliver high-quality translational, clinical, and applied research into Parkinson’s disease. For example, in financial year 2022/23, the NIHR Clinical Research Network enabled 114 studies related to Parkinson’s disease to be conducted in the National Health Service.

The Government is continuing to invest in Parkinson’s disease research. For example, the UK Dementia Research Institute, primarily funded by the Government, is partnering with Parkinson’s UK to establish a new £10 million research centre dedicated to better understanding the causes of Parkinson’s and finding new treatments.

The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including Parkinson’s disease. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.

Welcoming applications on Parkinson's disease to all NIHR programmes enables maximum flexibility both in terms of the amount of research funding a particular area can be awarded, and the type of research which can be funded.
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Dr Scott Arthur:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to (a) encourage breastfeeding and (b) support mothers who choose to breastfeed. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever and giving every child the best start in life. We know breastfeeding has significant health benefits for babies and for their mothers.

Through the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme, we are investing £18.5 million in 2025/26 to improve infant feeding support across 75 local authorities in England. We have also extended and expanded the National Breastfeeding Helpline so that more families across the United Kingdom can access breastfeeding support 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

The child health workforce is central to how we provide infant feeding support. We have committed to strengthening health visiting services so that all families can access joined-up, high quality services. We have also committed to training thousands more midwives to better support women throughout their pregnancy and beyond. By April 2025, the number of full-time equivalents had increased by 1,330 compared to April 2024.
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David Chadwick:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help reduce levels of consumption of highly processed foods. \p Ashley Dalton: As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan, we will take decisive action on the obesity crisis, easing the strain on our National Health Service and creating the healthiest generation of children ever. In relation to reducing the consumption of foods and drinks high in calories, saturated fat, salt, and sugar, many of which would be considered as highly processed, work is progressing through the following:

To support those in greatest need, we will uplift the value of the weekly payments delivered by the Healthy Start scheme by 10%, boosting the ability to buy fruit and vegetables for those families who need it most.

The Government’s Eatwell Guide already advises that people should eat more fruit and vegetables and wholegrain or higher-fibre foods, as well as less processed meat and food and drink that is high in sugar, calories, saturated fat, and salt.

The Eatwell Guide principles are communicated through a variety of channels, including the NHS.UK website and Government social marketing campaigns. For example the Better Health Healthier Families website and the Healthy Steps email programme, which aims to help families with primary aged children in England to eat well and move more.

A range of actions that have already been taken to create a healthier environment to help reduce consumption of processed foods that are high in energy, saturated fat, salt, and free sugars include:
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David Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the 10 year plan on older residents in rural areas. \p Ashley Dalton: The 10-Year Health Plan will ensure a better health service for everyone, regardless of condition or geography. The 10-Year Health Plan has been built on what we heard during engagement with the public. Our reimagined National Health Service will be designed to tackle inequalities in both access and health outcomes, and will ensure a better health service for everyone, regardless of age or geography.

The neighbourhood health service will reflect the specific needs of local populations, including the needs of older residents in rural communities. Neighbourhood health centres will be available in every community, providing easy access to NHS, local authority, and voluntary sector services. New technology-led services, including wearable and monitoring technology, will support patients such as older people with frailty to enable them to continue living independently in their own home.

Equality has been considered throughout, and we expect to publish an Equality Impact Assessment later this month.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Crawford & Company in administering the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme; and for what reason that company was selected to manage the process. \p Ashley Dalton: The NHS Business Services Authority is the administrator of the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS). Crawford and Company provides a medical assessment service for the VDPS. Crawford and Company were awarded this contract following a formal procurement process under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (as amended). The procurement process was open, fair, and transparent. Crawford and Company emerged as the successful bidder following an evaluation of their bid, and the contract started in March 2022, following their successful bid.

Key performance indicators are in place to ensure the effectiveness of the medical assessment service, and are closely monitored via the contract. This includes a target that 95% of medical assessments are returned to the NHS Business Services Authority within 15 working days. The supplier has achieved this target since August 2023.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Josh Babarinde:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, steps his Department is taking to support patients with (a) Type 1 and (b) Type 2 diabetes in Eastbourne. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS Sussex has made notable progress in recent years in tackling the growing challenge of diabetes, with a strong focus on prevention, equity, and modernisation of care pathways. NHS Sussex is committed to commissioning the diabetes care that people need, and has a range of services available.

With rising prevalence, particularly among those under 40 years old, prevention is a strategic priority. A range of nationally commissioned programmes are available to support people at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, including:

- the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme;

- the type 2 Diabetes Path to Remission Programme;

- the Digital Weight Management Programme; and

- access to GLP-1 receptor agonists where clinically appropriate.

Sussex partners are actively working to increase the uptake of these offers, particularly in high-inequality and underserved populations.

In 2024/25, Sussex launched a multi-agency initiative to co-design a structured education programme tailored for people under 40 years old with type 2 diabetes, an increasingly prevalent yet underserved group.

In 2025/26, this work will shift to a neighbourhood level delivery model, enabling enhanced reviews and improving access to bespoke, community embedded education, especially for those in high-need areas.

In Eastbourne, a specialist diabetes care service is provided at Eastbourne District General Hospital, complemented by a general practice led locally commissioned service to support primary care delivery.

Building on this, NHS Sussex is co-designing an integrated, all-age, whole-pathway model for diabetes care across Sussex. This model will:

- embed prevention throughout the pathway;

- align with Integrated Community Team structures;

- leverage the diabetes technology revolution, for instance remote monitoring, diagnostics, and digital coaching;

- reduce variation in access and outcomes; and

- support a resilient and retained specialist workforce, through robust training and multi-disciplinary team development

In the first year of the hybrid closed loop (HCL) roll-out, Sussex achieved approximately 80% uptake among eligible children, young people, and high-risk adults with type 1 diabetes. In the second year, the rollout will expand to additional national priority groups in line with NHS England’s guidance.

Workforce planning is fully embedded in this process to ensure sustainable, equitable access to HCL technology across the system.

NHS Sussex continues to make progress and remains fully committed to improving outcomes, reducing variation, and delivering person-centred, future-ready diabetes care for people across Eastbourne and the wider Sussex system.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Dr Caroline Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding has been allocated to Healthy Start for 2026-27. \p Ashley Dalton: The Spending Review on 11 June 2025 set total departmental budgets for day-to-day spending from 2026/27 until 2028/29. Departments must now allocate these budgets to portfolios, programmes, and projects. As such, the budget allocated to Healthy Start for 2026/27 is still to be determined.

Healthy Start is a demand-led, statutory scheme and aims to support those in greatest need. We recently announced in Fit for the Future: 10 Year Health Plan that we will uplift the value of weekly payments by 10%, boosting the ability to buy healthy food for those families who need it most. From April 2026, pregnant women and children aged over one and under four years old will each receive £4.65 per week, up from £4.25, and children under one years old will receive £9.30 per week, up from £8.50.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Tom Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle health inequalities in coastal communities. \p Ashley Dalton: The Chief Medical Officer, in his 2023 Annual Report, made clear that future health and care needs will vary significantly, with the populations of rural, semi-rural, and coastal areas more likely to experience worse health outcomes.

In the 10-Year Health Plan, the Government commits to reducing the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest areas by tackling health inequalities and the social determinants of health.

The Department will address under performance in areas with the worst health outcomes, including coastal communities, where access is often poor. National Health Service regions are compiling action plans for each provider in these areas to begin improvements.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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David Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Neighbourhood Health Service on healthcare in rural constituencies. \p Ashley Dalton: The Neighbourhood Health Service will mean millions of patients, including those in rural constituencies, are treated and cared for closer to their home by new teams of health professionals. Our priority will be to address underperformance and health inequalities in the areas with the worst health outcomes, such as rural and coastal communities, where we know access to healthcare services is often particularly poor.

We expect neighbourhood teams and services to be designed in a way that reflects the specific needs of local populations. While we will be clear on the outcomes we expect, we will give significant licence to tailor the approach to local need.

Our 10-Year Health Plan is creating a National Health Service truly fit for the future, keeping patients healthy and out of hospital, with care closer to home and in the home. An impact statement for the plan will be published in shortly.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Llinos Medi:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will provide an update on the publication of the final cross-government delivery plan for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. \p Ashley Dalton: The myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome, final delivery plan will be published shortly. The plan will focus on boosting research, improving attitudes and education, and bettering the lives of people with this debilitating disease.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Kanishka Narayan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to (a) support research into (i) Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP) and (ii) epilepsy-related mortality, (b) improve understanding of the causes of those deaths and (c) identify effective prevention measures. \p Ashley Dalton: The Department funds research into epilepsy via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR has funded a range of ongoing and completed epilepsy research, including research into the development of a wireless intracranial neuromonitoring device for people with drug-resistant epilepsy.

The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP). Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.

NHS England has produced the RightCare Epilepsy Toolkit, and one of the key focuses of the toolkit is reducing epilepsy-related deaths, including SUDEP. The toolkit includes several recommendations for identifying those who are most at risk of an epilepsy-related death and preventing SUDEP.

In addition, the Royal College of General Practitioners aims to raise awareness of SUDEP amongst general practitioners and other primary care professionals, through its e-learning modules on SUDEP and seizure safety, which were developed in collaboration with SUDEP Action and last updated in December 2024.

Health Education England, now part of NHS England, has also developed an Epilepsy Programme in collaboration with SUDEP Action, which is designed to enable healthcare professionals, particularly those who are not specialists in epilepsy, to better understand SUDEP and how the risk of SUDEP can be reduced.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-11)

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Cat Eccles:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of oral nicotine pouches on public health. \p Ashley Dalton: Nicotine is the active ingredient in oral nicotine pouches, which is a highly addictive drug. Unlike vapes, nicotine pouches currently have no set nicotine limits, and nicotine strengths can be extremely high. The use of nicotine pouches is increasing, particularly among young men. Among adults in Great Britain, 5.4% tried nicotine pouches in 2024.

The Government is committed to protecting future generations from the harms of nicotine addiction. That is why, alongside vapes, we are taking action to control these products through the Tobacco and Vapes Bill. The bill will ban the advertising and sponsorship of all consumer nicotine products, ban their sale to anyone under 18 years old, and prohibit free distribution. The bill also provides powers to regulate the flavours, ingredients, which includes nicotine strength, packaging, and displays of vapes and nicotine products.