theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-21)

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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Solicitor General, how many and what proportion of departmental procurement contracts were awarded to British companies in the 2024-2025 financial year. \p Lucy Rigby: Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (Contracts Finder - GOV.UK). Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search).

No procurement contracts were awarded by the AGO below £12,000 during the 2024-2025 financial year.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-21)

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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what proportion of procurement contracts were awarded to UK companies in the 2024-25 financial year. \p Ian Murray: The Scotland Office did not award any procurement contracts in 2024-25.

The Scotland Office is a small Ministerial Department which, other than for minor or bespoke purchases, does not normally undertake direct procurement.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-21)

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Mr Peter Bedford:To ask the hon. Member for Warrington North, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what estimate she has made of the potential savings to the public purse as a result of the scheme of MP's staffing and business costs in the (a) 2024-25 financial year and (b) 2025-26 financial year to date. \p Charlotte Nichols: The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) submits its estimate to for the Speaker's Committee for IPSA to review on an annual basis, along with comparisons to prior years indicated . Significant changes are highlighted for discussion by the Committee and any changes to the scheme of MPs' Staffing and Business costs are subject to consultation. These documents are all a matter of public record.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-21)

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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what proportion of her Department's procurement contracts were awarded to UK companies in the last financial year. \p Jo Stevens: Details of central government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder (https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder).

Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023 above £12,000 inc. VAT are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service. This includes a note of the winning supplier (https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search).
wrans/answers2025-08-12 conversation_1
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will take steps to provide (a) funding and (b) other support to help non-accredited aesthetic training academies to gain OFQUAL recognised status. \p Janet Daby: The department has no role in funding or supporting aesthetic training academies to gain Ofqual recognised status. Instead, this is a matter for training academies and awarding organisations. Ofqual, which is the independent regulator of qualifications in England, publishes guidance on how awarding organisations can apply for recognition for their qualifications, which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-to-have-your-qualifications-regulated.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support rural childcare providers to recruit qualified staff. \p Stephen Morgan: The early years workforce is at the heart of our mission to give every child the best start in life and deliver the Plan for Change.

The latest early years census data reports a 7.2% increase in the number of workers between 2024/25, to 272,500 staff. This represents an increase of 18,200 workers, which is the biggest increase we’ve seen since the data became available in 2018.

We are supporting recruitment through our national ‘Do something BIG’ campaign, with a dedicated website setting out information on qualifications and linking to job vacancies, alongside financial incentives to attract and retain educators in areas of most need, including some rural areas. In addition, we are working with the Department for Work and Pensions to promote and raise awareness of early years careers through the Jobcentre Plus network. We are working with local authorities and mayoral strategic authorities to create new routes into the workforce through skills bootcamps and funding early years initial teacher training, while our delivery support contractor, Childcare Works, is supporting local authorities and providers with one-to-one targeted support, including in rural areas.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of nursery availability on parents' ability to return to work when claiming Universal Credit in West Dorset constituency. \p Stephen Morgan: It is the department’s ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life and delivering on our Plan for Change. In 2025/26 alone, we plan to provide over £8 billion for the early years entitlements, which is an additional £2 billion, as we roll out the expansion of the entitlements. We will also work with the Department for Work and Pensions to make it easier for parents to use Universal Credit Childcare and the funded hours together.

The department has regular contact with each local authority in England about its sufficiency of childcare and any issues it faces. Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, we discuss what action can be taken to address those issues and, where needed, support the local authority with any specific requirements through our childcare sufficiency support contract.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Jess Asato:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of publishing annual statistics on the number of children who miss education due to long term illness; and if she will publish statistics on the child's (a) region, (b) age, (c) ethnicity, (d) gender and (e) type of illness. \p Stephen Morgan: The department collects data on children missing education from local authorities. The latest data, including breakdowns by geography, characteristic and length of time missing education, is published here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/children-missing-education/2024-25-autumn-term. This includes data by region, age, ethnicity and gender.

The department does not yet publish data on physical health or mental health as a primary reason for children missing education. However, these fields have been added to the aggregate termly local authority data collection for the first time beginning autumn 2025 and will be included in the next official statistics release.

Data on pupil absence is collected via the school census and the latest publication is here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/pupil-absence-in-schools-in-england/2023-24. Reasons for absence are included in the publication, including the illness rate.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to ensure that educational institutions in England have adequate policies to ensure the safety of staff and students during heatwaves. \p Stephen Morgan: The responsible body, whether a local authority, academy trust, or voluntary-aided body, must ensure the health, safety, and welfare of pupils and staff, including maintaining safe internal environments during hot weather.

The department’s Education Hub offers guidance on managing heatwaves. Additional advice on emergency planning, including extreme heat, is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/emergency-planning-and-response-for-education-childcare-and-childrens-social-care-settings.

The UK Health Security Agency provides resources for educators on protecting children in hot weather:

The department also allocates annual capital funding to improve school conditions and sustainability.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an estimate of the number of schools in England that have a fast food facility within 400m. \p Stephen Morgan: The department has not made an estimate of the number of schools in England that have a fast food facility within 400 meters, as the department has no remit over the locations of fast food outlets.

As part of the summer 2024 National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) consultation, the government sought views on how national planning policy could better support local authorities in promoting healthy communities, specifically in tackling childhood obesity.

The revised NPPF published in December 2024 introduced a new policy to restrict new hot food takeaways and fast food outlets within walking distance of schools and other places where children and young people congregate unless the location is in a designated town centre. Applications should also be refused where there is evidence that a concentration of such uses is having an adverse impact on local health, pollution or anti-social behaviour.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Mr Will Forster:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to provide additional funding to schools to help support the administrative workload resulting from the attendance and penalty notice regulations introduced in August 2024. \p Stephen Morgan: The changes to the regulations governing the school attendance register simplify and consolidate what is recorded in the attendance register by schools, reducing their complexity and burden on schools.

The changes to the penalty notice regulations aimed to improve the consistency in how penalty notices are used across the country, ending the previous postcode lottery. 81% of school or academy trust respondents agreed with the idea of a consistent national threshold for considering a penalty notice in the 2022 public consultation, which is available here: https://consult.education.gov.uk/school-attendance-policy-and-strategy-team/school-registers-and-national-thresholds-for-legal/supporting_documents/Consultation%20Document_Pupil%20Registration%20Regulations_Thresholds%20Legal%20Intervention.pdf.

Local authorities require information from schools to process a penalty notice. How this is done is agreed locally and should not place an undue burden on schools.

We will keep the policies under review through regular engagement with schools.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his oral contribution in response to the hon. Member for Twickenham during the Oral Statement of 7 July 2025 on Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life, Official Report, column 687, what factors informed her Department’s decision to (a) update inspection standards and (b) increase funding for early years settings. \p Stephen Morgan: Children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances. That is why the Plan for Change set out our ambition for a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn.

Ofsted is in the process of delivering changes to the way it works. The decision to update inspection standards is an important element of this work, to ensure that all children receive the best start in life.

​​We want to ensure the sector is financially sustainable and confident as it continues to deliver the early years entitlements. The hourly funding rates for the entitlements are published each year in the autumn ahead of the following financial year. The rate covers the core costs of providing 15 or 30 hours of childcare to parents. We take account of cost pressures facing the sector, including forecasts of average earnings and inflation, and the National Living Wage.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Gareth Snell:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to increase the availability of early years support for parents in disadvantaged areas. \p Stephen Morgan: On 7 July 2025 the government published its Best Start in Life Strategy which sets out plans to ensure all young families can benefit from high quality family services and early years education and childcare, delivering our Plan for Change.

This includes national rollout of Best Start Family Hubs, bringing together the trusted advice and guidance all parents need in one place and linking families to their local services. Backed by £500 million investment these services will reach the children and families who will benefit most from this support, including those from lower-income families and with additional vulnerabilities.

From age 2, children from low-income families, those with education, health and care plans, and looked-after children are eligible for 15 hours of funded early education. Disadvantaged children may also receive the Early Years Pupil Premium, from April 2025 this was increased by 45%.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Sadik Al-Hassan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to Action 28 (i) of the Life Sciences Sector Plan, published on 16 July 2025, what criteria his Department plans to use to identify (a) low affordability risk and (b) strong long-term outcome data, in the context of identifying eligibility for the proportionate approach to indication-specific pricing agreements. \p Karin Smyth: The criteria will be developed alongside the new proportionate approach to indication-specific pricing arrangements.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on the roll-out of Fracture Liaison Services. \p Karin Smyth: Fracture Liaison Services are commissioned by integrated care boards, which are well-placed to make decisions according to local need.

Our 10-Year Health Plan committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030.

The Department is working closely with NHS England to consider a range of options to ensure better quality and access to these important preventative services.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Steve Barclay:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on what annual percentage increases in healthcare demand is the 10 Year Heath Plan based. \p Karin Smyth: The 10-Year Health Plan is not based on a specific percentage growth rate in demand for health care. Instead, backed by an additional £29 billion, the plan sets out how the health system will seize the opportunities provided by new technology, medicines, and innovation to deliver better care for all patients, no matter where they live or how much they earn, as well as better value for taxpayers.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-08-12)

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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support people with bladder and bowel control conditions in Devon. \p Karin Smyth: All providers in Devon are asked to follow the formulary within the services they provide. The formulary provides information on continence care, with further information available at the following two links:

https://southwest.devonformularyguidance.nhs.uk/formulary/chapters/18-continence

https://northeast.devonformularyguidance.nhs.uk/formulary/chapters/18-continence

As part of focused work in gynaecology, NHS Devon is in a project development phase to design and implement improved pathways for women with stress urinary incontinence and overactive bladder conditions.

Livewell Southwest provides a continence service, offering assessments to adults, those aged 17.5 years old and above, living in Plymouth, West Devon, and South Hams. Livewell provides a holistic continence assessment, including routine observations, bladder scans, and skin integrity checks, as well as reviewing past medical history, medication, mobility, carer support, and diet and fluid. They offer ongoing support and products for any bowel and/or bladder issues that are identified and may refer patients to specialist nurses for further support or district nurses for ongoing care.

Conservative advice is always given as first line management options during assessments, such as pelvic floor exercises for stress urinary incontinence, or bladder training and fluid intake advice for an overactive bladder. Livewell also liaises with general practices to request medication and to request ongoing referrals to secondary care specialists if needed. Livewell works closely with the other community teams. All patients are offered an annual reassessment.

For children and young people, there is a team of specialist children’s nurses and specialist nursery nurses who provide assessment, treatment, support, and advice for children and young people with bladder and/or bowel difficulties. They provide continence promotion, and healthy bladder and bowel advice for children with additional needs. They see and assess children who are eligible for continence products because of a learning or physical disability.

Devon has commissioned a paediatric integrated community nurse led bladder and bowel service for children and young people up to the age of 19 years old, to improve quality of life, to support effective self-management where appropriate, and to prevent chronic conditions developing and needing treatment or surgery in secondary care where possible.
wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_1
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 23 December 2024 to Question 19416 on Maternity Services: Nurses, if his Department will make an estimate of the number of close relative marriage neonatal nurses there are in the NHS; and if he will publish this data. \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 (2025-01-08)

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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the (a) cost and (b) incidence of cousin marriage. \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 (2025-01-08)

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Adam Dance:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the criteria are for Ministers to (a) intervene in an Integrated Care Board's reconfiguration proposal and (b) revisit decisions made in those proposals. \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 (2025-01-08)

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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the implementation of a generational ban on tobacco sales on trends in the level of (a) counterfeit cigarettes and (b) contraband cigarettes being consumed in the UK. \p Andrew Gwynne: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Bridlington and The Wolds on 11 December 2024 to Question UIN 17992.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

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Dan Norris:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to change meat inspection charges from April 2026. \p Andrew Gwynne: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) charges operators to recover costs of meat inspection across its geographic remit of England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The FSA conducts an annual review of inspection charges ahead of each financial year. Charges applicable from April 2026 will be determined by means of the next annual review and will be published in early 2026.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

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Dan Norris:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of animal welfare at abattoirs. \p Andrew Gwynne: As of 1 December 2024, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and their Service Delivery Partner between them employed 282 Official Veterinarians (OVs) and 596 Meat Hygiene Inspectors / Official Auxiliaries, as well as 12 Trainee Official Auxiliaries.

The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government have policy responsibility for animal welfare controls within approved slaughterhouses. Application of the controls is carried out by the FSA in England and Wales under a Service Level Agreement with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government.

FSA OVs that are based in approved slaughterhouses during operating periods monitor animal welfare. Animal Welfare checks are incorporated into the OVs daily Official Controls duties and are conducted at unloading, at ante mortem i.e. pre-slaughter, and during the slaughter operations for all animals being processed.

The FSA is responsible for enforcement of breaches of animal welfare legislation by the slaughterhouse operator or their operatives. In 2024, there were 190 slaughterhouse non-compliance cases in which FSA took enforcement action.

The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government have policy responsibility for animal welfare controls on farm or during transportation. The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and Local Authority (LA) animal welfare teams are responsible for enforcement. Where checks by the OV at the slaughterhouse identify farm and transport breaches, they are referred to APHA and the LA. In 2024, there were 4,210 farm and transport non-compliance cases that FSA OVs referred to APHA and LAs to investigate and enforce.

Application of animal welfare controls at slaughterhouses are carried out by the FSA in England and Wales under a Service Level Agreement with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government.

Monitoring and reporting requirements are built into the Service Level Agreement between the FSA, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Welsh Government to provide assurance on the adequacy of animal welfare at abattoirs. This includes monthly reporting of all non-compliance cases, additional welfare assurance checks conducted by a specifically trained team of Meat Hygiene Inspectors, annual animal welfare themed audits undertaken by veterinary auditors, and biennial slaughter sector surveys. This reporting is supplemented by regular liaison over operational issues and formal quarterly review meetings.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether additional powers will be made available to law enforcement officers to penalise (a) barber shops, (b) off-licences, (c) bookmakers, (d) pubs and (e) other non-grocery and non-newsagent premises illegally selling tobacco products as a result of the implementation of a generational ban on tobacco sales. \p Andrew Gwynne: The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will put us on track to a smoke-free United Kingdom, helping to reduce around 80,000 preventable deaths and reduce the burden on the National Health Service and on the taxpayer.

Whilst the published impact assessment on the Bill makes no specific assessment of the potential impact on the illegal sale of tobacco products in non-grocery and non-newsagent premises, we expect most retailers who sell tobacco, regardless of the type of business, to comply with the new and existing measures in the Bill. Further impact assessments will be prepared in advance of secondary legislation, including for a future licensing scheme, which aims to crack down on rogue retailers.

The Bill takes bold action to strengthen enforcement and crack down on rogue retailers who break the law regardless of the type of business. It introduces new £200 fixed penalty notices (FPNs), in England and Wales, to support Trading Standards Officers to take swifter enforcement action by issuing on-the-spot fines rather than needing to go through lengthy court processes. Trading Standards will be able to issue a £200 FPN for a range of offences, including to anyone who illegally sells tobacco products to someone underage.

The Bill also provides powers for Ministers in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland to introduce a licensing scheme for the retail sale of tobacco products, herbal smoking products, cigarette papers, vaping, and nicotine products. The licensing scheme will support legitimate businesses, act as a deterrent to rogue retailers and provide enforcement agencies with further opportunities to bring penalties against these retailers. We will consult on the details of the licensing scheme ahead of introducing regulations, including the types of business which may hold a licence and the licence conditions.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many cases of gonorrhoea have been diagnosed in each of the last 30 years. \p Andrew Gwynne: The following table shows the number of gonorrhoea diagnoses in sexual health services in England between 1994 and 2023:

Year

Number of gonorrhoea diagnoses

1994

9,631

1995

9,890

1996

11,828

1997

12,332

1998

12,457

1999

15,450

2000

20,297

2001

22,198

2002

24,123

2003

23,346

2004

20,669

2005

17,632

2006

17,191

2007

17,119

2008

14,985

2009

16,141

2010

16,839

2011

21,090

2012

26,909

2013

31,200

2014

37,150

2015

41,290

2016

36,545

2017

44,839

2018

56,690

2019

71,133

2020

50,678

2021

49,321

2022

79,268

2023

85,223

Source: UK Health Security Agency
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Charlotte Cane:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support community pharmacies. \p Stephen Kinnock: Pharmacies play a vital role in our healthcare system. We are committed to expanding the role of pharmacies and to better using the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists as part of the shift from hospital to community and from treatment to prevention.

Now that the budget for Government has been set, we will shortly be resuming our consultation with Community Pharmacy England regarding the funding arrangements for community pharmacy.
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Alicia Kearns:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average maximum number of patients registered per GP practice in England is. \p Stephen Kinnock: The median number of patients registered at a general practice in England in December 2024 was 8,799.
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Ben Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of reforming the NHS dental contract to (a) make appointments more accessible and (b) to tackle the backlog of people waiting for NHS dental appointments. \p Stephen Kinnock: To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of National Health Service dentists. There are no perfect payment systems and careful consideration needs to be given to any potential changes to the complex dental system so that we deliver a system better for patients and the profession.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

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Clive Jones:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to address the regional variation in (a) access and (b) uptake to timely treatments for blood cancer patients. \p Andrew Gwynne: We will get the National Health Service diagnosing blood cancer earlier and treating it faster. We will start by delivering an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week, as the first step to ensuring early diagnosis and faster treatment.

The National Disease Registration Service, through the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Services, collects information on how many people in England have blood cancer, labelled as haematological neoplasms. This data supports service provision and commissioning in the NHS, clinical audits, and public health and epidemiological research, all of which contributes to improved outcomes and reduced treatment variation. Early cancer diagnosis is also a specific priority within the NHS’s wider Core20Plus5 approach to reducing healthcare inequalities.

Professor Lord Darzi has undertaken an independent investigation into the state of the NHS, the findings of which will feed into the Government’s 10-year plan to build a health service that is fit for the future. Following publication of the 10-Year Health Plan, we will publish a new national cancer plan, which will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, including blood cancer patients.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

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Liam Conlon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve access to healthcare services for children with cerebral palsy. \p Andrew Gwynne: We want a society where every person, including those with a long-term condition such as cerebral palsy, receives high-quality, compassionate continuity of care, with their families and carers supported. We will change the NHS so that it becomes not just a sickness service, but able to prevent ill health in the first place. This will help us be better prepared for the change in nature of disease and allow our services to focus more on the management of chronic, long-term conditions like cerebral palsy.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published guidance on care and support for children and young people with cerebral palsy, to support healthcare professionals and commissioners. The guidance recommends service providers develop clear pathways that allow patients with cerebral palsy access to multi-disciplinary teams, specialist neurology services and regular reviews of their clinical and functional needs.  More information on the guidance is available at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng62

NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time Programme aims to improve care for people with neurological conditions, including those with cerebral palsy, by reducing variation and delivering care more equitably across the country.

Most services for people with cerebral palsy are commissioned locally by integrated care boards, which are best placed to make decisions according to local need. Nevertheless, at a national level, the Government is working closely with NHS England to continue to improve services for people with neurological conditions, including those with cerebral palsy.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_14

Claire Hanna:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve NHS diagnostic processes for glioblastoma brain tumours. \p Andrew Gwynne: The Department is working with NHS England in taking steps to improve diagnostic processes in the National Health Service for all patients with cancer, including those with glioblastoma brain tumours.

We will get the NHS diagnosing cancer, including brain tumours, on time, diagnosing it earlier and treating it faster so more patients survive, and we will improve patients’ experience across the system. We will address the challenges in diagnostic waiting times, providing the number of CT, magnetic resonance imaging and other tests that are needed to reduce cancer waits.

To do this, we set out expectations for renewed focus on cancer targets in the Elective Reform plan, published on 6 January 2025. We have asked systems and providers to identify local opportunities in both community diagnostic centres (CDCs) and hospital based diagnostic services to improve performance against the Faster Diagnosis Standard, to reduce the number of patients waiting too long for a confirmed diagnosis of cancer. Any new CDCs will be expected to include specific capacity for cancer testing as part of activity plans, enabled either through direct provision or via freeing up acute hospital capacity for more complex cancer tests.

In September 2024, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) announced new research funding opportunities for brain cancer research, including glioblastoma, spanning both adult and paediatric populations. This includes a national NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium, to ensure the most promising research opportunities are made available to adult and child patients and a new funding call to generate high quality evidence in brain tumour care, support, and rehabilitation.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_15

Daisy Cooper:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department’s cancer strategy will include (a) a prostate cancer screening programme and (b) alternative measures to improve prostate cancer diagnosis for people at higher risk. \p Andrew Gwynne: The National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, including those living with prostate cancer. The Plan will aim to speed up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, and ultimately bringing this country’s cancer survival rates back up to the standards of the best in the world. Updates will be provided in due course.

The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) does not recommend screening for prostate cancer, because the current best test is inaccurate, offering insufficient benefits in relation to harms caused by misdiagnosis and overdiagnosis, such as invasive investigative procedures and unnecessary treatment. The UK NSC is now undertaking an evidence review into prostate cancer screening which is due to be completed this year.

The Department is also investing £16 million into the Prostate Cancer UK led Transform screening trial, which seeks to find better ways to detect prostate cancer. This trial will compare the most promising tests that look for prostate cancer in men that do not have symptoms and aims to address disparities in detection rates across different groups.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_16

Helen Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure early identification of cardiac problems in young people. \p Andrew Gwynne: NHS England has published a suite of national service specifications and standards for Paediatric Cardiac Services, which define the standards of care expected from organisations funded by NHS England, to support and improve the diagnosis and treatment of congenital cardiac problems in young people, with congenital heart disease constituting the bulk of paediatric cardiac cases. The specifications and standards cover all Paediatric Cardiac activity, including surgery and cardiology, taking place in the Specialist Children’s Surgical Centres, Specialist Children’s Cardiology Centres, and Local Children's Cardiac Centres, including activity undertaken by the Specialist Centres on an outreach basis where it is delivered as part of a provider network, with the aim of ensuring all patient care is of a consistent high quality.

NHS England has also published a national service specification for Inherited Cardiac Conditions (ICC), which covers young adults. The aim of ICC services is to improve the diagnosis, treatment, and outcome of patients with inherited cardiac conditions. NHS England is currently reviewing this service specification, working with a broad range of stakeholders as part of the review, including clinical experts in the National Health Service, the Association of Inherited Cardiac Conditions, Cardiomyopathy UK, Heart Valve Voice and the British Heart Foundation.

The Fetal Anomaly Screening Programme also sets out standards for antenatal screening by ultrasound of serious congenital abnormalities, including which abnormalities should be screened for and expected detection rates, with 68% of serious abnormalities detected antenatally.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_17

Danny Beales:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make shingles vaccinations available to all people aged over 65. \p Andrew Gwynne: Shingles vaccination was originally routinely offered as part of the national immunisation programme to those aged 70, using the Zostavax vaccine. In 2019, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) recommended that the programme should be changed to offer the Shingrix vaccine routinely at 60 years of age, that those aged between 60 and 70 years old should also be offered the vaccine, and that individuals would require two doses of Shingrix to complete the course.

Based on JCVI advice, the Department, the UK Health Security Agency and NHS England decided that the programme would be implemented in phases, with the first phase being that between 1 September 2023 and 31 August 2028, those who reach 65 or 70 years old should be called in on or after their 65th or 70th birthday. The second phase would be that from 1 September 2028 to 31 August 2033, those who reach age 60 or 65 years old should be called in on or after their 60th or 65th birthday. From 1 September 2033 onwards, vaccination will be routinely offered to those turning 60 years of age on or after their 60th birthday.

The JCVI also recommended that all severely immunosuppressed individuals aged 50 years old and older should be eligible for shingles vaccination due to their higher risk of complications from shingles. This programme change was also implemented on 1 September 2023. These individuals have been prioritised as part of the early roll-out of the programme to ensure those who are most vulnerable are protected.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_18

Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the (a) average and (b) maximum cost to the NHS was of untreated gonorrhoea in the latest year for which data is available; and what assessment he has made of the impact of this on the NHS. \p Andrew Gwynne: The information requested is not held centrally.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_19

Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the availability of activity blades for amputees over 18. \p Andrew Gwynne: Prosthetics services are overseen by NHS England. They do not commission activity blades for amputees over 18 years old, and have no current plans change this.

Currently, NHS England provides adult amputees primary prostheses, activity limbs, and adaptations for non-competitive sports, but does not extend this support to high-end sports-specific prosthetics necessary for competitive-level participation.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_20

Danny Beales:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which body within the NHS will be conducting the review into the case for lowering the screening age for prostate cancer; what the scope of this review will be; and when he expects to receive recommendations. \p Andrew Gwynne: Screening for prostate cancer is currently not recommended in the United Kingdom, due to the inaccuracy of the current best test Prostate Specific Antigen.

A UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) review looking at whether to offer screening for prostate cancer is currently underway. This evidence review will cover modelling the clinical effectiveness and cost of several approaches to prostate cancer screening. This will include different potential ways of screening the whole population and targeted screening aimed at groups of people identified as being at higher-than-average risk, such as black men or men with a family history of cancer.

Once the modelling and evidence review are complete, it will be considered by the UK NSC. Subject to no further revisions being required, the UK NSC plans to look at the findings towards the end of 2025.

Further details of the UK NSC’s evidence review process are available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-nsc-evidence-review-process/uk-nsc-evidence-review-process
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_21

Helen Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of rolling out cardiac screening to young people. \p Andrew Gwynne: The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) last reviewed screening for sudden cardiac death (SCD) in people under 39 years old in 2019 and concluded that screening should not be offered. More information on the review is available at the following link:

https://view-health-screening-recommendations.service.gov.uk/sudden-cardiac-death/

Research showed that current tests are not accurate enough to use in young people without symptoms, and that treatments and interventions were not based on good scientific evidence to prevent SCD.

To stop SCDs in young people, the current consensus is to focus on rapid identification and care of people who are likely to be at risk of SCD due to a family link or because they have had symptoms, and to train people to carry out cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and to use defibrillators.

NHS England has published guidance for inherited cardiac conditions which requires services to investigate patients with previously undiagnosed cardiac disease, suggestive symptoms or from families with sudden unexplained deaths. Where a genetic variation is identified, cascade testing is offered to relatives based on risk.

We are aware that the UK NSC has received a submission via its annual call process to consider SCD screening in young people aged between 14 and 35 years old engaging in sport. The UK NSC is currently reviewing all annual call proposals. More information on the annual call process is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-nsc-annual-call-submitting-a-screening-proposal/uk-nsc-annual-call-how-to-submit-a-proposal
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-08)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-08 conversation_22

Dan Norris:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of prostate cancer services in (a) Bath and North East Somerset, (b) Swindon and (c) Wiltshire. \p Andrew Gwynne: The Department is committed to improving the adequacy of all cancer services including for prostate cancer, including cancer services in Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire.

NHS England has funded 10 clinical audits, including a national prostate cancer audit. Using routine data, collected on patients diagnosed with cancer in a National Health Service setting, the audit is looking at what is being done well, where it’s being done well, and what needs to be done better. This will seek to reduce unwarranted variation in treatment and reduce inequalities across different groups.

The Government recognises that a cancer-specific approach is needed to meet the challenges in cancer care, and to improve all cancer services and outcomes for people living with cancer including those with prostate cancer. Following publication of the 10-Year Health Plan, we will publish a new national cancer plan, which will include further details on how we will improve cancer services across England.

We are now in discussions about what form that plan should take, and what its relationship to the 10-Year Health Plan and the Government’s wider Health Mission should be and will provide updates on this in due course.