Committee publication · Correspondence · 4 February 2026
Correspondence from Minister Kinnock - Follow up on 7 January session
From: Health and Social Care Committee
Inquiry: Palliative Care
Summary
Minister Kinnock follows up on the Health and Social Care Committee's 7 January hearing on palliative and end-of-life care, providing clarifications and additional data. He commits to future discussion of the Terminally Ill Adults Bill, describes the NHS palliative care dashboard, outlines local government partnership roles under the 10 Year Health Plan, and corrects figures on 24/7 helpline coverage (43% of ICBs) and identification rates for palliative care needs (0.56% of population, targeting 0.75-0.9% by 2029).
Key findings
- 43% of ICBs (18 systems) currently provide 24/7 telephone support for end-of-life care advice; government aims for 100% coverage by 2027.
- Identification of people with palliative care needs has risen from 0.46% of population (2022/23) to 0.56% (2024/25); realistic target is 0.75–0.9% by 2029.
- FutureNHS palliative care and end-of-life care ICB dashboard provides data on last 90 days of life (deaths, hospital episodes, primary care registers) with filtering by age, place of death, and deprivation; updated December 2025.
- 10 Year Workforce Plan (Spring 2026) will define generalist skills for community-based care shift; Offices for Pan-ICB Commissioning fully operational from April 2027.
- £125 million capital funding for hospices confirmed for both adult and children's services; bereavement support embedded in statutory guidance and cross-government Bereavement Working Group chaired by DHSC.
Tone
ProceduralTopics
Key actors
Stephen Kinnock, Layla Moran, Dr Amanda Doyle OBE, Dr Sarah Mitchell, Dr Edward Scully, Baroness Merron, NHS England, UK Commission on Bereavement
Notable line
“… we must continue to work towards a society in which everyone who needs it receives high ‑ quality, compassionate care through to the end of their life.”
Key Quotes
“… irrespective of whether the law changes on assisted dying, we must continue to work towards a society in which everyone who needs it receives high ‑ quality, compassionate care through to the end of their life.”
“If Parliament chooses to pass the Bill, the Government will implement it in a way that is safe and practicable and, as I said to the Committee on 7 January, I am committed to return to the Select Committee to discuss The Terminally Ill Adults (end-of-life) Bill at a future date, should the Committee wish.”
“For identification of need to be most meaningful for patients and families, it must be associated with a compassionate approach including continuity of care, individualised holistic care needs assessment and management, for patients and those important to them.”
“I expressed a desire to achieve 100% coverage of 24/7 telephone advice by 2027. This has already been highlighted as an evidence-based intervention as part of the MSF and we will be working on quality standards, alongside a delivery plan to support consistent implementation, to address the current gaps.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗