theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Laurence Turner:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what date the powers to make compulsory purchases of land for HS2 Phase 2a purposes expire. \p Lilian Greenwood: Compulsory Purchase powers under the Phase 2a Act will expire on 11th February 2026.
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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information her Department holds on the number of (a) taxi and (b) private hire vehicle drivers that have (i) an overseas criminal conviction and (ii) been granted a licence in each of the last five years. \p Simon Lightwood: Licensing authorities may hold this information. As at 1 April 2024, all authorities in England reported that they required an enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) security check for all drivers. The statutory guidance issued by the Department for Transport in 2020 to taxi and private hire vehicle licensing authorities recommends that when an individual has spent an extended period (3 or more continuous months) outside the UK, licensing authorities should seek or require applicants to provide where possible criminal records information or a certificate of good character from overseas to properly assess risk and support its decision-making process. This enables licensing authorities to make an informed decision when considering if a person is ‘fit and proper’ to hold a taxi or private hire vehicle driver licence.
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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information her Department holds on the number of foreign nationals who hold (a) taxi and (b) private hire vehicle licences who have been deported due to criminal convictions in the last decade. \p Simon Lightwood: The Department for Transport does not hold information on the number of deportations due to criminal convictions.
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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing legislation to ensure all (a) taxis and (c) private hire vehicles are fitted with CCTV. \p Simon Lightwood: In response to Baroness Casey’s report on Group-based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, the Government committed to legislate to address the important issues raised, tackling the inconsistent standards of taxi and private hire vehicle driver licensing. We will work as quickly as possible and consider all options – including national standards – seeking the best overall outcomes for passenger safety. CCTV in vehicles will naturally be explored as part of these considerations.
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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information her Department holds on the number of councils that do not require enhanced DBS checks for (a) taxi and (b) private hire vehicle drivers. \p Simon Lightwood: As at 1 April 2024, all authorities in England reported that they required an enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) security check for taxi and private hire vehicle drivers.
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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of safeguards in preventing harm to children during court-ordered contact arrangements. \p Sarah Sackman: The Ministry of Justice recognises the importance of safeguarding children during court-ordered contact arrangements.

The legislation which governs child arrangements cases makes a child’s welfare paramount and presumes a child’s welfare is furthered by the involvement of both parents, unless there is evidence of a risk of harm. Following the recommendation from the ‘Assessing Risk of Harm to Children and Parents in Private Law Children Cases’ report, the Ministry of Justice has carried out a thorough review of the presumption of parental involvement, which will be published shortly.

Where an individual believes that a wrong decision or an unjust decision (due to serious procedural or other irregularity in the proceedings in the lower court) has been made by the courts, there are routes of appeal and individuals can apply to have a Child Arrangements Order varied or discharged.

In some cases, to ensure children’s safety, courts order contact at Child Contact Centres. These are primarily accredited centres run by the National Association of Child Contact Centres, which operate under rigorous safeguarding standards. These include secure premises with controlled access, trained staff present during supervised contact, and comprehensive risk assessments tailored to each family's circumstances.
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Cat Eccles:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of released convicts go on to reoffend within two-years of their release. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: The proven reoffending rate and methodology is calculated using a one-year follow up period. Providing this information for a new two-year reoffending measure would be of disproportionate cost.

The proven reoffending rate for adult offenders released from custody was 37.5% for the 2022/23 offender cohort (latest year for which reoffending data is available).
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Cat Eccles:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to help reduce reoffending rates. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: We are tackling the root causes of reoffending by investing in a range of interventions which address offenders’ underlying criminogenic needs and support their rehabilitation journey. This includes education, employment, accommodation and substance misuse treatment services.

We continue to work with prisons to improve offenders’ access to purposeful activity, such as education, which we know reduces the likelihood of reoffending. We have also recently launched regional Employment Councils, which will bring businesses together with Probation Services and the Department for Work and Pensions to support offenders in prison and the community.

Recognising that reoffending is twice as high among those released homeless, compared to those released to accommodation, we are expanding our community accommodation service; and working closely with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government and other Departments on a new cross-government strategy to put us back on track to ending homelessness and to improve outcomes over this Parliament.

We are also reforming sentencing to ensure that we never run out of prison places again. Community sentences have been shown to be more effective than short custodial sentences at reducing reoffending. We are working closely with the Department for Health and Social Care to support the increased use of Drug Rehabilitation Requirements and Alcohol Treatment Requirements as robust alternatives to custody, in line with the recommendations of the Independent Sentencing Review.
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Joe Robertson:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prosecutions relating to spiking have there been in each of the last five year. \p Alex Davies-Jones: The Ministry of Justice does not currently collate statistics which show the number of individuals who are charged and subsequently prosecuted and convicted of offences which relate to incidents of spiking. The Government is, however, considering options to improve the way spiking crimes are recorded and collated with the aim of capturing better data to help advise preventative strategies for spiking where needed.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps the Probation Service takes to liaise with local residents when convicted paedophiles leave prison and move to local communities. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: In deciding where to permit a convicted child sex offender who is subject to licensed supervision to live or reside even for one night, the Probation Service works closely with the Police and other agencies under MAPPA (Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements).

Additionally, offenders subject to licensed supervision may be prohibited from entering specified geographical locations (exclusion zones) on account of the particular risks which those offenders present.

Under MAPPA, the Probation and Police Services must by law consider whether to disclose information about a child sex offender to any particular member of the public. There is a presumption to make disclosure where the offender is assessed as presenting a risk of serious harm to any child or children, where the MAPPA agencies judge that disclosure is necessary for the purpose of protecting any particular child or children from serious harm.

The Child Sex Offender Disclosure Scheme aims to improve access to information that may help protect children from the risk of abuse. The Scheme allows parents, carers, guardians or interested third parties to ask local police to tell them about a person's record of child sex offences if they are concerned about that person's access to a child. Members of the public can submit a disclosure request to the Police by letter, phone, at a police station or by speaking directly to any police officer.

The Police will disclose information to the person best placed to protect the child if they believe there is a need to protect a child, and the disclosure is necessary and proportionate. Anyone receiving this information must keep it confidential and use it only to protect the child concerned.
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Robert Jenrick:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been (a) charged, (b) prosecuted and (c) convicted for human trafficking under the Modern Slavery Act 2015 in each month since July 2024. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions and convictions for various offences by month at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool (latest data to December 2024), that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.

Data relating to charges is not held by the Ministry of Justice - this data is held and published by the Home Office.
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Paula Barker:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted for carrying cannabis in England and Wales in the last 12 months. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: The Ministry of Justice publishes data on convictions for possession of cannabis at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.
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Lola McEvoy:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to speed up the sentencing of people found guilty of domestic violence. \p Sir Nicholas Dakin: As part of our landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, we are committed to strengthening the justice system’s response to domestic violence.

Most domestic abuse cases are heard in magistrates’ courts where cases move more swiftly than the Crown Court. Despite this, we recognise that some cases are taking longer to work through the system, particularly in more serious cases that reach the Crown Court.

This Government inherited a justice system in crisis. That is why we have asked Sir Brian Leveson to lead an Independent Review of the Crown Courts, which will propose bold and ambitious measures to deliver swifter justice for victims of serious crimes, including victims of domestic abuse.

In parallel, we are actively exploring the merits of specialist domestic abuse court models as recommended in the Sentencing Review. In November, we launched Domestic Abuse Protection Orders in pilot areas to improve victim safety, and we have committed to rolling out domestic abuse experts in 999 control rooms to improve frontline responses.
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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent discussions she has had with (a) judicial and (b) safeguarding bodies on improvements to child protection in private law family proceedings. \p Sarah Sackman: The Family Justice Board, which is co-chaired by ministers from the Ministry of Justice and the Department for Education and is regularly attended by the President of the Family Division, the Chief Executives of Cafcass and Cafcass Cymru, the Chief Social Worker, and Ofsted, monitors performance across the family justice system and considers relevant strategic issues, including safeguarding of children in family proceedings. At the March meeting, the Board discussed findings from the National Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel’s report on intra-familial child sexual abuse.

The Board also plays a role in the delivery of key priorities aimed at improving outcomes for children and families such as the Pathfinder private law model, now operating in six court areas. Pathfinder was designed in collaboration with the judiciary and safeguarding partners and aims to improve the experience and outcomes for children and parents involved in private family law proceedings, including those who have experienced domestic abuse.
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Ms Polly Billington:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Learning Disability annual health check has been removed as a national target for primary care in the 2025-26 NHS plan. \p Stephen Kinnock: The national target to complete annual health checks for 75% of people with a learning disability is not included in the 2025/26 NHS Planning Guidance. Most recent data from 2023/24 shows 79.6% of checks were delivered, surpassing the previous 75% National Health Service target.

To ensure these important checks continue, 2025/26 Planning Guidance still requires integrated care boards (ICBs) to report on the number of people on the Learning Disability Register who receive an annual health check, supported by a health action plan, each quarter. These checks are the first line of defence for people with a learning disability, many of whom live with additional health needs including long-term conditions. Over the past few years, and particularly through the pandemic, strong support from general practitioners to maintain learning disability annual health checks has enabled more people than ever before to have a health check and health action plan, an increase of more than 20% since 2020.

NHS England is working with people with lived experience, clinical professionals and ICB commissioners to produce an annual health check quality framework. The Annual Health Check quality framework will set out both the purpose, content and outcomes expected within an annual health check and the accompanying health action plan.
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of enabling dental assistants to perform dental procedures under supervision. \p Stephen Kinnock: We support making the best use of the range of skills held by dental teams so that they work to their full scope of practice. This enables clinicians to deliver more complex care and reduce delays for patients.

The General Dental Council’s (GDC) Scope of Practice guidance sets out the areas in which dental professionals have the knowledge, skills, and experience to practise safely and effectively in the best interests of patients. NHS England’s guidance of January 2023 further sets out that dental therapists and dental hygienists can open and close National Health Service courses of treatment and provide direct access to NHS care within the GDC’s guidance.

We are holding a roundtable with dental care professionals on 10 July 2025 where we will listen to feedback about the implementation of recent reforms to increase the scope of practice for dental therapists and hygienists, and the potential for making better use of their skills in future.
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Neil Duncan-Jordan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many overseas social care workers have been successful in finding a new sponsor through the redeployment pool since 9 April 2025. \p Stephen Kinnock: According to the latest available data, between 1 April and 30 April 2025, 165 overseas care workers were successfully supported into new employment by the regional partnerships funded by the Department. This data is self-reported by the regional partnerships and has not been independently verified by the Department or UK Visas and Immigration. Overseas workers are also not obliged to report their employment outcomes. Data for May 2025 and beyond is not yet available.

Between July 2024 and April 2025, a total of 940 overseas care workers have been successfully supported into new employment. In addition, thousands more are being supported through the regional partnerships with CV writing, interview techniques, employability skills support, support to better understand workplace culture in the United Kingdom, and signposting.
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Shivani Raja:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve NHS (a) engagement with and (b) leadership responsiveness to small community-led carer networks. \p Stephen Kinnock: We recognise the importance of listening to and partnering with people who use the National Health Service, their unpaid carers and the organisations and networks that represent them. The Health and Care Act 2022 introduced new duties for NHS England and integrated care boards to involve carers in public engagement.

I chair a regular cross-government meeting made up of ministers from the Department of Health and Social Care, Department for Work and Pensions, Department for Business and Trade, and Department for Education, as well as senior officials from NHS England, to consider how we can provide unpaid carers with the recognition and support they deserve.

NHS England and the Department also regularly engages with both national charities, local carer organisations and unpaid carers directly.
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John Whitby:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase grant funding for men’s mental health support charities. \p Stephen Kinnock: The Government recently announced a Men's Health Strategy which will seek to improve the health and wellbeing of all men in England and take a life-course approach. This includes finding the right ways to promote healthier behaviours, improving outcomes for health conditions that hit men harder, and encouraging more men to come forward for healthcare, including mental health. The strategy will be informed by a call for evidence to understand what is working and what more needs to be done. We will consider all the levers at our disposal in drawing up plans for the strategy.

The 12-week call for evidence will gather vital insights from the public, health and social care professionals, academics and employers so the Government can properly consider how to prevent and tackle the biggest issues facing men from all backgrounds. We will be looking at where the learning can be used to inform future policy and funding bids.
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Dr Caroline Johnson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which community diagnostic centres are under construction. \p Karin Smyth: 170 community diagnostic centre (CDCs) sites are operational across England. 110 of these CDCs are described as ‘fully operational’. Of the remaining 60 CDCs, 39 are live and delivering activity on their permanent site but are still operating some services via temporary facilities, and 21 are delivering activity from a nearby temporary location whilst the permanent site is completing construction.

£1.65 billion of capital funding has been made available in 2025/26 for secondary and emergency care, which includes £0.6 billion for investment in diagnostics. This includes funding to enable the completion of 2024/25 schemes. Funding will also support the National Health Service to expand existing CDCs and build up to five new CDCs as part of our Elective Reform Plan.
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Warinder Juss:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how the cost of redundancies during the NHS restructure will be met. \p Karin Smyth: Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of the abolition of NHS England, we are clear on the need for a smaller centre, as well as scaling back integrated care board running costs and National Health Service provider corporate costs reductions in order to reduce waste and bureaucracy. Good progress is being made with the Department and NHS England having announced voluntary exit or redundancy schemes.

Provision for redundancy costs will be considered alongside the multi-year planning round.
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Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to Questions (a) 61929 tabled on 23 June, (b) 61928 tabled on 23 June and (c) 61005 tabled on 18 June 2025. \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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Ben Lake:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review report, published on 8 July 2020, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of launching a public inquiry into the potential harms of anti-seizure medication. \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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Mr Gregory Campbell:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the current number of people with Activated P13K-delta 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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Joe Robertson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Deputy Director for 10 Year Health Plan Engagement's Change NHS website blog post, entitled, Ensuring the Plan represents everyone, which groups are classified as inclusion health groups. \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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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much capital funding will be provided for maintenance at (a) Bedford and (b) Luton & Dunstable hospitals as part of spending commitments made in the Autumn Budget 2024. \p Karin Smyth: In 2025/26, the Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has been provided with £10.5 million from the Estates Safety Fund to address critical infrastructure and safety risks. Of this, £9.3 million will go to Bedford Hospital and £1.2 million will go to Luton and Dunstable Hospital.

This funding is in addition to the £62 million of operational capital, including Primary Care Business as Usual Capital, provisionally allocated to the Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board in 2025/26 for addressing local priorities, including investment in maintenance and repairs at Bedford and Luton and Dunstable hospitals.

Specific allocations and funding beyond the current financial year are subject to further planning.
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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the total value is of (a) unused and (b) expired PPE stock held by the NHS. \p Karin Smyth: Data on personal protective equipment (PPE) items held in storage within individual National Health Service trusts is not held centrally.

As of 16 June 2025, PPE items with a value of £24,496,465 are being held in storage by NHS Supply Chain for sale to NHS trusts. This stock is all in date. The programme to dispose of excess COVID-19 related PPE concluded in January 2025. Some excess stock was used to replenish the Department’s pandemic PPE stockpile, where possible and appropriate, based on anticipated PPE requirements during a pandemic. The value of in-date PPE held in the Department’s Pandemic Preparedness stockpile by NHS Supply Chain as of 16 June 2025 is £172,923,563. The value of expired PPE held in the Pandemic Preparedness stockpile is £12,514,945, pending replacement and disposal.

Dynamic stockpiling will be the default for any new PPE we buy for the pandemic stockpile. Stockpiled PPE is being sold for use in the NHS wherever possible, before it expires. This represents better value for money by reducing costs for storage, procurement of new products, and disposal of expired products, as well as reducing waste.
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Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the total value was of fraud detected across NHS procurement systems in each year since 2020. \p Karin Smyth: The following table shows the value of the procurement fraud detected in the National Health Service in England for each of the last five years:

Year

Procurement fraud detected

2020/21

£9,100,000

2021/22

£9,300,000

2022/23

£3,200,000

2023/24

£5,800,000

2024/25

£3,000,000

Source: the data is derived from the NHS related Consolidated Data Return. Notes:
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Alex McIntyre:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support NHS staff with Postural tachycardia syndrome. \p Karin Smyth: Improving health outcomes for everyone living with a long-term condition, including postural tachycardia syndrome (PoTS), is a key part of the Government's mission to build a National Health Service fit for the future.

People with PoTS can access a variety of NHS services, which are locally commissioned by integrated care boards (ICBs). ICBs are responsible for ensuring that their local area has appropriate services in place to meet the needs of their population.

Many patients can be diagnosed and managed effectively within primary care. In complex cases, or where patients do not respond to initial treatment, patients may be referred to specialised cardiology or neurology services.

The health and wellbeing of NHS staff is a top priority, and it is important that employers across the NHS take a preventative and proactive approach to supporting their staff, keeping them healthy, and to improving workplace culture.

NHS employers have their own arrangements in place for supporting their staff, including occupational health provision, employee support programmes, and board level scrutiny through health and wellbeing guardians.

At a national level, NHS England has made available additional support. This includes a focus on healthy working environments, tools and resources to support line managers to hold meaningful conversations with staff to discuss their wellbeing, and emotional and psychological health and wellbeing support.
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Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's press release entitled AI doctors’ assistant to speed up appointments a ‘gamechanger’, published on 27 April 2025, what steps he is taking to ensure quality control safeguards. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England is committed to supporting and enabling the safe deployment and adoption of new technology for the National Health Service. The adoption of ambient voice technology (AVT) solutions holds transformative potential for any care setting. Their adoption, when used safely and securely, is to be encouraged to improve both the quality of patient care and operational efficiency. NHS England has published guidance on how digital technologies should be approved for use in the NHS, covering key areas such as implementation, information governance, data, security, privacy, and controls. Additional national guidance explains how AVT solutions should be selected, deployed, and scaled. These standards are required for any AVT solution to be considered safe, effective, and eligible for NHS adoption.

There are strict safeguards in place throughout the NHS to protect data. All providers of services which handle patient data must protect that data in line with UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018, and every health organisation is required to appoint a Caldicott Guardian to advise on the protection of people’s health and care data, and to ensure it is used properly. This includes where artificial intelligence (AI) is used in relation to patient records.

To mitigate the likelihood and severity of any potential harm to individuals arising from the use of data in AI, the Information Commissioners Office has developed detailed AI guidance which provides information on data protection, including Data Protection Impact Assessments and UK GDPR. It has also produced an AI toolkit to support organisations auditing the compliance of their AI-based technologies. NHS bodies are expected to make use of this guidance and toolkit, including those using AVTs.
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Sonia Kumar:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of including incontinence in medical training for all healthcare professionals. \p Karin Smyth: No assessment has been made. The standard of training for healthcare professionals is the responsibility of the independent statutory regulatory bodies who set the outcome standards expected at undergraduate level and approve courses. Higher education institutions write and teach the curricula content that enables their students to meet the regulators’ outcome standards.

Whilst not all curricula may necessarily highlight a specific condition, they all nevertheless emphasise the skills and approaches a healthcare professional must develop in order to ensure accurate and timely diagnoses and treatment plans for their patients, including for incontinence.

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.
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Mr Louie French:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the tariff rate per patient was for (a) CT, (b) MRI and (c) ultrasound scans delivered in community diagnostic centres on (ii) 1 March and (ii) 1 June 2025. \p Karin Smyth: The community diagnostic centre (CDC) tariff price list has evolved to align with the national payment scheme from April 2025. Tariff prices in CDCs are now consistent with acute and primary care provision so that the cost of the delivery of diagnostics is equitable with the rest of the National Health Service. The payment scheme can be found at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/2025-26-nhs-payment-scheme/

The cost differential over the Spending Review 2021 period allowed CDCs under construction to be supported financially with the additional costs of setting up a new service. The following table shows the CDC price tariffs for 2024/25:

Test type

Test name and description

Price

Ultrasound (US) non-obstetric ultrasound (NOUS)

US (NOUS) without contrast

£52

US (NOUS) with contrast

£117

Computed tomography (CT)

CT with contrast

£146

CT without contrast

£133

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

MRI without contrast

£177

MRI with contrast

£264

In addition, the following table shows the 2025/26 national payment scheme prices:

Test type

Test name and description

Price

Ultrasound (US) non-obstetric ultrasound (NOUS)

US (NOUS) without contrast (under 20 mins)

£48

US (NOUS) without contrast (over 20 mins)

£61

US (NOUS) with contrast (under 20 mins)

£99

US (NOUS) with contrast (over 20 mins)

£111

Computed tomography (CT)

CT with contrast 1 area (Adult)

£98

CT with contrast 1 area (Paediatrics age 6 to 18 years old)

£161

CT with contrast 2 area

£105

CT with contrast 3 area

£115

CT non contrast 1 area (Adult)

£78

CT non contrast 1 area (Paediatrics age 6 to 18 years old)

£132

CT non contrast 2 area

£85

CT non contrast 3 area

£94

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

MRI non contrast 1 area (Adult)

£129

MRI non contrast 1 area (Paediatric age 6 to 18 years old)

£217

MRI non contrast 2 area

£155

MRI non contrast more than 3 area

£222

MRI with contrast 1 area (Adult)

£188

MRI with contrast 1 area (Paediatric age 6 to 18 years old)

£329
wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_242
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_242

Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what declarations of political (a) activity and (b) interests were made by each Health Crown Representative. \p Karin Smyth: The appointments of the Health Crown Representatives, as with all Crown Representatives, were made by the Cabinet Office.

The Cabinet Office requires all Crown Representatives to declare any Conflict of Interest both on appointment and at regular intervals thereafter. None of the current Crown Representatives have declared any party-political activity or interests.
wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_243
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_243

Brian Mathew:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the availability of hearing tests. \p Karin Smyth: We are committed to transforming diagnostic services and will support the National Health Service to increase diagnostic capacity to meet the demand for diagnostic services, including for audiology services such as hearing tests. Our Elective Reform Plan commits to transforming and expanding diagnostic services and speeding up waiting times for tests.

NHS England is supporting provider organisations and integrated care boards, who are the commissioners of audiology services, to improve performance and reduce waiting lists. This includes capital investment to upgrade audiology facilities in NHS trusts, expanding audiology testing capacity via community diagnostic centres, and direct support through a national audiology improvement collaborative.

The 2025 Spending Review confirmed over £6 billion of additional capital investment over five years across new diagnostic, elective, and urgent care capacity. Further details and allocations will be set out in due course.
wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_244
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_244

Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether changes have been made to the NHS terms and conditions of service for Agenda for Change in relation to trade unions since 4 July 2024. \p Karin Smyth: Changes to the National Health Service’s Terms and Conditions of Service, also known as the Agenda for Change contract, are agreed via the NHS Staff Council, which is a partnership body made up of employer and trade union representatives.

The NHS’s Terms and Conditions of Service were updated in April 2025 to reflect that the Prison Officers Association is now a nationally recognised organisation, for the purposes of the NHS Staff Council and for the collective bargaining of the Agenda for Change contract. No further changes have been made that relate to trade unions.
wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_245
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_245

Esther McVey:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the report on packaging changes to Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, as discussed at the Commission on Human Medicines Antidepressant Risk Minimisation Expert Working Group on 1 May. \p Karin Smyth: A public assessment report will be published by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) after the completion of the review. The advice of the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM) will be sought after the next meeting of the Antidepressant Risk Minimisation Expert Working Group (EWG) in July 2025.

The public assessment report will contain the minutes of all EWG meetings and the CHM’s advice on any regulatory action required. It is anticipated that the public assessment report will be published by the MHRA in Autumn 2025.
wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_246
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_246

Carla Lockhart:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department plans to introduce a licensing and regulatory framework for practitioners in the aesthetic and cosmetic surgery industry. \p Karin Smyth: The Government is committed to taking action to address longstanding concerns about the safety of the cosmetics sector, and is exploring options for further regulation in this area. We will set out the details of our approach in our response to the consultation on the licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England, which we will publish as soon as possible.
wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_247
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_247

Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to Answer of 13 June 2025 to Question 60148 on Tomography: Waiting Lists, how much of the £6 billion in capital investment will be allocated to services in North Shropshire constituency. \p Karin Smyth: The 2025 Spending Review confirmed over £6 billion of additional capital investment over five years across new diagnostic, elective, and urgent care capacity. Further details and allocations, including for the Shropshire Telford and Wrekin Integrated Care Board (ICB), will be set out in due course.

This £6 billion investment includes the previously announced £1.65 billion of capital for investments aimed at improving National Health Service performance against constitutional standards in 2025/26.

Of this funding, the Shropshire Telford and Wrekin ICB and providers have been provisionally allocated £4 million to support NHS performance across secondary and emergency care in 2025/26.
wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_248
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_248

Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to make more medical school places available for students born in the UK. \p Karin Smyth: We will publish a new workforce plan later this year to deliver a transformed health service, and to ensure we have the right staff in the right place, so the National Health Service can be there for everyone. International staff, including doctors, remain an important part of our workforce. Alongside this, we are also committed to building and increasing our domestic home-grown talent from across all of our communities.
wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_249
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_249

Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of permitting GPs to prescribe cannabis-based medicinal products; and what plans he has to ensure NHS access to full-spectrum cannabinoid treatments for treatment-resistant epilepsy. \p Karin Smyth: The conditions attached to a medicine’s marketing authorisation determine who it can be prescribed by. This may include restricting the initiation of treatments to specialist doctors, as is the case for the licensed cannabis-based medicines Sativex and Epidyolex. These are not first line treatments, and patients will be at a stage in their treatment pathway where they will be under the care of a specialist doctor before accessing these medicines.

General practitioners (GPs) cannot independently prescribe unlicensed cannabis-based products for medicinal use. The law allows GPs to prescribe these products under the direction of a specialist as part of a shared care arrangement. A GP can accept ongoing shared care responsibilities once a specialist has initiated a prescription, and a patient’s clinical condition is stable. In doing so, they must accept the enhanced legal and professional responsibilities associated with prescribing an unlicensed product, and this includes accountability for the quality of the product prescribed.

This restriction forms part of the checks and balances that the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs recommended the Government put in place when rescheduling cannabis-based products for medicinal use, to minimise the risk of misuse and diversion.

Clinical guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) state that there is insufficient evidence to make population level recommendations for the use of unlicensed cannabis-based products for medicinal use in the treatment of patients with refractory epilepsy. NICE recommends that further research is carried out to inform future commissioning decisions in the National Health Service.

Like any medicine, manufacturers of unlicensed cannabinoid treatments need to invest in research and clinical trials to prove that their products are safe and effective. In the absence of action from manufacturers, NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Research have agreed to over £8.5 million in funding for two world first clinical trials relating to the use of cannabis-based products for medicinal use for the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsies and neuropathic pain due to chemotherapy. Further information on the trial of medicinal cannabis for refractory epilepsies, and the trial of oral cannabinoids for the treatment of chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathic pain is available, respectively, at the following two links:

https://www.fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/NIHR131309

https://www.fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/NIHR151052
wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_250
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-07-04)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-07-04 conversation_250

Helen Morgan:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of patients referred for diagnostic scans have been seen within six weeks in North Shropshire constituency each month since January 2020. \p Karin Smyth: The Monthly Diagnostic Waiting Times and Activity (DM01) dataset presents the current waiting times of patients on the waiting list for 15 key diagnostic tests or procedures at each month’s end. This can be found at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/diagnostics-waiting-times-and-activity/monthly-diagnostics-waiting-times-and-activity/

The attached table shows the proportion of patients that were waiting within six weeks from referral at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust for one of the 15 key diagnostic tests or one of the key imaging tests included in the DM01, each month since January 2020.

Diagnostic checks are a key part of many elective care pathways. In April 2025, the latest published DM01, the diagnostic waiting list at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust was 12,957, of which 10,192, or 78.7%, were waiting within six weeks. This in an improvement since April 2024, when the waiting list stood at 13,849, with 9,819, or 70.9% of, patients waiting within six weeks.

Additional Document (xlsx, 19.8KB)