theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-20)

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Fabian Hamilton:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help armed forces (a) veterans and (b) families to access NHS dental treatment. \p Stephen Kinnock: We are working to ensure that everyone who needs to see a dentist will be able to do so. This includes our valued members of the Armed Forces community, including our respected veterans, who have spent their careers defending our country.

The Government plans to tackle 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 recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. 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. Armed forces families and veterans will be able to benefit from the improved access these changes bring, like other civilian members of the public.

Free NHS dental care is available to people who meet the following criteria:

- under 18 years old, or under 19 years old and in full-time education;

- pregnant or have had a baby in the previous 12 months;

- being treated in an NHS hospital and the treatment is carried out by the hospital dentist, although patients may have to pay for any dentures or bridges;

- receiving low-income benefits, or under 20 years old and a dependant of someone receiving low-income benefits; or

- receiving War Pension Scheme payments, or Armed Forces Compensation Scheme payments and the treatment is for your accepted disability.

Support is also available through the NHS Low Income Scheme for those patients who are not eligible for an exemption or a full remission of dental patient charges. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/dentists/who-is-entitled-to-free-nhs-dental-treatment-in-england/
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Kirith Entwistle:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many times were the partners of women diagnosed with postnatal depression (a) engaged with and (b) assessed for their mental health by NHS mental health services in the most recent 12 month period for which data is available. \p Stephen Kinnock: NHS England collects some management data on the mental health service offers made to partners. However, this data is not centrally validated.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-20)

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Suella Braverman:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effectiveness of local health authorities appeals process as a means to secure additional funding for charitable hospices. \p Stephen Kinnock: Integrated care board (ICBs) are responsible for the commissioning of palliative and end of life care services, to meet the needs of their local populations. ICBs receive funding via their annual core allocation for resources. This is their recurrent budget which is uplifted and adjusted for their population on an annual basis. It is for ICBs to locally determine the utilisation of their core allocation, including funding for all healthcare, according to their assessment of the relevant healthcare needs of their population. It will be through this process that decisions regarding funding for hospices are made.

Whilst the majority of palliative care and end of life care is provided by National Health Service staff and services, we recognise the vital part that voluntary sector organisations, including hospices, also play in providing support to people at end of life and their loved ones. Most hospices are charitable, independent organisations which receive some statutory funding for providing NHS services.

We are supporting the hospice sector with a £100 million capital funding boost for adult and children’s hospices in England to ensure they have the best physical environment for care, and £26 million of revenue funding to support children and young people’s hospices.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-20)

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Nadia Whittome:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that people living in Nottingham East constituency have access to NHS dentistry when they need it. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Government plans to tackle 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 recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. 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.

The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Nottingham East constituency, this is the NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire ICB. ICBs have been asked to start making extra urgent dental appointments available from April 2025. The Nottingham and Nottinghamshire ICB is expected to deliver 24,360 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.

ICBs have started to advertise 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. As of 10 April 2025, in England, there are 53 dentists in post with a further 44 dentists who have been recruited but are yet to start in post. Another 256 posts are currently advertised.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 16 April 2025 to Question 43484 on Independent Commission into Adult Social Care, what information his Department holds on which quarter of 2028 the phase two report will be published; when his Department plans to respond to the phase two report; and what estimate he has made of the subsequent timetable for consultation. \p Stephen Kinnock: Chaired by Baroness Casey of Blackstock, the independent commission into adult social care will be split over two phases.

Phase one, reporting in 2026, will focus on how we can make the most of the existing resources to improve people’s lives over the medium term. Phase two, reporting by 2028, will then consider the long-term transformation of adult social care, setting us on the road to fundamental reform that will build a social care system fit for the future.

Baroness Casey’s commission is independent, but it has been tasked by the Government to report back by 2028. The quarter in which the phase two report will be published will be determined in due course. The Government will consider and respond to the commission’s recommendations, including whether there is a need for further consultation or legislation, when it reports.
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Jessica Toale:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to include multi-year funding for voluntary sector providers of children’s (a) palliative care and (b) hospices in the NHS 10-Year Plan. \p Stephen Kinnock: The 10-Year Health Plan will set out how the Government will fix our broken National Health Service. Too many babies, children, and young people, including those towards the end of their lives, are not receiving the support and care they deserve, and we know that waiting times for services are far too long. We are determined to change that, by changing the way services operate, rather than by simply funding more of the same.

Whilst it is too soon to say what will be in the 10-Year Health Plan, we are continuing to support the hospice sector with a £100 million capital funding boost for adult and children’s hospices in England to ensure they have the best physical environment for care. We are also providing £26 million of revenue funding to support children and young people’s hospices for 2025/26. This is a continuation of the funding which until recently was known as the Children and Young People’s Hospice Grant.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve conditions in psychiatric hospitals. \p Stephen Kinnock: In January 2025, the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB) concluded its series of investigations into mental health inpatient settings. These identified ways we can improve mental health care, protect patients and the public, and create a safe working environment for staff. The HSSIB’s findings have been published in a series of reports, and we will formally respond to all the recommendations for the Department in due course.

Additionally, NHS England is taking forward its mental health, learning disability, and autism inpatient quality transformation programme to support cultural change and a reimagined model of care for the future in inpatient settings. Local health systems have now published their three-year plans for localising and realigning inpatient care in line with this vision.

As part of our plans to improve the mental health estate, we have invested over £560 million between 2020/21 and 2024/25 to eradicate dormitories in mental health facilities and give patients the privacy of their own ensuite bedroom. As of April 2025, 973 beds, out of a total of approximately 1,360, have been replaced and over 1,000 single rooms opened across over 40 sites.
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Adam Dance:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) intergenerational inequality and (b) socio-economic status on mental health. \p Stephen Kinnock: We recognise that many young people are particularly struggling with their mental health, and we know that socio-economic factors play an important role in supporting positive mental health and wellbeing.

That is why, as part of our mission to build a National Health Service that is fit for the future, we will provide access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England and create a network of open access community Young Futures hubs. We will also recruit 8,500 mental health workers across child and adult services to ease pressure on busy mental health services.

The Get Britain Working White Paper confirms the Government’s commitment to continuing to expand the number of places on Individual Placement Support schemes to help thousands more people with severe mental illness find and stay in employment, helping to interrupt the vicious cycle between poverty and mental illness.

Beyond this, we are taking a whole-of-Government approach to mental health and working with other Government departments to address intergenerational inequality and the socioeconomic determinants of mental health through the vehicle of the Government’s missions.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-20)

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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the number of available dental appointments in (a) Mid Bedfordshire and (b) the UK. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Government plans to tackle 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 recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. 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.

The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Mid Bedfordshire constituency, this is the Bedfordshire Luton and Milton Keynes ICB. ICBs have been asked to start making extra urgent dental appointments available from April 2025. The Bedfordshire Luton and Milton Keynes ICB is expected to deliver 6,041 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.

ICBs have started to advertise 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. As of 10 April 2025, in England, there are 53 dentists in post with a further 44 dentists who have been recruited but are yet to start in post. Another 256 posts are currently advertised.
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Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of increases in National Insurance contributions on the financial sustainability of charitable hospices and the delivery of end-of-life care services. \p Stephen Kinnock: We took the necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at the Autumn Budget, enabling the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26.

The employer National Insurance contribution rise was implemented in April 2025, and planning guidance published on 30 January 2025 sets out the funding available to integrated care boards and the overall approach to funding providers for the 2025/26 financial year. It takes into account a variety of pay and non-pay factors and pressures on providers of secondary healthcare, including charitable hospices. Further information on the planning guidance is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/2025-26-priorities-and-operational-planning-guidance/

We are supporting the hospice sector with a £100 million capital funding boost for adult and children’s hospices in England, to ensure they have the best physical environment for care. I am delighted that the first £25 million tranche of that funding, which Hospice UK kindly allocated and distributed to hospices throughout England, was fully spent by hospices on capital projects. An additional £75 million will be allocated in the coming weeks for use in 2025/26.

We are also providing £26 million of revenue funding to support children and young people’s hospices for 2025/26. This is a continuation of the funding which until recently was known as the children and young people’s hospice grant.
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Tom Morrison:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the increase in the number of people that will have palliative care needs over the next 10 years. \p Stephen Kinnock: Currently, approximately 600,000 people die per year in the United Kingdom. It is estimated that up to 90% of deaths could benefit from palliative and end of life care.

The Office for National Statistics has projected that, by 2040, approximately 800,000 people a year will die in the UK. Also, current trends point to a growing proportion of people dying from chronic disease, particularly cancer and dementia. Taking these considerations together, it has been estimated that the number of people needing palliative and end of life care could increase by 42% by 2040.

We have committed to develop a 10-Year Plan to deliver a National Health Service fit for the future, by driving three shifts in the way health care is delivered, from hospital to community, from treatment to prevention, and from analogue to digital. We will carefully be considering policies, including those that impact people with palliative and end of life care needs, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our stakeholders as we develop the plan.

In February, I met with key palliative and end of life care and hospice stakeholders, in a roundtable format with a focus on long-term sector sustainability within the context of our 10-Year Health Plan. I have followed up with meetings with officials from the Department and NHS England. I also recently met with my Hon. Friend the Member for York Central, and Baroness Finlay of Llandaff, to discuss the progress of their independent commission into palliative and end of life care, including the commission’s first of three reports, published on 13 May, to which we will formally respond in the coming weeks.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to increase levels of access to (a) educational psychologists, (b) speech and language therapy and (c) child and adolescent mental health services in Devon. \p Stephen Kinnock: We know that too many children and young people are not receiving the support they need, including in Devon, and that waits for accessing mental health services and community health services, such as speech and language therapy, are too long. We are determined to change that.

We are working closely with the Department for Education on reforms to the special educational needs and disabilities system to improve inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools.

As part of our mission to build a National Health Service that is fit for the future, we will provide access to a specialist mental health professional in every school. As set out in the NHS Planning Operational Guidance for 2025/26, we are committed to increasing the number of children and young people accessing mental health services by 345,000 compared to 2019. We are also providing £7 million to extend support for 24 Early Support Hubs that have a track record of helping thousands of young people in their community. This includes two early support hubs in Devon.

In Devon, the NHS Devon Integrated Care Board, local authorities, and education and health care providers are working together to align speech and language therapists to schools alongside wider community offers, so that more children and young people can get the help they need sooner, and without long waits.
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Jessica Toale:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to include provisions in the NHS 10-Year Plan on the (a) funding, (b) planning, (c) provision and (d) commissioning at (i) national and (ii) regional level of children’s palliative care. \p Stephen Kinnock: We want a society where every child and young person receives high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis through to the end of life. The Government is determined to shift more healthcare out of hospitals and into the community, to ensure patients and families receive the care they need when and where they need it, including those who need palliative and end of life care. It is too early to say exactly what the 10-Year Health Plan will look like, but we expect palliative and end of life care to benefit from the plan’s three big shifts.

As part of the work to develop a 10-Year Health Plan, we have been carefully considering policies, including those that impact people with palliative and end of life care needs, with extensive input at both national and regional levels. In February, I met key palliative and end of life care and hospice stakeholders in a roundtable format with a focus on long-term sector sustainability within the context of our 10-Year Health Plan. Additionally, I recently met my Hon. Friend the Member for York Central, and Baroness Finlay of Llandaff, to discuss the Commission on Palliative and End-of-Life Care’s first report. I welcome the report’s recent publication.
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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what representations he has received from people who have previously been sectioned under the Mental Health Act 1983. \p Stephen Kinnock: Representations received from people who have previously been sectioned under the Mental Health Act 1983 have been used to modernise the Mental Health Act, to give patients greater choice, autonomy, enhanced rights and support, and to ensure that everyone is treated with dignity and respect throughout treatment.

The Mental Health Bill has been developed with input from those with lived experience from the outset. This legislation has been informed by an Independent Review into the Mental Health Act, and a public consultation on the Reforming the Mental Health Act White Paper. The public consultation received 1,119 individual responses, a significant proportion of which said that they had experience of contact with mental health services, detention under the act, and/or were a carer for someone under the act.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the  potential merits of introducing mandatory (a) Accessible Information Standard and (b) deaf awareness training for NHS staff. \p Stephen Kinnock: Employers in the health system are responsible for ensuring that their staff are trained to the required standards to deliver safe and effective treatment for patients, and to deploy them in the best way to ensure the delivery of health services to their populations.

Since 2016, all National Health Service organisations and publicly funded social care providers are expected to meet the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), which details the recommended approach to supporting the information and communication support needs of patients and carers with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss.

NHS England has been undertaking a review of the AIS to help ensure that the communication needs of people with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss are met in health and care provision.

A revised AIS will be published in due course. In the meantime, the current AIS remains in force, and therefore there should not be a gap in provision for people using services. NHS England is working to support implementation of the AIS with awareness raising, communication, and engagement, and a review of the current e-learning modules on the AIS. The intention is to ensure that staff and organisations in the NHS are aware of the AIS and the importance of meeting the information and communication needs of the disabled people using these services.
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Adam Dance:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help improve the early diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in Yeovil constituency. \p Stephen Kinnock: It is the responsibility of the integrated care boards (ICB) in England to make appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessments, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.

NHS England has established an ADHD taskforce which is working to bring together those with lived experience with experts from the National Health Service, education, charity, and justice sectors to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including timely and equitable access to services and support, with the report expected in the summer.

The Somerset ICB advises that it introduced a children and young people’s neurodevelopmental pathway and partnership advice line in 2021. The pathway offers assessment and support for ADHD and autism and since its introduction, NHS Somerset has doubled the capacity for first assessments. In respect of adults, the Somerset NHS Foundation Trust is working collaboratively with local partners to develop a new pathway and service model for the assessment and treatment of ADHD.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-05-20)

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Alice Macdonald:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many cycles of NHS funded IVF treatment as recommended by NICE guidelines are provided in each integrated care board. \p Karin Smyth: Information about integrated care board commissioning policy for National Health Service funded fertility services is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nhs-funded-ivf-in-england/nhs-funded-in-vitro-fertilisation-ivf-in-england
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Adam Dance:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the planned closure of Yeovil District Hospital’s Maternity Unit on (a) public health and (b) patient safety in South Somerset. \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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Adam Dance:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to prevent the planned closure of Yeovil District Hospital’s Maternity Unit. \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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Dr Caroline Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) internal policy reviews, (b) independent reviews, (c) external reviews, (d) taskforces, (e) public consultations, (f) investigations and (g) other reviews his Department launched between 5 July 2024 and 14 May 2025; what the titles were of those reviews; and how many of those reviews have been (i) completed and (ii) published. \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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Freddie van Mierlo:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what criteria his Department has used to determine which integrated care boards should merge. \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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Sir Christopher Chope:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the number of (a) face-to-face and (b) other GP appointments conducted at (i) Highcliffe Medical Centre, (ii) Christchurch Medical Centre, (iii) Burton Branch Surgery (iv) The Stour Surgery and (v) The Grove Surgery in (A) 2022-23, (B) 2023-24 and (C) 2024-25. \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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Dr Danny Chambers:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will ensure that UK trained doctors have a Speciality Training Pathway available to them after foundation year two. \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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Adam Dance:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to support the provision of maternity services in south Somerset. \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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Andrew Bowie:To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, with reference to StandWithUs' report entitled StandWithUs UK Report: Voice of Students 2024/25 Report, published in May 2025, if he will have discussions with vice chancellors of universities in Scotland on antisemitism on campuses. \p Ian Murray: The Scotland Office and I meet regularly with Scottish universities on a wide range of issues and this Government utterly condemns antisemitism in the strongest possible terms. We are committed to ensuring a safe learning environment for all students while upholding freedom of speech and academic freedom on campus.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in his Department. \p Ian Murray: We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across the civil service to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes initiatives like supporting the Government’s commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.

Additionally, there is a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, the ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), which will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
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Andrew Rosindell:To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether a government representative will visit Scotland for St. Andrew’s Day on 30 November 2025. \p Ian Murray: There are 37 Government MPs representing Scottish Constituencies. On Sunday 30 November, many will be in their homes and constituencies in Scotland engaged in a variety of activities to mark the day.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what steps she is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in her Department. \p Jo Stevens: We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.

Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, The ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.

Apprenticeships are available to new and existing Wales Office staff and my Department promotes these opportunities through Ministry of Justice (MoJ) intranet bulletins and Wales Office staff newsletters. When vacancies arise, the Department also considers if posts may be advertised as apprenticeships.
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Mr Gregory Campbell:To ask the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney, representing the House of Commons Commission, whether any new instances of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete have been identified on the Parliamentary estate since 1 January 2025. \p Nick Smith: As part of continued surveys and monitoring, RAAC planks have been discovered in the floor structure of the Upper Committee Corridor North. This is in addition to the RAAC previously identified in this area. An assessment of the condition of these planks by structural engineers has been instructed, in line with best practice guidance from the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE), starting in July.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_2

Sir Christopher Chope:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 20 June 2025 to Question 58911 on Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme: Coronavirus, if he will set out whether the options for reform to the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme include the (a) limitation period for court claims, (b) maximum award, and (c) disability threshold. \p Ashley Dalton: I would like to express my sincerest sympathies to those individuals who have experienced harm following vaccination, and to their families. At this stage, I am not in a position to comment further on the details of the options being considered, and will update Parliament in due course, as needed.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_3
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_3

Mr Gregory Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding he plans to provide for the National Institute for Health and Care Research Brain Tumour Research Consortium by 2029. \p Ashley Dalton: The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Brain Tumour Research Consortium was established in December 2024 to bring together researchers from a range of different disciplines and institutions, with the aim of driving scientific advancements in how we prevent, detect, manage, and treat brain tumours in both adults and children. The NIHR is working closely with the consortium to support the development of high-quality funding proposals.

The consortium is in the process of collaboratively developing its programme of work, which will be submitted to the NIHR for independent peer review by 31 July 2025. There is no set funding window for their proposal, which we hope will be ambitious in scope and potential impact.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_4
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_4

Dr Simon Opher:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to ban advertising of unhealthy foods at sports events. \p Ashley Dalton: The Government is taking bold action to tackle the childhood obesity crisis and raise the healthiest generation of children ever.

We are progressing with the implementation of the advertising restrictions for less healthy food or drink products on television and online, which evidence shows are the media that children engage with the most. The restrictions include a 9:00pm watershed on television and a 24-hour restriction on paid-for advertising online, and are expected to remove up to 7.2 billion calories from children’s diets per year.

We have no current plans to ban the sponsorship of sports events by food brands associated with less healthy food or drink products or ban the advertising of less healthy food or drink products at sports events. We continue to review the evidence of the impacts on children of less healthy food or drink product advertising, and will consider where further action is needed.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_5
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_5

Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether  he has made an assessment of the capacity of care settings to cope with extreme heat in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) Lancashire. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator with oversight of quality and safety in health and care settings. Regulation 12 of the Health and Social Care Act (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 compels providers to assess the risks to the health and safety of service users receiving the care or treatment and to do all that is reasonably practicable to mitigate any such risks. This includes having an appropriate assessment of environmental risks, such as extreme heat events.

The CQC would expect providers to follow national guidance on extreme heat safety and to follow any relevant heat alerts when these are issued.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_6
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_6

Steve Barclay:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure there is adequate infrastructure to offer access to treatment for people living with inherited cardiac conditions in the East of England. \p Ashley Dalton: NHS England has a published a national service specification for inherited cardiac conditions. This sets out what guidance should be followed, and the services provided to support diagnosis and treatment of patients with previously undiagnosed cardiac disease. This also includes support to families requiring follow up due to a death from this cause. The specification is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/cardiology-inherited-cardiac-conditions.pdf

The national service specification also includes a requirement for specialised inherited cardiac conditions services to investigate suspected cases.

NHS England is currently reviewing this service specification working with a broad range of stakeholders including NHS clinical experts, the Association of Inherited Cardiac Conditions, Cardiomyopathy UK, Heart Valve Voice and the British Heart Foundation.

There are plans for all referrals to the Inherited Cardiac Conditions service in Cambridgeshire to go to Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Royal Papworth Hospital. This will operate a specialist centre for Cambridgeshire, with a multi-disciplinary team already in place to support this.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_7
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_7

Cat Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for his policies of the health-related findings in the Institute of Alcohol Studies report entitled Spin the Bottle: How the UK alcohol industry twists the facts on harm and responsibility; and what steps he is taking to ensure that engagement with industry stakeholders aligns with the Principles for Engaging with Industry Stakeholders published by Public Health England. \p Ashley Dalton: The Department has noted the publication of the Institute of Alcohol Studies’ report. It will consider its findings and reflect on the relevant policies, as necessary.

External engagement is a fundamental part of what United Kingdom ministerial Government departments do. We recognise the importance of promoting transparency through engagement and the need to take a balanced approach. Details of ministers’ meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on the GOV.UK website.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_8
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_8

Juliet Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many GP practices (a) opened and (b) closed in (i) Broxtowe constituency, (ii) Nottinghamshire, (iii) the East Midlands and (iv) England between May 2010 and June 2024. \p Stephen Kinnock: The table attached shows the number of general practices which have opened and closed between January 2014 and May 2024 in the Broxtowe constituency, Nottinghamshire, the East Midlands, and England. This is as far back as the data goes, up to the most recently published data.

This analysis only considers head practices and ignores branch practices. If a practice ceases to be a main practice and becomes a branch practice of another, this will count as a “closure” in this data, while in reality general practice provision at the site may well have continued under the new head practice.

Practices close for a variety of reasons, including mergers or retirement, and so this data does not necessarily indicate a reduction in the quality of care. When a practice does close, patients are informed of the closure and advised to register at another local practice of their choice within their area.

Additional Document (xlsx, 30.5KB)
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_9
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_9

Juliet Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support parents looking after ill children (a) in the long-term and (b) immediately after diagnosis. \p Ashley Dalton: We are committed to supporting people with long term conditions and to ensuring that they receive the support they need, including referral to specialist services as appropriate. We want a society where every person, including those with a long-term condition, and their families and carers, receive high-quality, compassionate continuity of care.

The Department is taking a range of practical steps to support parents caring for ill children. Immediately after diagnosis and in the longer term, parents may be eligible for travel cost support through the NHS Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme. In cases where a child has complex health needs, they can be assessed under the Children’s Continuing Care framework to determine appropriate ongoing support. Wider work is underway, such as the development of initiatives to support parents in hospital settings. Counselling and mental health support are typically provided through local services, and peer support is often offered by voluntary organisations.

As per Section 97 (3b) of the Children’s and Families Act 2014, parent carers have the right to request an assessment of their need for support from the local authority. Having been assessed, Section 17 (10b) of the Children’s Acts 1989 makes provision for a child whose physical or mental health is impaired, as well as his or her family, to receive the appropriate support services from the local authority.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_10
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_10

Juliet Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to take to ensure workforce planning aligns with the availability of trained candidates. \p Karin Smyth: We are committed to training the staff we need to ensure that patients are cared for by the right professional, when and where they need it.

We will publish a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the National Health Service. The plan will set out a bold agenda to deliver on the three big shifts needed to move healthcare from hospital to the community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention. Ensuring we have the right people, in the right places, with the right skills will be central to this vision. Later this year, we will publish a refreshed workforce plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, and treat patients on time again.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_11
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_11

Juliet Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on the review of the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan; and whether his Department has a planned timetable for publication. \p Karin Smyth: The new workforce plan, to be published later this year, will be influenced by the 10-Year Health Plan and the Spending Review.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_12
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_12

Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much revenue was raised by NHS penalty charges for (a) prescriptions and (b) other services in each year since 2020. \p Karin Smyth: The following table shows the revenue raised by National Health Service penalty charges each year from 2020 to 2024:

Payment year

Total payment received from penalty charges for prescriptions

Total payment received from penalty charges for dental treatment

2020

£2,600,479.92

£1,893,654.29

2021

£55,725.35

£693,560.84

2022

£5,883,895.30

£9,291,868.33

2023

£18,349,147.70

£10,901,045.18

2024

£21,334,486.51

£16,244,861.91

Source: NHS Business Services Authority.

Dental treatment is the only service aside from prescriptions that can result in an NHS penalty charge notice.
wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_13
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-30)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-30 conversation_13

Sir Mark Hendrick:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many medical operations were cancelled at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals in each of the last last three years; and what the cost to the NHS was of those cancellations. \p Karin Smyth: The following table shows the total number of elective cancelled operations for the Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, for 2022/23, 2023/24, and 2024/25:

Year

Count of cancellations

2022/23

684

2023/24

654

2024/25

600

Source: Cancelled Elective Operations Data, with further information available at the following link:  https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/cancelled-elective-operations/cancelled-ops-data/ Note: this is for last-minute elective operations cancelled for non-clinical reasons, and excludes emergency and trauma cases.

No estimate has been made for the cost of these cancellations.