theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Quality and Outcomes Framework guidance in ensuring appropriate management of patients with diabetes. \p Ashley Dalton: The Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) 2024/25 includes indicators for the effective control and management of diabetes. Performance improvements associated with the indicators in the QOF are seen in improvements in the care and management of diabetes.

Annual diabetes reviews are associated with reduced emergency admissions, amputations, retinopathy, and mortality. Following a significant decrease in routine care delivery associated with the pandemic, the proportion of people with type 1 diabetes receiving all eight care processes had recovered back to 43.3% in 2023/24, and 62.3% for type 2 diabetes. This is comparted to 27% and 37% for 2020/21, respectively.

The National Diabetes Audit core data for 2023/24 shows a steady trend of improvement in foot surveillance. The audit shows that the percentage of people with type 1 diabetes who received general practice foot checks in England reached 68.9%, versus 67.2% in 2022/23. The proportion of people with type 2 diabetes who received foot check examinations in 2023/24 was 81.3%, up from 78.8% in 2022/23. The foot check is financially incentivised via the QOF, and this is an important lever for maintaining high quality foot care.
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Brian Mathew:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to increase funding for Parkinson's nurses. \p Ashley Dalton: There are 25 specialised neurological treatment centres across the National Health Service in England, which provide access to neurological multidisciplinary teams to ensure that patients with Parkinson’s can receive specialised treatment and support, according to their needs.

We do, however, acknowledge significant neurology workforce challenges, including a need for more neurologists and specialist nurses, and we are taking significant steps to address NHS workforce challenges.

This summer, we will publish a refreshed Long Term Workforce Plan to deliver a transformed health service over the next decade and treat patients, including those with Parkinson’s disease, on time again. We will ensure the NHS has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to deliver the care patients need when they need it.

We have also launched a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the NHS and improve care for people with long-term conditions such as Parkinson’s disease. A central and core part of the 10-Year Health Plan will be our workforce and how we ensure we train and provide the staff, technology, and infrastructure the NHS needs to make it more accessible, proactive and tailored for patients.
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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information he holds on (a) rates of diabetic foot screening and (b) diabetes-related lower limb amputations by (i) region and (ii) other local areas. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England continues to deliver the National Diabetes Audit (NDA) and provide footcare data, which is available in the NDA Core and National Diabetes Footcare Audit data dashboards, at the following link:

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/clinical-audits-and-registries/national-diabetes-audit/dashboards

A trend of improvement in foot surveillance is evidenced by the NDA’s core data for 2023/24, showing that the percentage of people with type 1 diabetes who received general practice foot checks in England reached 70.6%, versus 67.2% in 2022/23. The proportion of people with type 2 diabetes who received foot check examinations in 2023/24 was 81.3%, up from 78.8% in 2022/23.
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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to work with relevant authorities to prevent heat-related deaths in (a) Romford constituency and (b) England. \p Ashley Dalton: The UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) Adverse Weather and Health Plan (AWHP) aims to protect everyone from the health effects of adverse weather and to build community resilience. The plan informs local preparedness activities, including in the Borough of Romford. The 2025 to 2026 AWHP is available at the following link:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67fe2667694d57c6b1cf8d3c/AWHP_2025_to_2026.pdf

The plan is supported by a series of guidance materials for stakeholders to prepare for and respond to significant adverse weather events. The heat health alerts provide suggested actions according to the alert level. People can sign up to access the Weather Health Alerts email service at the following link:

https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=mRRO7jVKLkutR188-d6GZn06Ss-xPLpCuYeyOZ-eFiFUMEVIMDRTOE5FVzFFM0NXNjFMWUlWMkJVMCQlQCN0PWcu
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Clive Jones:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the National Cancer Plan will take steps to increase the number of clinical academics dedicated to blood cancer research. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government has announced that the National Cancer Plan will be published this year, following publication of the 10-Year Health Plan. We are now in discussions about what form it should take, including how we will ensure that cancer patients across England receive the benefits of the United Kingdom’s world-leading cancer research. We will provide updates on this in due course. We have received over 11,000 responses, from individuals, professionals, and organisations, to our call for evidence, which closed on 29 April 2025, and we are now considering those responses to inform our plan to improve cancer care.

Through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the Department is the largest funder of research training for clinical academics in the UK, supporting clinical academics at all career stages and from all professions and specialties. Since 2006, The NIHR has supported 16,000 career development awards and 13,000 awardees across 200 different professions and specialties. Since 2006, the NIHR Academy has funded 137 academic clinical fellowships, 39 clinical lectureships, and nine awards at a doctoral and post-doctoral level in haematology. The total annual spend on research training across the NIHR is estimated at £220 million.

The Department is committed to implementing the recommendations of Lord O'Shaughnessy’s review into commercial clinical trials, making sure that the UK leads the world in clinical trials, and ensuring that innovative, lifesaving treatments are accessible to National Health Service patients, including those with blood cancer.

In September 2024, NHS England announced a new targeted treatment, Quizartinib, to be prescribed to newly diagnosed patients with a specific type of leukaemia, boosting their chance of remission and long-term survival, made available through NHS England’s Cancer Drugs Fund, which fast-tracks new innovative cancer treatments into standard care. This followed a previous announcement of the new treatment Zanubrutini, in August 2024, for those with marginal zone lymphoma, which could halt the progression of their cancer and provide an alternative to further rounds of chemotherapy.
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Tessa Munt:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of restricting the radiotherapy machine fund to replacing only end of life machines on his Department's ability to make new radiotherapy capacity available in 2025-26 financial year. \p Ashley Dalton: The £70 million fund will replace older radiotherapy machines with new, more efficient radiotherapy machines, which will in turn increase treatment capacity and allow more patients to be treated.

All future spending commitments beyond 2025/26, including the replacement of radiotherapy equipment, will be determined through the next phase of the Spending Review process, which will conclude in June.
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Tessa Munt:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the £70 million funding for radiotherapy machines announced in October 2024 is an additional budgetary amount for radiotherapy in the 2025-26 financial year. \p Ashley Dalton: The £70 million investment into 28 radiotherapy machines, which was announced in the 2024 Autumn Budget, is part of the overall financial settlement for the 2025/26 financial year.
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Luke Myer:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce the disparity in healthy life expectancy between the North East and South East. \p Ashley Dalton: Tackling health inequalities is central to our Health Mission, which is why the Government has committed to halve the healthy life expectancy gap between the richest and poorest regions by addressing the social determinants of health. Work is currently underway across the Department and with NHS England and the regional Directors of Public Health to develop approaches to address regional health inequalities.

In line with the Health Mission, we will also be launching a 10-Year Health Plan with the core focus of addressing healthcare inequity, ensuring the National Health Service is there for anyone who needs it, whenever they need it.
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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help increase rates of diabetic foot screening in (a) North Shropshire constituency and (b) England. \p Ashley Dalton: The NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Primary Care team continues to work with practices and primary care networks (PCNs) to improve the access to low-risk diabetic foot screening, as well as with its providers to ensure timely access to medium- and high-risk foot screening. The integrated care system is in the process of transforming its diabetes care pathway to ensure high quality, consistent care, closer to home for those with, or at risk of, diabetes across Shropshire, Telford, and Wrekin, which includes access to diabetic foot screening.

Whilst levels of diabetic foot screening across six of our nine PCNs are above the average levels for England, at 51.2% to 64.5% against an average for England of 46.9%, the integrated care board recognises that this is not universally the case, particularly in North Shropshire, where two of the three PCNs achieving below the average for England are situated, at 18.2% to 37.6%. These statistics are available in the National Diabetes Audit 2024/25 Quarterly Report April 2024 to December 2024.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to raise awareness of the symptoms of pneumonia. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England currently has no campaigns designed to raise awareness of the symptoms of pneumonia. The main ‘awareness’ engine of the National Health Service is the NHS website, which holds clear information on pneumonia symptoms, with further information available at the following link:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pneumonia/

The NHS is focusing on protecting those at most risk of pneumonia, including via the provision of pneumococcal vaccines, with further information available at the following link:

https://www.nhs.uk/vaccinations/pneumococcal-vaccine/
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish a national cardiovascular disease plan. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is committed to ensuring that fewer lives are lost to the biggest killers, including cardiovascular disease (CVD). That is why, building on the 2019 NHS Long-Term Plan’s commitment to prevent 150,000 heart attacks, strokes, and dementia cases by 2029, the Government has set a CVD-specific mission to reduce premature deaths from heart disease and strokes by 25% within a decade.

To deliver on the Government’s ambition, the Department and NHS England are working together to understand both the scale of the challenge and the opportunities for progress across the prevention, treatment, and management of CVD, as part of our 10-year plan.

The 10-Year Health Plan will describe a shared vision for the health and care system in 2035, drawing directly from the extensive engagement underway with the public, patients, and staff. The plan will include how care models and pathways will need to change or evolve to better meet their needs, and the cultural and behavioural changes we want to see.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of deaths in the UK linked to the consumption of ultra-processed foods. \p Ashley Dalton: Scientific risk assessment and the United Kingdom’s dietary recommendations are based on robust independent risk assessments by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN).

No specific assessment has been made of the number of deaths in the UK linked to the consumption of ultra-processed foods. However, the SACN has considered the impact of processed foods on health more generally in position statements published in 2023 and 2025.

The SACN has concluded that the observed associations between higher consumption of processed and ultra processed foods and adverse health outcomes, including morbidity and mortality, are concerning.

The SACN recommended that on balance, most people are likely to benefit from reducing their consumption of processed foods high in energy, saturated fat, salt, and free sugars, and which are low in fibre. This is based on the nutrient content of many ultra processed foods and concerns raised in relation to health.

The SACN will continue to keep the topic under review.
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Adam Dance:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure patients in Yeovil constituency receive timely correspondence on NHS test results. \p Karin Smyth: The Government is putting patients first, by making sure they are seen as quickly as possible and have the best possible experience, which includes receiving timely communication and information about their health and care.

The Government’s focus on shifting from analogue to digital will streamline information and communication processes, including by improving the NHS App. This will make it easier and quicker for patients to access information about their appointments, to cancel and reschedule appointments, and to receive correspondence on National Health Service test results. 87% of acute trusts in England now allow patients to view appointment information via the NHS App if they wish, reducing reliance on physical letters. Expanded use of the NHS App has prevented over 1.5 million missed hospital appointments since July 2024. It also saves staff time to focus on providing high quality, non-digital communication for those who want and need it.
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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the proportion of halal food served in hospitals. \p Karin Smyth: Data on the amount of halal food served in the National Health Service is not collected centrally. No estimate has been made of the proportion of halal food served in hospitals.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) phones, (b) laptops and (c) other electronic devices have been lost by their Department since 5 July 2024. \p Karin Smyth: The Department has lost five laptops and 14 mobile phones since 5 July 2024. There have been no other lost electronic devices. All the Department’s laptops and mobile phones are encrypted to secure the data on the device.
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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of trends in the level of ambulance and emergency waiting times in England. \p Karin Smyth: The Government recognises that urgent and emergency care performance has fallen short in recent years and is committed to restoring ambulance response times and accident and emergency waiting times to the National Health Service constitutional standards.

A 10-Year Health Plan will be published in the Spring, setting out major NHS reforms, moving healthcare from hospital to community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention.

Additional actions to improve urgent and emergency care performance during 2025/26 will also be set out shortly.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Alex Sobel:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking with NHS England to support ICBs to improve the availability of treatments for fertility patients. \p Karin Smyth: In the light of broader pressures on the National Health Service 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.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is currently reviewing its fertility guidelines, which will be the clinical standards for the future NHS offer.

The Department is considering how best to support integrated care boards to improve their local offer.
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Andy McDonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of paramedic prescribers. \p Karin Smyth: The Department remains committed to exploring the extension of medicine responsibilities for non-medical professionals, where it is safe and appropriate to do so. This will support the aim that patients are cared for, and treated by, the most appropriate healthcare professional to meet their needs.

Many regulated healthcare professionals have already received extended medicine responsibilities and prescribing rights, and the Department is committed to assessing the impact that these changes have had on patient care. No specific assessment of the impact of the Misuse of Drugs (England, Wales, and Scotland) (Amendment) (No.2) Regulation 2023 has been made so far. The Department is progressing with work to better understand the uptake of current medicine responsibilities, including prescribing responsibilities, for professions such as paramedics.

There is a process in place for making changes to prescribing responsibilities to ensure proposals are safe and beneficial for patients. The Department is carefully considering proposals for the extension of such responsibilities to a range of healthcare professionals, and will review outstanding requests as quickly as possible.
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Cat Eccles:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help increase the provision of Givinostat free at the point of use for people with Duchene Muscular Dystrophy. \p Karin Smyth: The Department understands the impact that Duchenne muscular dystrophy has on those living with it and their families, and the urgent need for new treatment options. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) makes recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new licensed medicines should be routinely funded by the NHS independently, based on an assessment of their costs and benefits. The NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended by the NICE, normally within three months of the publication of final guidance. The NICE is currently evaluating givinostat for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and its independent Appraisal Committee will meet to consider the evidence in July 2025.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many MAT B1 forms have been issued by doctors to female asylum seekers since 5 July 2024. \p Karin Smyth: The Department does not hold this information.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 24th April 2025 to Question 46100 on Hospitals: Construction, how the construction order of hospitals impacted by Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete will be decided. \p Karin Smyth: The New Hospital Programme (NHP) is working at pace to ensure that the seven schemes to replace hospitals constructed wholly or primarily from reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) will continue to be prioritised and rebuilt as quickly as possible, to protect patient and staff safety.

As set out in the NHP Plan for Implementation, all seven RAAC schemes are in Wave 1, and construction will commence between 2025 and 2030.

My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has commissioned an updated site-by-site report to inform decisions on the delivery of the replacement hospitals, which is due in Summer 2025. The site-by-site report on RAAC hospitals will help inform individual development plans, which continue to progress at pace.

Delivery expectations and dates may be subject to change, depending on local and national factors, and the programme reserves the right to adjust the delivery plan as schemes develop in the future.
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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the serious shortage protocols introduced for Estradot patches are (a) communicated clearly to (i) pharmacies and (ii) prescribers and (b) implemented to ensure (A) patient safety and (B) continuity of care. \p Karin Smyth: There are over 70 hormone replacement therapy (HRT) products, and the vast majority are in good supply. Previously there have been issues with the supply of a limited number of these products, primarily driven by very sharp increases in demand. Following the Department’s intensive engagement with industry, the supply position has improved considerably. As part of this we have previously met with individual suppliers on a very regular basis. We have also hosted nine HRT supply roundtables since April 2022, with the most recent in September 2024, attended by suppliers, wholesalers, and community pharmacists, to provide updates on the supply position and the actions being taken to address them, to share data, and to discuss relevant policy developments and their potential impacts.

Currently, there are limited supplies of Estradot (estradiol) 37.5, 50, 75, and 100 microgram/24 hour patches, which may be available to local pharmacies to order. We are working with the sole supplier of Estradot to expedite further resupplies, where possible. Further deliveries of all patches are expected in May 2025, except for the 37.5 microgram/24 hour patches, which will be resupplied in July 2025. Alternative brands of the same medicine remain available.

We have issued comprehensive management guidance to the National Health Service, including Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) for Estradot 25, 50, 75, and 100 microgram/24 hour patches, allowing community pharmacists to supply the equivalent strength patch of an alternative brand without the need for a new prescription.

All SSPs are developed with the input of clinical and patient safety experts and include advice for pharmacists about any potential risks. Pharmacists may decide not to supply a patient in accordance with an SSP if they have any concerns. In the case of some SSPs, pharmacists are required to notify prescribers that they have supplied a patient in accordance with an SSP rather than the prescription. Pharmacists and prescribers are informed by an email to their NHS email address whenever a new SSP is issued, or changes are made to an SSP currently in effect. All currently active and expired SSPs are available to view on the NHS Business Services Authority’s website, at the following link:

https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/pharmacies-gp-practices-and-appliance-contractors/serious-shortage-protocols-ssps
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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of the reduction in NHS waiting lists that took place between July and December 2024 was due to people (a) receiving the procedure they were on the waiting list for and (b) being removed from the waiting list because it was determined they no longer required the treatment. \p Karin Smyth: Data is not held in the format requested.
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Peter Prinsley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to take to help increase the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of clinical academics. \p Karin Smyth: We recognise that clinical academics are crucial to delivering world leading research across the health and care system, and for training future generations of healthcare professionals.

NHS England published an Educator Workforce Strategy in 2023 setting out the key priority actions that will lead to the sufficient capacity and quality of diverse educators to allow for the growth in the healthcare workforce needed now and in the future.

The National Clinical Impact Awards Scheme serves as a recognition and retention tool for the consultant doctors and dentists, clinical academics, and academic general practitioners who have the highest impact on the wider National Health Service and public health.

Through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, the Department has invested substantially in training since 2006, with the Department being the largest funder of research training for clinical academics in the United Kingdom.

We will publish a refreshed workforce plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade and treat patients on time again.
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Kirsty Blackman:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) press, (b) media and (c) other communications posts there are in his Department; and what the salary band is for each post. \p Karin Smyth: At the end of March 2025, the Department had 90 staff working in the Communications Directorate. Staff in Communications cover a broad range of roles including media relations, marketing and branding, public health and prevention campaigns, internal communications and external publishing on GOV.UK.

The below sets out the salary bands for delegated grades across all locations, effective 1 August 2024:

Grade

Lowest Salary

Highest Salary

Executive Officer

£28,433

£33,880

Higher Executive Officer

£33,476

£40,559

Senior Executive Officer

£41,026

£49,264

Grade 7

£54,444

£66,054

Grade 6

£68,503

£79,972

Senior Civil Service salaries are determined by the Senior Salaries Review Board; further information about current Senior Civil Service pay bands is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-the-senior-civil-service-pay-award-202425/practitioner-guidance-on-the-2024-25-senior-civil-service-pay-framework-html
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Vikki Slade:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the funding made available to ICBs for primary care can be used by GP surgeries to develop plans for premises improvement that will extend beyond the financial year in which an application is submitted. \p Karin Smyth: The Government is committed to delivering a National Health Service that is fit for the future and recognises the importance of strategic, value for money investments in capital projects, such as new facilities, significant upgrades, or other targeted capital investments to ensure we have world class infrastructure across the entire NHS estate.

At a local level, the relevant integrated care board is responsible for deciding how the NHS budget for its area is spent and for allocating funding according to local priorities, such as new general practice (GP) surgeries or integrated care centres/neighbourhood hubs.

At the Autumn Budget, we established a dedicated capital fund of £102 million to deliver approximately 200 upgrade schemes to GP surgeries across England, supporting the improved use of existing buildings and space, boosting productivity, and enabling delivery of more appointments. This funding represents a first step in delivering the additional capital the primary care sector needs.

Further support for NHS organisations delivering local and national priorities beyond this financial year is being considered in the 10-Year Health Plan and as part of phase 2 of the Spending Review.
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Peter Prinsley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to establish a cross-departmental ministerial taskforce with the Department for Education to support workforce planning between the higher education sector and the health service. \p Karin Smyth: The Department of Health and Social Care works closely with the Department for Education on a wide range of matters to ensure cross-departmental collaboration on workforce planning in higher education and the healthcare service.

We have launched the 10-Year Health Plan, which will set out a bold agenda to reform and repair the National Health Service. Ensuring we have the right people, in the right places, and with the right skills, will be central to this vision.
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Helen Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the existing Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon training pathway. \p Karin Smyth: No assessment has been made. To become an oral maxillofacial surgeon, surgeons will need to meet the requirements of both the General Medical Council and General Dental Council, who are responsible for the standard of training for doctors and dentists respectively.
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Dr Luke Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to produce an impact assessment of the planned 50% reduction in integrated care board running costs. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England has asked the 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 to achieve a 50% cost reduction in their running cost allowance. NHS England provided additional guidance to ICBs, National Health Service trusts, and NHS foundation trusts on 1 April 2025, where ICBs were tasked with developing plans by the end of May setting out how they will manage their resources to deliver across their priorities.

NHS England will be working closely with the ICBs to support the development of these plans, ensuring that their implementation reduces duplication and supports patient care. Further details are available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/working-together-in-2025-26-to-lay-the-foundations-for-reform/

In his letter to ICBs, Sir Jim Mackey committed to greater transparency and moving back to a fair shares allocation policy over time. The Department has not conducted an impact assessment of NHS decision to reduce ICB running costs.
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Maya Ellis:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve pain management treatment for people with chronic urinary tract infections. \p Karin Smyth: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guidelines are evidence-based recommendations for health and care in England and Wales. They help health and social care professionals to prevent ill health, promote good health, and improve the quality of care and services. Practitioners are expected to refer to the NICE’s guidance when assessing, signposting to, and prescribing pain relief medications, including for chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs).

When providing clinical care for conditions such as chronic UTIs, it is a prescriber’s duty to prescribe medicines, including for pain relief, when they have adequate knowledge of the patient’s health and are satisfied that the medicine is clinically suitable for the patient.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Mr James Frith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress he has made on the 2025-2026 pay review for NHS staff. \p Karin Smyth: On 30 September 2024, the Government issued remit letters to the independent Pay Review Bodies (PRBs) covering the National Health Service’s staff groups, formally beginning the 2025/26 pay round months in advance of recent annual pay rounds. The Department published its written evidence to the PRBs covering the NHS’s staff groups for the 2025/26 pay round on 10 December 2024, and oral evidence sessions took place with those PRBs in January and February 2025.

We have now received the NHS Pay Review Body covering Agenda for Change staff and the Pay Review Body on Doctors' and Dentists' Remuneration’s reports. The Government is considering the recommendations and will respond formally in due course.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Dr Luke Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take to support integrated care boards through the closure of NHS England. \p Karin Smyth: The Prime Minister announced that NHS England will be brought back into the Department. Integrated care boards (ICBs) are to act primarily as strategic commissioners of health and care services. Detailed guidance has been provided to ICBs, National Health Service trusts, and NHS foundation trusts on 1 April 2025, where ICBs were tasked with developing plans by the end of May setting out how they will manage their resources to deliver across their priorities. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/working-together-in-2025-26-to-lay-the-foundations-for-reform/
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Helen Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support prospective students training to become Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons with the costs of dual degree qualifications. \p Karin Smyth: A qualification in both medicine and dentistry is required to become an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon.

If studying medicine or dentistry as a first degree, domestic students can access student loans from Student Finance England (SFE) from years one to four. From year five of an undergraduate course, and from year two of a graduate-entry course, medical and dental students can access the NHS Bursary. The NHS Bursary is non-repayable, and comprises of payments towards tuition fees and, where eligible, further grants and allowances.

Students undertaking an undergraduate medical or dental course as a second degree are expected to self-fund their tuition fees for the first four years, but can apply to SFE for a means-tested maintenance loan. From their fifth year, eligible students can apply for the NHS Bursary.

Medical and dental students who study the second degree via an accelerated graduate-entry course can apply to SFE for a partial tuition fee loan, and a partially means-tested maintenance loan in year one. They can then apply for an NHS Bursary from the second year of study.

For the 2025 to 2026 academic year, the Government has announced that maximum loans and grants for living and other costs from SFE will increase by the forecast inflation of 3.1%. The Government will also increase the NHS Bursary tuition fee contributions, maintenance grants, and all allowances by 3.1% for the 2025 to 2026 academic year.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS staff have left the NHS in (a) Devon & Cornwall and (b) the UK under non-disclosure agreements. \p Karin Smyth: The Department does not hold information on the number of National Health Service staff who have left the NHS in Devon and Cornwall or across England under non-disclosure agreements.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the (a) nationality and (b) immigration status of people using NHS (i) primary and (ii) secondary care services. \p Karin Smyth: The Department does not hold or collect the information requested.
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Bradley Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to take steps with the Health and Care Professions Council to include psychotherapists on the list of protected titles within the healthcare industry. \p Karin Smyth: While there are no current plans to protect the professional title “psychotherapist” in law, the Government keeps professions subject to statutory regulation and the list of protected titles under review. The Government is clear that the statutory regulation of healthcare professionals should only be used where the risks to public and patient protection cannot be addressed in other ways, such as through employer oversight or accredited voluntary registration.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Dr Luke Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the cost to the public purse of overprescribing. \p Karin Smyth: The National Health Service and its partner organisations are responding to the challenge of overprescribing, as set out in the Government’s review of overprescribing, Good for you, good for us, good for everybody, in September 2021. There are currently no plans to undertake a further review. Progress has been made to implement the recommendations of that review, for example:

- implementing the national medicines optimisation opportunities for integrated care boards (ICBs), or recommendations three and 13;

- addressing problematic polypharmacy, when there is potential harm associated with taking multiple medicines, or recommendations eight and nine;

- delivering structured medication reviews, or recommendation eight; and

- publication of a repeat prescribing toolkit and oversupply dashboard to support general practices to identify oversupply and improve repeat prescribing processes, or recommendation seven.

Offering treatments that are not medicines is also key to addressing overprescribing. Many other initiatives delivered across the NHS contribute towards this. These include delivery of personalised care and shared decision-making, NHS Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression, and social prescribing.

We are continuing to address issues with the prescribing of medicines in line with the NHS’ 2025/26 priorities and operational planning guidance. It is not possible to quantify the overall cost of overprescribing.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Andy MacNae:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the outcome of his Department's closed consultation entitled The licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England, which closed on 28 October 2023. \p Karin Smyth: The Government is committed to taking action to address longstanding concerns about the safety of the cosmetics sector, and is exploring options for further regulation in this area. We will set out the details of our approach in our response to the consultation on the licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England, which we will publish as soon as possible.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the timeline for the New Hospital Programme; and what steps he is taking to ensure that programme meets revised completion targets. \p Karin Smyth: The review of the New Hospital Programme (NHP) has provided a credible plan and timeline to deliver the schemes, as set out in the NHP Plan for Implementation published in January 2025 on the GOV.UK website, and which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/new-hospital-programme-review-outcome

We are working at pace to ensure that the seven hospitals built wholly or primarily from reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete in the NHP will be replaced as quickly as possible, to protect patient and staff safety.

The NHP continues to work with trusts in the programme to progress their schemes in line with the timelines set out in the published Plan for Implementation.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Clive Jones:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support the (a) mental health and (b) emotional wellbeing of the blood cancer workforce. \p Karin Smyth: It is important that all National Health Service staff are able to work in a supportive and inclusive environment that prioritises their health and wellbeing.

Employers across the NHS have their own arrangements in place for supporting their staff, including occupation health provision, employee support programmes, and health and wellbeing guardian roles to ensure board level scrutiny.

To support them, NHS England has a wide-ranging package of mental health and wellbeing support for all staff, which includes access to counselling services, access to a range of wellbeing apps, and tools and resources to support line managers on staff wellbeing. NHS employees also have access to the SHOUT helpline for crisis support, alongside the Practitioner Health offer for more complex mental health wellbeing support, including for trauma and addiction.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-06)

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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that medical data available to (a) private and (b) overseas companies is used only for the purposes for which that use was granted. \p Karin Smyth: Only approved researchers are able to access data for legitimate purposes. This will involve a three-step process where the researcher, their organisation, and their specific project all have to be approved separately before allowing any access. Independent committees, including members of the public, oversee these decisions. For complete transparency, all approvals will be published openly so the public can see exactly who is using health data and for what purposes.

Where an organisation requests access to patient data it must adhere to strict rules, including obtaining approval from a Health Research Authority (HRA) Research Ethics Committee. If processing confidential patient information without patient consent, support is needed from the Confidentiality Advisory Group, along with approval from the HRA.

These research approval processes ensure that only legitimate organisations or individuals are able to use the data, for an appropriate purpose, and that safeguards are in place to protect people’s data.

When NHS England shares patient data with appropriate organisations it does so under a formal data sharing agreement, and it carries out audits and other assurance reviews to ensure that the organisations accessing the data comply with legal and contractual obligations, including international data access processes and compliance with UK General Data Protection Regulation.