theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_144

Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether NHS England carried out an impact assessment before deciding against commissioning hyperbaric oxygen therapy services in the (a) North East, (b) North West, (c) Midlands and (d) central London. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England is committed to ensuring equitably accessible, high-quality services, for anyone who requires hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). This will be achieved through the commissioning of six geographically dispersed services across England. Three preferred providers have been identified to date, and a further procurement exercise will take place to identify the three remaining centres.

The contract for HBOT services, also known as recompression, was reviewed in 2024, as existing contract terms expired. This included an update of the service specification using the published full methods process, and a public consultation on the proposal to reduce the number of commissioned providers in England from eight to six centres. Further information on the service specification, the published full methods process, and the consultation is available, respectively, at the following three links:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy-services-all-ages-Service-specification-January-2025.pdf

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/methods-national-service-specifications/

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/reviewing-hyperbaric-oxygen-services-consultation-guide/#:~:text=Background-,Background,Manual%20of%20Prescribed%20Specialised%20Services

The updates to the specification seek to ensure timely access to treatment for the most acutely unwell patients with the specification requiring:

The geographical scope of the six services will ensure that there are no more than four hours travelling time by road from coastal locations, from the furthest borders, or between neighbouring commissioned HBOT centres, which is in line with good practice guidelines. The published Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment sets out an evaluation, including access to services and where appropriate action was taken to ensure fair access to any patient who requires this service. Further information on the Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/2.1-Hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy-equality-and-health-inequalities-impact-assessment.pdf
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Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions NHS England had with (a) the coastguard,(b) ambulance trusts and (c) relevant statutory bodies before finalising the list of contracted hyperbaric oxygen therapy providers. \p Karin Smyth: Last year, NHS England undertook stakeholder testing and a public consultation on the revised service specification for hyperbaric oxygen services. The main impact of the proposals was the reconfiguration of the number of commissioned hyperbaric oxygen therapy centres in England, from eight centres to six.

The review was led by the chair of the Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Clinical Reference Group and the lead commissioner for the service, and was supported by a Specification Working Group (SWG). Membership of the SWG included a patient representative, clinical leads from current commissioned providers, consultants in public health, and members of the British Hyperbaric Association. Specialist advice was sought on relevant inter-dependent services including adult critical care, HM Coastguard, adult critical care transfer services, and children’s services.

Stakeholder testing on the revised service specification took place from 8 June 2024 to 25 June 2024. 14 responses were received, six of which were on behalf of organisations and eight from individuals. Public consultation was carried out from 13 September to 12 October 2024. A total of 923 individuals responded to the public consultation, from across all regions and devolved nations of the United Kingdom.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

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Kit Malthouse:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to align medicines spending growth with NHS budget growth in real terms. \p Karin Smyth: The allowed rate of growth for branded medicines is established by the 2024 Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth (VPAG).

The VPAG plays an important role in delivering improved health gains from medicines in the National Health Service across the United Kingdom, by securing rapid access to new medicines, supporting economic growth, and contributing to a financially sustainable health service.

We are taking decisive action to review the scheme to unlock innovation and drive investment in the UK's world-class pharmaceutical sector.

This review is ongoing, demonstrating our commitment to creating an environment where this innovative sector can thrive.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

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Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether NHS England conducted site visits to all hyperbaric oxygen therapy providers who submitted bids under the recent commissioning process. \p Karin Smyth: Site visits were not conducted as part of the formal procurement and subsequent evaluation or scoring processes. All bids were evaluated solely on the written responses provided within the bid submissions, in accordance with the published criteria.

Informal site visits, or an informal virtual meeting in the case of one provider, were held with the eight existing providers during 2024. These were solely to support the Commissioner’s understanding of service delivery models. Any information gathered during these visits was external to the provider selection process and was not considered in the scoring of the submissions from bidders.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

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Steve Barclay:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) filled and (b) unfilled full-time equivalent roles there were in each of the NHS regional teams in (i) 2023-24, (ii) 2024-25 and (iii) 2025-26. \p Karin Smyth: The following table sets out the full-time equivalent (FTE) staff in NHS England’s regional teams as of 30 March 2025:

Directorates / Regions

Budgeted FTE

Staff List FTE

Vacant FTE

Vacancy Rate

Region - East of England

804.1

650.2

153.9

19.10%

Region - London

1,032.50

916.7

115.8

11.20%

Region - Midlands

1,085.70

929.7

156.1

14.40%

Region - North East & Yorkshire

844.7

759.3

85.4

10.10%

Region - North West

756.6

684.7

71.9

9.50%

Region - South East

949.2

783.6

165.5

17.40%

Region - South West

710.3

621.5

88.8

12.50%

Total

6,183.00

5,345.70

837.3

13.50%

Source: NHS England

Notes:
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Mr Toby Perkins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the closure of hyperbaric chambers on regional health inequalities. \p Karin Smyth: We are committed to ensuring equitably accessible, high-quality services, for any patient who requires hyperbaric oxygen therapy. NHS England set out their assessment of service requirements in their commissioning intentions during the public consultation which took place in September 2024. Further information on the public consultation is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/reviewing-hyperbaric-oxygen-services-consultation-guide/#:~:text=Background-,Background,Manual%20of%20Prescribed%20Specialised%20Services

The reconfiguration of services ensures service provision which meets optimal time to treatment guidelines, in which providers must be located no more than four hours, based on 200 miles radial distance, from the coast and four hours from the next nearest commissioned provider.

We actively encourage individuals and organisations to register as stakeholders to ensure a full range of views are included in any service developments. Stakeholders can register their interest in services commissioned by NHS England on their website, at the following link:

https://www.engage.england.nhs.uk/application/crg-stakeholder-reg-april-2019/

The published Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment sets out an evaluation, including access to services, and where appropriate action was taken to ensure fair access to any patient who requires this service. Further information on the Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/2.1-Hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy-equality-and-health-inequalities-impact-assessment.pdf
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

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Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason NHS England awarded only three contracts for the provision of hyperbaric oxygen therapy services following its most recent tendering process. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England is committed to ensuring equitably accessible, high-quality services, for anyone who requires hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). This will be achieved through the commissioning of six geographically dispersed services across England. Three preferred providers have been identified to date, and a further procurement exercise will take place to identify the three remaining centres.

The contract for HBOT services, also known as recompression, was reviewed in 2024, as existing contract terms expired. This included an update of the service specification using the published full methods process, and a public consultation on the proposal to reduce the number of commissioned providers in England from eight to six centres. Further information on the service specification, the published full methods process, and the consultation is available, respectively, at the following three links:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy-services-all-ages-Service-specification-January-2025.pdf

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/methods-national-service-specifications/

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/reviewing-hyperbaric-oxygen-services-consultation-guide/#:~:text=Background-,Background,Manual%20of%20Prescribed%20Specialised%20Services

The updates to the specification seek to ensure timely access to treatment for the most acutely unwell patients with the specification requiring:

The geographical scope of the six services will ensure that there are no more than four hours travelling time by road from coastal locations, from the furthest borders, or between neighbouring commissioned HBOT centres, which is in line with good practice guidelines.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that non-deterministic outputs from AI tools used in (a) diagnostics and (b) treatment planning can be (i) explained and (ii) validated. \p Karin Smyth: In the United Kingdom, the majority of artificial intelligence (AI) products being used in health and social care are regulated as medical devices. This means they are subject to stringent safety, performance, and efficacy requirements, primarily set out in the Medical Devices Regulations 2002, with robust monitoring by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulation Agency. These requirements also apply to non-deterministic AI systems that are medical devices used in the National Health Service, such as large language models.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), an arms-length body of the Department, makes recommendations on the safety and cost-effectiveness of products for health and social care services in England. NICE routinely evaluates medical technologies, including innovative AI-enabled technologies, which are assessed in NICE’s Early Value Assessment programme, for those technologies that are most needed and in-demand.

NHS England is also developing guidance for those adopting or considering adopting AI technologies, which is expected to support the safe uptake of these technologies and alleviate concerns that clinicians currently have when buying and using these technologies.

Although many generative AI systems need minimal intervention from users, clinicians still need to review and approve the text which has been produced. AI tools are to be used to support clinicians with their own decision making, rather than to make decisions on the clinicians’ behalf. AI augments, rather than replaces, human expertise.

To ensure that clinicians understand the tools they are working with, we have developed tailored guidance for users and regulators. Through public dialogue, we’ve involved patients and the public in deciding how and why access to health data should be granted for AI research and development. In addition, to bridge the gap between policy and practice we have launched the AI Ambassador Network, which currently has 5,000 members.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

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Mike Wood:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the amount the NHS spends on drugs imported from the US. \p Karin Smyth: The Department has made no estimate of the amount the National Health Service spends on drugs imported from the United States. Published information from the Office for National Statistics on imports into the United Kingdom from the United States for all pharmaceutical products, including human blood, bandages, and wadding type goods, is available at the following link:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/balanceofpayments/articles/uktradewiththeunitedstates2023/2023#:~:text=There%20were%20%C2%A37.8%20billion,chemicals%20from%20the%20United%20States

The data included does not disaggregate NHS and non-NHS spending.
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Sarah Gibson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure access to (a) cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator modulator therapies and (b) other cystic fibrosis treatments in rural parts of Wiltshire. \p Karin Smyth: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) makes recommendations on whether licensed medicines should be routinely funded by the National Health Service in England based on a thorough assessment of the available evidence of clinical and cost effectiveness. The NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended by NICE.

In July 2024, NICE approved three disease modifying treatments, Orkambi, Symkevi, and Kaftrio, as treatment options for eligible NHS patients with cystic fibrosis, under the terms of a commercial agreement reached between NHS England and the manufacturer, Vertex. These treatments are now routinely funded by the NHS in England for eligible patients.

NICE is also currently developing guidance for the NHS on whether vanzacaftor-tezacaftor-deutivacaftor can be recommended for routine funding for the treatment of cystic fibrosis. NICE is expecting to publish final guidance in August 2025.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

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Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps NHS England is taking to ensure emergency access to hyperbaric oxygen therapy for patients in the (a) North East and (b) North West of England from 1 October 2025. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England is committed to ensuring equitably accessible, high-quality services, for anyone who requires hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). This will be achieved through the commissioning of six geographically dispersed services across England. Three preferred providers have been identified to date, and a further procurement exercise will take place to identify the three remaining centres. NHS England is unable to provide details of timescales for the provider selection process for outstanding lots at this stage.

The contract for HBOT services, also known as recompression, was reviewed in 2024, as existing contract terms expired. This included an update of the service specification using the published full methods process, and a public consultation on the proposal to reduce the number of commissioned providers in England from eight to six centres. Further information on the service specification, the published full methods process, and the consultation is available, respectively, at the following three links:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy-services-all-ages-Service-specification-January-2025.pdf

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/methods-national-service-specifications/

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/reviewing-hyperbaric-oxygen-services-consultation-guide/#:~:text=Background-,Background,Manual%20of%20Prescribed%20Specialised%20Services

The updates to the specification seek to ensure timely access to treatment for the most acutely unwell patients with the specification requiring:

The geographical scope of the six services will ensure that there are no more than four hours travelling time by road from coastal locations, from the furthest borders, or between neighbouring commissioned HBOT centres, which is in line with good practice guidelines. The published Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment sets out an evaluation, including access to services and where appropriate action was taken to ensure fair access to any patient who requires this service. Further information on the Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/2.1-Hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy-equality-and-health-inequalities-impact-assessment.pdf
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Sir Desmond Swayne:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the provision of Estradot for women who react poorly to other HRT treatments. \p Karin Smyth: There are over 70 hormone replacement therapy products, and the vast majority are in good supply. Currently, there are limited supplies of Estradot (estradiol) 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, however, supply issues are anticipated for the remainder of the year.

We have a range of well-established processes to manage supply issues when they arise, working closely with industry, the National Health Service, and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to resolve issues as soon as possible. We have issued comprehensive management guidance to the NHS, which includes advice for prescribers to review patients individually if they are unable to tolerate suggested alternative products.

We have also issued Serious Shortage Protocols 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.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

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Freddie van Mierlo:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what criteria his Department has used to determine the allocation of repair funds to the Royal Berkshire Hospital. \p Karin Smyth: The £750 million Estates Safety Fund is part of the overall 2025/26 capital allocation announced by the Chancellor at the Autumn Budget 2024.

The £750 million was divided between integrated care systems (ICSs) through indicative funding allocations as part of the NHS Capital Guidance 2025/26. Each system’s indicative allocation represents a proportion of the £750 million based on need, taking into account levels of critical infrastructure risk, incidents and returns to the recent maternity estates survey.

Due to the diverse needs of the National Health Service estate, a flexible approach has been taken to ensure national and regional priorities are addressed effectively. ICSs worked with their local systems to identify and prioritise which schemes would be funded at which sites from their provisional allocations to deliver maximum safety benefits. The value of these schemes determined the financial allocations to NHS trusts.
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Dr Rosena Allin-Khan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the potential impact of the closure of 83 beds at St George's Hospital on patients. \p Karin Smyth: The Department has not made an assessment. Integrated care boards are responsible for delivery, implementation, and funding decisions for local services, rather than the Department.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_158

Rachael Maskell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of NHS Trusts with recruitment freezes for (a) physiotherapists and (b) physiotherapy support workers on 17 June 2025. \p Karin Smyth: The Department has made no estimate of the number of National Health Service trusts with recruitment freezes for physiotherapists or physiotherapy support workers. How NHS systems and trusts plan resources within their budgets is a matter for local discretion.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_159

Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to build more community diagnostic centres. \p Karin Smyth: The Elective Reform Plan, published on 6 January 2025, sets out that we will deliver additional community diagnostic centre (CDC) capacity in 2025/26 by expanding several existing CDCs and building up to five new ones, as well as increasing the number of CDCs offering services 12 hours a day, seven days a week.

NHS England is working with local National Health Service systems to identify the most appropriate locations for additional investment, including new CDCs. New CDCs should be positioned in a location that addresses local need and health inequalities. Details of future sites will be set out in due course.

£1.65 billion of capital funding has been made available in 2025/26 for secondary and emergency care, which includes £0.6 billion for investment in diagnostics. This will enable the NHS to expand existing CDCs and build new CDCs as part of our Elective Reform Plan. It will also enable the completion of 2024/25 schemes.

The 2025 Spending Review confirmed over £6 billion of additional capital investment over five years across new diagnostic, elective and urgent care capacity, including the £1.65 billion investment already announced. Further details and allocations will be set out in due course.
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Sarah Gibson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Orphan Drug Regulations in stimulating innovation in treatments for pancreatic cancer. \p Karin Smyth: The Human Medicines Regulations include specific incentives to support orphan medicines, designed to encourage the development of medicines for rare diseases. The regulations enable the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to grant orphan designation to a medicine intended for the prevention, diagnosis, or treatment of a rare condition. This orphan designation provides the product with a period of market exclusivity for the specified condition, preventing similar competitor medicines from entering the market during this time. Pancreatic cancer can be considered as falling under the definition of the rare diseases.

The MHRA further supports developers of orphan medicines by offering a full or partial refund of the marketing authorisation fee following a positive orphan designation. There is evidence that the regulations for orphan medicines do support development, with around 150 medicines successfully developed and authorised for the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of rare diseases and given a United Kingdom orphan designation.

The MHRA will continue to review its approach to orphan medicines and, where necessary, propose updates to the criteria to further encourage research into rare diseases and improve patient outcomes.
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Amanda Hack:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with NICE on feedback from stakeholders on how the impacts on carers are considered in appraisals for rare and ultra-rare conditions. \p Karin Smyth: In making its recommendations on new medicines, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) takes into account all health-related costs and benefits, including health benefits to carers. It does not, however, take into account wider societal or economic considerations. Taking a wider perspective could have unintended consequences such as reducing access to treatments for patients who are disproportionately older, economically inactive, or have greater care needs. NICE’s methods are set out in its published health technology evaluations manual, which is available at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/process/pmg36

When presenting health effects for carers, evidence should show when the condition is associated with a substantial effect on a carer’s health-related quality of life, and how the technology affects carers. This applies for all therapies, including therapies for rare diseases. NICE appraisals specifically consider health-related quality of life, for both patients and carers, rather than quality of life as a whole.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 30 April 2025 to Question 49532 on NHS Low Income Scheme: Asylum, what the cost to the public purse has been of providing HC2 certificates to people seeking asylum since 5 July 2024. \p Karin Smyth: The information is not held in the format requested. HC2 certificates are generic and do not have categories such as student or asylum seeker attributed to them. The NHS Business Services Authority does not collect information on what category a patient using the HC2 belongs to for any of the National Health Service charges covered by the scheme. Therefore, it is not possible to calculate the cost to the public purse in terms of lost NHS charge revenue.
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Andrew Gwynne:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the medicines licensing process for novel medications in being able to detect potential teratogenicity prior to the medicine being made available to patients. \p Karin Smyth: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is a member of the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH), which uses internationally standardised guidelines and principles in its assessment and approval of medicinal products.

Teratogenicity is a complex issue which requires an overlapping approach, encompassing preclinical risk evaluation and assessment, close monitoring during clinical trials, and post-authorisation surveillance measures.

The preclinical assessment of teratogenicity is conducted in accordance with ICH S5(R3) Guidelines on the detection of reproductive and developmental toxicity for human pharmaceuticals. The guideline recommends the evaluation of potential teratogenicity in two animal species, typically rodent and non-rodent. The drugs are administered to pregnant females, and teratogenic effects are examined in the offspring. While there is some flexibility, these studies are mandatory. Whole embryo culture systems and other in vitro methods may be used for rapid screening.

Regarding potential reproductive toxicity, which covers teratogenicity, for participants in clinical trials, it is required that a preclinical evaluation of the male and female reproductive organs is conducted, assessed, and confirmed as acceptably safe prior to the inclusion of fertile human participants into early phase clinical trials. Furthermore, appropriate precautions and safety monitoring during the exposure of such participants minimises the risk of unintentional exposure to an embryo or foetus.

Any detected signals or predicted risks of teratogenicity are outlined in the labelling requirements, which may emphasize contraception mandates during the clinical trials and following marketing authorisation approval.

A system of safety reporting and reviews by sponsors and the MHRA is in place to ensure that any safety information relating to concerns that emerge from a clinical trial or following marketing authorisation is addressed in the interests of patient safety.
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Cat Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if (a) he and (b) the Minister for Public Health and Prevention will meet the hon. Member for Lancaster and Wyre to discuss further safety issues to prevent avoidable harm from Sodium Valproate in pregnancy. \p Karin Smyth: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is taking proactive steps to inform the public on the very latest safety issues relating to sodium valproate in pregnancy. The MHRA has, most recently in May 2025, approved updated safety and educational materials to support the implementation of the pregnancy prevention programme and the regulatory measures announced in the November 2023 National Patient Safety Alert, as well as the September 2024 Drug Safety Update. We would welcome the Hon. Member to write to the Department, where we can provide due consideration to any points raised.
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Sarah Gibson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many full-time equivalent MS specialist nurses are employed by the NHS in England; and steps he plans to take to increase their number. \p Karin Smyth: The Department does not hold information on the number of full time equivalent multiple Sclerosis (MS) nurses employed in the National Health Service in England.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) sets the standards for nurse education. There is no NMC requirement for specific post-graduate education for nurses working with those with MS; however, the education and practice learning that prepares nurses to join the register covers learning outcomes to support good care.

Local employers will plan the specialist nurse workforce they require to meet population needs. The NHS funds several post registration education programmes that supports the development of the knowledge and skills required in practice. Each nurse working in the NHS also has access to a continuing professional development budget of £1,000 over three years to enable them to develop their knowledge and skills.
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Rachael Maskell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department has issued to the NHS on retention of newly qualified physiotherapists. \p Karin Smyth: The Government is committed to making the National Health Service the best place to work, to ensure the retention of our hardworking and dedicated staff, including physiotherapists.

NHS England is leading work nationally through its retention programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.
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Sammy Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) serious but non-fatal and (b) fatal adverse reactions associated with the use of mifepristone have been reported to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in each of the last 10 years. \p Karin Smyth: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for ensuring medicines, medical devices, and blood components for transfusion meet applicable standards of safety, quality, and efficacy. The MHRA rigorously assesses available data, including from the Yellow Card scheme, and seeks advice from their independent advisory committee, the Commission on Human Medicines, where appropriate, to inform regulatory decisions.

It is important to note that a reaction reported to the Yellow Card scheme does not necessarily mean it has been caused by the medicine, only that the reporter had a suspicion it may have. Underlying or concurrent illnesses may be responsible, or the events could be coincidental.

The following table shows the number of Yellow Card reports classified as serious, excluding fatal outcomes, and those with a fatal outcome, received for mifepristone from the initial licensing of the medicine, up to 13 May 2025:

Year

Serious reports

Reports with a fatal outcome

2015

3

0

2016

9

1

2017

25

1

2018

9

0

2019

6

1

2020

8

0

2021

5

0

2022

5

0

2023

2

2

2024

10

0

2025

6

0

Reports received via the Yellow Card scheme can contain more than one suspect medicine. It should be noted that mifepristone is used in combination with misoprostol, and as such 60 of the serious reports and five reports with a fatal outcome include both products as the suspect drug.

Misoprostol is licenced for a variety of indications, including gastroprotection in duodenal and gastric ulcers, termination of pregnancy, and induction of labour. Mifepristone is licenced for termination of pregnancy and induction of labour.

A list of the possible side effects of mifepristone and misoprostol are provided in the product information document for healthcare professionals, the Summary of Product Characteristics, and in the UK Patient Information Leaflet.

A Yellow Card report is considered serious according to two criteria. Firstly, a reported reaction can be considered serious according to our medical dictionary. Secondly, if the original reporter considers the report to be serious, they can select from the six serious criteria available, which are: patient died due to reaction; life threatening; resulted in hospitalisation or prolonged inpatient hospitalisation; congenital abnormality; involved persistent or significant disability or incapacity; or if the reaction was deemed medically significant.
wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_168
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_168

Sarah Hall:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve (a) waiting times and (b) access to phlebotomy services. \p Karin Smyth: The Government is committed to putting patients first. This means making sure that patients are seen on time and ensuring that people have the best possible experience during their care.

We also recognise that care, including phlebotomy, should be more easily accessible, and located in the community where possible, which is more convenient for patients than going to hospital.

The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the productivity and reform efforts needed to return to the 18-week constitutional standard by the end of this parliament. The plan commits to transform and expand diagnostic services and speed up waiting times for tests, a crucial part of reducing overall waiting times and returning to the RTT 18-week standard.

Community diagnostic centres (CDCs) are supporting one of the Government’s top priorities for health, to shift care from the hospital to the community. CDCs offer local populations a wide range of diagnostic tests, including phlebotomy, closer to home and greater choice on where and how they are undertaken whilst also reducing pressure on hospitals. Latest management information data shows that CDCs have delivered over 3.7 million phlebotomy tests since July 2021.

Healthcare services provided by general practice, including phlebotomy are commissioned locally by integrated care boards based on population need.
wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_169
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_169

Chris Hinchliff:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many children aged between 28 days and 17 years old were admitted to NHS care for more than seven days in the latest period for which data is available. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England collects the data on patient discharge episodes, including for children, through the Hospital Episode Statistics. Discharge data does not represent the number of individual children with a hospital stay, as a child may have more than one discharge from hospital within the reporting period.

Between April 2023 and March 2024, there were 35,282 discharge episodes recorded where the patient was in hospital for more than seven days and was aged over 28 days old and under 18 years old when admitted into National Health Service care.
wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_170
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_170

Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to participate in a joint sprint review with the Ministry of Defence to assess the national health ecosystem’s capacity to meet the demands of major military operations. \p Ashley Dalton: Ensuring that the national health system is resilient and prepared to meet the demands of major military operations is of vital importance to deterrence and defence.

The Department of Health and Social Care will work closely with the Ministry of Defence to consider the recommendations of the Strategic Defence Review 2025 to ensure the national health system is resilient and prepared to meet the demands of any potential future conflict and to mitigate the wider impacts on staffing, care capacity, and service delivery.
wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_171
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_171

Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has considered using capacity in the private healthcare sector to help reduce pressure on the NHS while maintaining clinical support for defence personnel. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England works closely with the Defence Medical Services to support operational medicine, and this includes considering clinical research and innovation and how this can be implemented to support the Armed Forces. A partnership agreement is in place between NHS England and the Ministry of Defence that sets out how the Ministry of Defence and NHS England will work together in the planning and organising of the delivery of healthcare and supporting policies.

No formal assessment has been made as to the potential merits of increased collaboration with the Defence Medical Services in the fields of medical research and development, specialist training, and in the development of deployable medical capability. The National Health Service and Defence Medical Services work closely together, with many medical personnel working within the NHS, including staff in specialist medical training.

NHS England commissions elective secondary healthcare services for the Armed Forces in England. This includes the routine use of the independent sector as part of the NHS approach to elective care reform.
wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_172
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_172

Sadik Al-Hassan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his Answer of 16 May 2025 to Question 51728, what steps he is taking to ensure that patients (a) improve and (b) protect their own health. \p Ashley Dalton: Whilst it is too early to say exactly what the 10-Year Health Plan will look like, what is certain is that delivering on prevention remains a priority as part of the plan’s three shifts, to get the health service and the nation’s health thriving once again. Through the 10-Year Health Plan, we want to take action to reduce the causes of the biggest killers and ensure the National Health Service uses its relationship with patients to help patients improve and protect their own health.

We have already taken action. For example, the landmark Tobacco and Vapes Bill will gradually end the sale of tobacco products across the country and will ban vapes and other nicotine products from being deliberately branded and advertised to children.

The NHS Health Check aims to detect people at risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and kidney disease, as well as providing advice on reducing cardiovascular disease risk and referring people for support and treatment to improve their health. It is offered to eligible people aged between 40 and 74 years old once every five years. To improve access and engagement, we are developing a new online service that people can use at home to understand and act on their cardiovascular disease risk.

We already have one of the most extensive vaccination programmes in the world, with vaccine confidence and uptake rates among the highest globally. The Department is working with the UK Health Security Agency and NHS England to take steps to promote uptake by providing diverse delivery methods to make getting vaccinated easier, increasing outreach efforts to under-served groups, and raising awareness of the dangers of vaccine preventable diseases.
wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_173
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_173

Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with NATO on (a) the implementation of the NATO Medical Action Plan and (b) its potential implications for UK civil-military health coordination. \p Ashley Dalton: The Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England continue to engage with the Ministry of Defence and the Defence Medical Services on the NATO Medical Action Plan, to consider how best to implement the recommendations of the Medical Action Plan.

This work is part of wider efforts to strengthen the resilience of the health system and its preparedness for the demands of a warfighting or mass casualty scenario, and to increase civil-military coordination on health. This includes developing the mechanisms and plans required to mitigate wider impacts on staffing, care capacity, and service provision caused by a potential future warfighting or mass casualty scenario, in line with directives from the Ministry of Defence and NATO.
wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_174
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_174

Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what role NHS England is playing in joint planning with the Ministry of Defence for scenarios involving (a) mass casualty care, (b) pandemic response and (c) strategic national emergencies. \p Ashley Dalton: The Department continues to work closely with the Ministry of Defence and the Defence Medical Services to ensure the health system is resilient and prepared to respond to a range of scenarios, including conflicts and mass casualty events.

The Department and the National Health Service have plans in place for the management of major incidents which would be drawn upon in the event of a potential conflict or mass casualty event, including those involving military personal. These plans are regularly reviewed to incorporate lessons from incidents, exercises, and ongoing conflicts.

Consideration has been given to the impacts on NHS staffing, capacity, and service provision, and the adaptions needed in the event of a conflict. Work is ongoing in line with NATO direction with the Ministry of Defence and the Defence Medical Services, to strengthen the resilience of the health system and support United Kingdom preparedness for the demands of any potential future warfighting scenario.
wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_175
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_175

Steff Aquarone:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help support the establishment of a dental school at the University of East Anglia. \p Stephen Kinnock: 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.
wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_176
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-20)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-20 conversation_176

Dr Ben Spencer:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on the operation of the Mental Health Act 1983. \p Stephen Kinnock: 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.