theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve access to specialist NHS dental services for people with disabilities. \p Stephen Kinnock: We are committed to ensuring National Health Service dental services are available to all who need them. The January 2025 Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) report on community dental services (CDS) highlighted several known challenges in the operation and monitoring of CDS. NHS England and the Department have taken the recommendations on board and are working to improve the data reporting process to increase oversight of CDS activity, including current waiting lists and performance reporting.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for undertaking special care oral health needs assessments, to identify areas of oral health need, to inform local commissioning intentions, and determine the local priorities for investment.

On 5 October 2024, NHS England announced a new dental check-up service for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. The dental check-ups will be offered to all special residential schools and colleges across England from next year and will reach around 18,000 children and young people. More information is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/2024/10/nhs-rolls-out-free-eyesight-hearing-and-dental-checks-for-children-at-residential-special-schools/
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Navendu Mishra:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many physician associates are working in GP surgeries across (a) Greater Manchester and (b) the North West. \p Stephen Kinnock: As of 31 December 2024, there were 287 full-time equivalent physician associates working in the North West NHS England region, 121 of which were working in the NHS Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board area.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve adult social care provision. \p Stephen Kinnock: We recognise the challenges facing the adult social care system, and we are taking immediate action to improve the situation. These actions include:

Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are tasked with the duty to shape their care markets to meet the diverse needs of all local people. This includes commissioning a diverse range of care and support services that enable people to access quality care. The Department funds an annual programme of support to local authorities and their partners to help them improve the delivery of their statutory duties.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help NHS Greater Manchester achieve financial balance by the end of the financial year. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England has a range of mechanisms and guidance in place to support local organisations to improve their financial management. As part of the Oversight Framework, which is currently being refreshed, NHS England closely monitors the financial performance of providers and systems, intervening and providing support where there is concern about a risk of overspending against agreed plans.

The Investigation and Intervention programme was established in 2024/25 to help National Health Service systems that were facing significant risk to their finances. Following a comprehensive review, a series of actions and interventions are implemented to rectify the risks within their plan. The Greater Manchester Integrated Care System entered the Investigation and Intervention programme in July 2024 and has received external support to develop and implement a financial recovery plan that does not adversely impact patient care or service delivery.

Organisations with the largest financial challenges will enter NHS England's Recovery Support Programme (RSP) and will receive assistance from the National Intensive Support Team to strengthen financial control. Support for organisations who have entered the RSP can include, but is not limited to, specialist support to reduce use of agency staffing, implementation of cost controls, and full implementation of the grip and control checklist. The Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust entered the RSP in November 2022 and is currently being supported by its intensive support team to review its spending and recovery plans.

These support mechanisms should ensure the continuity of services and patient safety, and ultimately where NHS trusts need help with cash flow, the Department will provide cash support in the form of Public Dividend Capital. To date, NHS trusts within the Greater Manchester Integrated Care System have received £22.4 million of cash support in 2024/25, with the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust receiving £15.6 million and the Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust receiving £6.8 million.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Chi Onwurah:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to treat individuals with sensory processing sensitivity. \p Stephen Kinnock: It is the responsibility of the integrated care boards (ICBs) to ensure that the providers they commission make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including for those experiencing sensory processing sensitivity. In October 2023, NHS England produced a sensory-friendly resource pack to support ICBs to develop sensory-friendly environments.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Mrs Elsie Blundell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the factors that contribute to people being unable to access NHS dentists in Greater Manchester. \p Stephen Kinnock: To rebuild dentistry in the long term and increase access to National Health Service dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS 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.

We are continuing to meet with the British Dental Association and other representatives of the dental sector to discuss how we can best deliver our shared ambition to improve access for NHS dental patients. We want to ensure that any reform takes into account the views of dentists across England, including in Greater Manchester.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Mr Peter Bedford:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of provision for people discharged from mental health units. \p Stephen Kinnock: The statutory guidance on discharge from mental health inpatient settings makes clear that National Health Service mental health trusts should have a clear plan in place for the ongoing care and support that a patient requires after discharge from a mental health inpatient setting. This should cover their pharmacological, psychological, social, cultural, and physical health, their education, housing, and finances, and any other individual needs or wishes.

Alongside this, NHS England is also developing new core standards of care for community mental health services to support the continued improvement of care received by people with serious mental illness who require intensive community treatment and follow-up, but where engagement is a challenge.

As part of our mission to build an NHS that is fit for the future and shift care from hospitals into the community by improving community and crisis services, NHS England is piloting new models of care in the community for those with the most serious mental illnesses. New mental health centres will open in six neighbourhood areas from this spring, and will provide people and their families with support 24 hours a day, seven days a week, if they are in crisis, without needing to book an appointment, as well as providing housing and employment advice to support them to stay well.

The Mental Health Bill, currently before Parliament, also aims to strengthen discharge arrangements for people detained in hospital under the Mental Health Act.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to (a) retain, (b) recruit and (c) train NHS dentists in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Stephen Kinnock: We are determined to rebuild National Health Service dentistry, but it will take time and there are no quick fixes. Strengthening the workforce is key to our ambitions.

Integrated care boards have started to recruit posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see up to 240 dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.

We have launched a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the NHS, a central part of which will be our workforce. We will publish a refreshed Long Term Workforce Plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, and treat patients on time again.

To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will increase the number of dementia specialist nurses working in transitions of care roles. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Government wants a society where every person with dementia receives high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis through to the end of life.

The provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs), and may include dementia-specialist nurses. We expect ICBs to commission services based on local population needs, taking account of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines. These guidelines recommend providing people living with dementia with a single named health or social care professional who is responsible for coordinating their care.

In addition to dementia-specialist nurses, we want all health and care staff to have received appropriate training to provide high quality care to people with dementia. Employers in the health system are responsible for ensuring that their staff are trained to the required standards to deliver appropriate treatment for patients. The required training needs are set out in the Dementia Training Standards Framework, which is available through Skills For Health.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Helen Whately:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that the new death certification process does not cause further distress for grieving families. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is monitoring the impact of the death certification reforms, which came into legal effect on 9 September 2024. Early data indicates the median time taken to register a death appears to have risen by one day, from seven days to eight days. This figure is for all deaths, as it includes those certified by a doctor and those investigated by a coroner. The average time taken to register has increased further over the Christmas weeks, but this was expected given increases are observed during this period every year, and the average is expected to decrease again as more data becomes available for January and February 2025. The Department does not hold data on what was the longest period between a death and its registration since September 2024.

The median time taken to register a death varies depending on the type of certification. Deaths certified by a doctor, that comprise approximately 80% of deaths registered each week, have typically had a median time to registration of seven days, though there can be variation at a local level. It’s important to note that the medical examiner system was active on a non-statutory basis before the introduction of the statutory system on 9 September 2024, and this makes direct ‘before’ and ‘after’ comparisons challenging to draw conclusions from.

The core purposes of the death certification reforms are to introduce scrutiny of the cause of death, to detect and deter malpractice, to improve reporting, and crucially to put the bereaved at the centre of the process by offering a conversation with the medical examiner about the cause of death. The expectation on doctors and medical examiners is clear, that they should complete certification as quickly and efficiently as possible, and the Government is working with all stakeholders to make sure this is the case.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Mr James Frith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of (a) investing in auditory verbal therapy and (b) expanding access to support for deaf children and their families. \p Stephen Kinnock: Audiology services are locally commissioned, and the responsibility for meeting the needs of non-hearing children lies with local National Health Service commissioners. It is important that local commissioners have the discretion to decide how best to meet the needs of their local population, and we are giving systems greater control and flexibility over how funding is deployed to support this.

We expect local commissioning to be informed by the best available evidence, relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines, and guidance issued by NHS England. In 2019, NHS England, with input from the National Deaf Children’s Society, produced a guide for commissioners and health and local authority providers which supports non-hearing children and young people. This is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/what-works-chswg-guide.pdf

The Government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunities and ensuring that every child, including children with hearing loss, has the best start in life. I met with Auditory Verbal UK and heard their views about the potential benefits of guidance on auditory verbal therapy, which I agreed to consider.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve accessibility to NHS dental services for disabled users without access to transport. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Government’s ambition is to make sure that everyone who needs a dentist can get one, and we are tackling the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and by recruiting new dentists to areas that need them most.

Community dental services are available to people whose additional needs may mean they are not able to be treated at high street dental practices. Under the Equality Act 2010, health and social care organisations must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled people are not disadvantaged. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/contents

The NHS contracts with independent dental providers to deliver NHS dental treatment in primary care settings. Dental practices are businesses and are therefore able to decide how they operate, providing they remain compliant with the appropriate regulations.

Integrated care boards are responsible for undertaking special care oral health needs assessments, to identify areas of oral health need, to inform local commissioning intentions, and to determine the local priorities for investment.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether glaucoma will be recognised in the NHS 10-Year Health Plan. \p Stephen Kinnock: As part of the work to develop a 10-Year Health Plan, we have launched a significant public engagement process and we would encourage all those with an interest in eye care services to take part in that process, so that we can fully understand what is not working as well as it should, and what the potential solutions are. Further information is available at the following link:

https://change.nhs.uk/en-GB/

Alongside the development of the 10 year plan, NHS England has been testing how integrating primary and secondary eye care services, through IT connectivity and the development of a single point of access, could improve the referral, triage, and management of patients with eye care needs, including those with suspected or diagnosed glaucoma. This approach aims to increase hospital eye service capacity and reduce avoidable blindness.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Mr Lee Dillon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce mental health treatment waiting lists in line with those for physical health treatments. \p Stephen Kinnock: Too many people with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need, which is why we are committed to ensuring we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health so that people can be confident of accessing high quality mental health support when they need it.

This includes recruiting 8,500 more mental health workers, introducing access to specialist mental health professionals in every school, rolling out Young Futures hubs and modernising the Mental Health Act.

Despite the challenging fiscal environment, the Government has chosen to prioritise the funding to deliver expansions of NHS Talking Therapies and Individual Placement & Support schemes, demonstrating our commitment to addressing the root cause of mental health issues and providing support for people with severe mental illness to contribute to the economy by remaining in or returning to work.

We have also committed £26 million in capital investment to open new mental health crisis centres, reducing pressure on busy emergency mental health and accident and emergency services and ensuring people have the support they need when they need it.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Noah Law:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that GPs can support ADHD patients under the shared care plans through (a) reassessment, (b) re-prescription of ADHD medication and (c) other measures. \p Stephen Kinnock: Shared care within the National Health Service refers to an arrangement whereby a specialist doctor formally transfers responsibility for all or some aspects of their patient’s care, such as the prescription of medication, over to the patient’s general practitioner (GP).

The General Medical Council (GMC), which regulates and sets standards for doctors in the United Kingdom, has made it clear that GPs cannot be compelled to enter into a shared care agreement. Shared care is not part of the GP Contract and as such, participation is voluntary. GPs may decline such requests on clinical or capacity grounds. A GP who has previously agreed to a shared care agreement but who can no longer support it must provide a clear rationale for their decision. Both the GP and the specialist clinician share responsibility for ensuring continuity of care for the patient.

The GMC has also issued guidance to help GPs decide whether to accept shared care responsibilities. In deciding whether to enter into a shared care agreement, a GP will need to consider a number of factors to determine whether it is within their sphere of competence, and therefore safe and suitable for their patient’s needs. This includes being satisfied that any prescriptions or referrals for treatment are clinically appropriate.

If a shared care agreement is not in place, the responsibility for ongoing prescribing remains with the specialist clinician, which applies to both NHS and private medical care.
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Noah Law:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to hire more specialists in the diagnosis of adult ADHD. \p Stephen Kinnock: NHS England has established an attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) taskforce which is working to bring together those with lived experience with experts from the National Health Service, education, charity, and justice sectors. The taskforce is working to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including timely and equitable access to services and support, with the final report expected in the summer of 2025.

In conjunction with the taskforce, NHS England has carried out detailed work to develop an ADHD data improvement plan, to inform future service planning. NHS England has also captured examples from integrated care boards who are trialling innovative ways of delivering ADHD services, and is using this information to support systems to tackle ADHD waiting lists and provide support to address people’s needs.

We will publish a refreshed Long Term Workforce Plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, and treat patients on time again. We will ensure the NHS has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to deliver the care patients need, when they need it.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

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Dr Neil Hudson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if the will increase funding for mental health services in rural areas. \p Stephen Kinnock: Mental health is and will remain a priority for the National Health Service across the country, including for those in rural areas. This is backed by the Mental Health Investment Standard, which in 2025/26 will continue to ensure that mental health funding is ring-fenced to support the delivery of our commitments, including those outlined in NHS Planning Guidance.
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Mary Kelly Foy:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the availability of autism assessments. \p Stephen Kinnock: It is the responsibility of the integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including autism assessments and diagnosis, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. In doing so, ICBs should take account of waiting lists, considering how local funding can be deployed to best meet the needs of their local population.

On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to help ICBs and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for children, young people, and adults referred to an autism assessment service. Since publication, NHS England has been supporting systems and services to identify where there are challenges for implementation and how they might overcome these.

NHS England is also working with research organisations to explore evidence-based models that support improved outcomes for those people waiting for an autism assessment.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2025 to Question 35425 on General Practitioners: Finance, whether data other than the (a) Standardised Limited Long-Standing Illness and (b) Standardised Mortality Ratio is used to calculate the formula; how unavoidable costs based on geographical area are calculated; what the additional costs are of delivering services in rural areas; and how those additional costs are calculated. \p Stephen Kinnock: Global sum payments to general practices (GPs) are based on the number of patients registered at each GP. The Carr-Hill formula adjusts these payments to take account of the differences in workload between practices, over the differences due to variations in the number of registered patients. As well as the Standardised Limited Long-Standing Illness and Standardised Mortality Ratio, the formula uses data on the number of patients in each age-sex group, the number of patients in nursing and residential homes, and the number of new patient registrations.

The two components of the unavoidable costs adjustments in the formula are the staff market forces factor, to take account of the higher cost of employing staff in some parts of the country, estimated from earnings data, and the higher cost of providing services in rural areas, such as longer travel times for patients’ home and care home visits. The rurality adjustment is based on GPs’ expenses data, the distance from the patients’ homes to the GP surgery, and population density.
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Pippa Heylings:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of closing Long Covid clinics on patients with Post-Covid syndrome. \p Ashley Dalton: 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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Freddie van Mierlo:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what comparative assessment he has made of levels of young people dying from sudden cardiac death in (a) England and (b) other European countries; and what steps he plans to take to reduce levels of sudden cardiac death in young people. \p Ashley Dalton: 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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Greg Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help tackle regional variation in the levels of early diagnosis of ovarian cancer. \p Ashley Dalton: 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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Richard Burgon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his comments in an interview on the BBC Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme on 16 March 2025, on what evidential basis he said that there is an overdiagnosis of mental health conditions; and if he will publish the evidence used to make those comments. \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.
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Manuela Perteghella:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of reforming the national dentistry model to align it with NHS general medical services to include patient registration with NHS dentists. \p Stephen Kinnock: To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, 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.

We are continuing to work with the British Dental Association and other representatives of the dental sector to deliver our shared ambition to improve access to treatments for NHS dental patients. At the same time, we will not wait to make improvements to the current system where these can increase access and incentivise the workforce to deliver more NHS care.

Patients in England are not registered with an NHS dental practice, although many NHS dental practices do tend to see patients regularly. There is no geographical restriction on which practice a patient may attend.
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Manuela Perteghella:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of funding NHS dental activity nationally. \p Stephen Kinnock: The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including National Health Service dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England.

The NHS in England invests £3 billion into dentistry every year. NHS England is responsible for issuing guidance to ICBs on dental budgets, including ringfences. NHS England Planning Guidance for 2025/26 has now been published and sets out the funding available to ICBs. Planning guidance also confirms that improving access to urgent dental appointments is a key national priority.
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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average cost to the public purse is of one band 5 nursing hour supplied by (a) On-framework staffing agencies and (b) Off-framework staffing agencies to the NHS in each year since 2019. \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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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to use on-framework staffing agencies to reduce the number of unfilled nursing shifts. \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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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of Integrated Care Board funding levels on GP recruitment and retention in West Dorset constituency. \p Stephen Kinnock: General practitioner (GP) retention initiatives are funded though System Development Funds within Primary Care Transformation budgets at an integrated care board (ICB) level. This year, within the NHS Dorset ICB, that funding has supported:

This year, the NHS Dorset ICB also received a one-off funding grant for health and wellbeing within GPs from NHS England. This funding is being used to pilot an Employee Assistance Programme, recruit a Social Prescriber fellow to support international medical graduates, and provide health and wellbeing training. An NHS Dorset and Dorset GP Education Centre taskforce to increase GP training placements has identified West Dorset as an opportunity for growth.
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Dr Simon Opher:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of publishing year-round data on the number of patients being treated in temporary care environments. \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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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the average cost to the public purse of one band 5 nursing hour supplied by (a) On-framework staffing agencies and (b) Off-framework staffing agencies at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust in each year since 2019. \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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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of banning the use of off-framework staffing agencies by the NHS. \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 (2025-03-27)

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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Integrated Care Boards receive adequate funding to improve access to GP services in rural areas. \p Stephen Kinnock: NHS England is responsible for funding allocations to integrated care boards (ICBs). In allocating budgets, it has two aims: equal opportunity of access for equal need, and reducing health inequalities. This process is independent of government, and NHS England takes advice on the underlying formula from the independent Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation.

General practices receive ‘global sum’ funding for providing core services, comprising approximately 50-60% of practice income. The global sum is a capitated payment calculated based on the size of a practice’s registered list of patients, weighted using the Carr-Hill formula. Through the Carr-Hill formula, payments to practices are adjusted in consideration of several factors, including geographical location of a practice. This includes accounting for the additional costs of delivering services in rural areas, and in areas where staff costs are higher.

Although practices receive most of their funding through the contract, after contract payments have been made, ICBs can also use remaining funds from their primary care allocation as discretionary spend for general practice. ICBs can also opt to use their wider funding outside of their primary care allocation to invest in general practice services. This can be directed to best address local need, as determined by the ICB.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_73

Stuart Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the numbers of GPs in South Shropshire. \p Stephen Kinnock: In January 2025, there were 57.8 full time equivalent doctors in general practice (GP) working in the South Shropshire constituency.

The Government is recruiting over 1,000 recently qualified GPs through an £82 million boost to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) over 2024/25, as part of an initiative to address GP unemployment and secure the future pipeline of GPs. Newly qualified GPs employed under the ARRS will continue to receive support under the scheme in the coming year as part of the 2025/26 contract.

We have committed to training thousands more GPs across the country which will increase capacity and take the pressure off those currently working in the system.
wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_74
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_74

Greg Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people have been diagnosed with ovarian cancer through the non-specific symptoms pathway. \p Ashley Dalton: 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 (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_75

Greg Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help shorten the diagnostic pathway for ovarian cancer. \p Ashley Dalton: 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/answers2025-03-27 conversation_76
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_76

Greg Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department has taken to work with (a) the NHS and (b) other (i) stakeholders and (ii) charities to increase awareness of ovarian cancer. \p Ashley Dalton: 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/answers2025-03-27 conversation_77
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_77

Rosie Duffield:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what services his Department and the NHS offer to people choosing to detransition. \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 (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_78

Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support the mental health of parents of (a) twin and (b) multiples. \p Stephen Kinnock: Support is already available for parents, including those of twins and multiples, who experience mental health difficulties during the perinatal period. Perinatal mental health services are available in all 42 integrated care system areas of England, and offer specialist psychiatric and psychological assessments and care for women with moderate/severe or complex mental health problems during the perinatal period. These services have also expanded to provide care to women up to two years after birth, improve access to evidence-based psychological therapies, and provide a mental health assessment and signposting support for partners as needed.

In January 2025, the Department announced £126 million for the continuation of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programmes in 2025/26 in 75 local authorities with high levels of deprivation. This includes £36.5 million for bespoke perinatal mental health and parent-infant relationship support.

In addition, NHS Talking Therapies services are also available for parents who need support with any mental health problems during the perinatal period. Anyone can refer themselves online via the National Health Service website or by contacting their general practitioner.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_79

Rosie Duffield:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the number of new prescriptions issued by NHS Children and Young People’s Gender Services for (a) oestrogen and (b) testosterone to young people aged 16-18 since 1 April 2024. \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 (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_80

Michael Payne:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help reduce the waiting times for diagnosis of (a) autism and (b) ADHD for children and young people. \p Stephen Kinnock: It is the responsibility of the integrated care board (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessments, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.

On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to help ICBs and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for children, young people, and adults referred to an autism assessment service. Since publication, NHS England has been supporting systems and services to identify where there are challenges for implementation and how they might overcome these.

In respect of ADHD, NHS England has established an ADHD taskforce, which is working to bring together those with lived experience with experts from the NHS, education, charity, and justice sectors. The taskforce is working to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including timely and equitable access to services and support, with the final report expected in the summer of 2025.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_81

Ben Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of including mental health waiting lists in the targets outlined in the Plan for Change. \p Stephen Kinnock: Waiting lists for those referred for support are too high across England, including in rural communities. People with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need, which is why we will fix the broken system to ensure we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health, so that people can be confident in accessing high quality mental health support when they need it.

Nationally, we plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers across child and adult mental health services in England to reduce delays and provide faster treatment. We will also introduce access to a specialist mental health professional in every school and roll out Young Futures hubs in communities.

We recognise the unique challenges for mental health services across England, the growing treatment gap, and the spectrum of interventions required, from prevention to early intervention and treatment for mental ill-health. Early engagement from our 10-Year Health Plan has indicated that early mental health support and community-based interventions are critical in delivering substantial long-term health benefits to the public.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-03-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-03-27 conversation_82

Liam Conlon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve community mental health services for young people in (a) Beckenham and Penge constituency and (b) England. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Department recognises that children and young people, including in the Beckenham and Penge constituency, often face long waits for mental health support and are not receiving the care they need. We know that if that is to change, early intervention and prevention support in the community is vital. That is why we are providing £7 million of funding to extend support for 24 Early Support Hubs that have a track record of helping thousands of young people in their community.

Building on this to go further, we are committed to providing open access mental health support for children and young people through Young Futures Hubs. Working with colleagues from across Government, we intend that the evidence and insights collected through our Early Support Hubs evaluation will support the delivery of Young Futures Hubs. This learning will inform our ambitions for community mental health and wellbeing support for children and young people, and ensure that they have access to the kinds of support they need.

The Government will also recruit 8,500 additional mental health workers across child and adult mental health services and provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school through expanding Mental Health Support Teams, so that every young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate.