Written questions by Gardner.

What funding his Department has allocated to research into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of necrotising enterocolitis.

Awaiting answer.

What steps he is taking to increase the number of GPs and nurses with specialist training in epilepsy.

The Government recognises the importance of ensuring that healthcare professionals are appropriately trained to identify and manage epilepsy.General practitioners and nurses receive training in neurological conditions, including epilepsy, as part of their...

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of funding for epilepsy research.

The Department delivers research via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Between 2020/21 and 2024/25, the NIHR invested £12.8 million in direct research funding on epilepsy. This investment in epilepsy research allows us to develop...

What steps his Department is taking to improve access to maternal pathways with tailored support for pregnant people experiencing homelessness.

Awaiting answer.

What steps he is taking to help reduce the rate of stillbirth and neonatal deaths where the mother has recently lived or is living in temporary Accommodation.

Awaiting answer.

What data his Department holds on infant and child mortality rates for children living in temporary accommodation; whether his Department collects data on the housing status of children at the time of death; and what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on mitigating health risks faced by children in temporary accommodation.

Awaiting answer.

What progress his Department has made on compensating people with pelvic mesh injury sufferers; and what his planned timeline is for delivering that compensation.

The Government is carefully considering the work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and her report, which set out recommendations for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh.The Government has deep sympathy for all those affected and recognises the profound impact that these harms have had on individuals and their families.My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has been clear that he wants to make meaningful progress during this Parliament, although a decision to provide compensation has not yet been made. We recognise how difficult and disappointing this uncertainty is for those affected, and we will ensure that the public is kept informed as soon as any decision on redress is made.I met with the Patient Safety Commissioner, Dr Henrietta Hughes since I have been in post, and had a very productive discussion about the ongoing health initiatives led by the Department regarding sodium valproate and pelvic mesh. Details of the Government’s work to date are set out in recent letters to the Dr Hughes, which are published on her website.

What steps his department is taking to help ensure the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended diabetes care guidelines are adhered to.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines provide recommendations on best practice in terms of both the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of interventions and services. Guidelines describe best practice and National Health Service organisations are expected to take them fully into account in designing services that meet the needs of their local populations.NICE guidance is not mandatory because it is designed as evidence-based advice to inform, rather than replace, clinical judgment, allowing for tailored care for individual patients. Guidelines cannot cover every unique patient scenario, and clinicians must maintain responsibility for treatment decisions.

What steps his department is taking to improve awareness and understanding of Type 1 Diabetes across the Health and Social Care system.

As I reaffirmed in the Westminster Hall debate on type 1 diabetes on 9 March 2026, the Government is committed to improving awareness of type 1 diabetes. NHS England carried out communications activity to coincide with World Diabetes Day in November 2025, with a focus on the “4Ts” symptoms of type 1 diabetes, namely thirst, tired, thinning, and toileting, meaning increased urine output. This included messaging to the public via social media, and the cascade of information via clinical networks.NHS England is currently engaging and coordinating with other national organisations on supportive action, raising awareness of the symptoms of type 1 diabetes, improving training and education, and exploring what supportive tools may be available to further support healthcare professionals to identify type 1 diabetes.

What steps his department is taking to improve access to finger-prick blood glucose testing for Type 1 Diabetes when symptoms first appear.

As I set out in the debate on Type 1 Diabetes: Infant Testing in response to petition 728677 on Monday 9 March 2026, the Government is committed to supporting people with type 1 diabetes. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has recently updated the clinical guidelines on type 1 diabetes in children and young people, which is available at the following link:http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng18This sets out that children and young people without a known diagnosis of diabetes can also present with diabetic ketoacidosis which requires urgent diagnosis and management. This includes the measurement of capillary blood glucose, which is usually undertaken through a finger-prick test.

What plans his department has to increase the uptake of annual diabetes health checks.

The Government is committed to supporting people with diabetes. Improving the uptake of annual diabetes health checks recommended by National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is a key primary care metric in the NHS Oversight Framework, which is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/nhs-oversight-framework-2025-26/The framework sets out how NHS England will assess providers and integrated care boards, to identify where support is needed and promote improvement.NHS England is also working closely with systems within the National Health Service to monitor improvement of achievement rates in delivering the annual diabetes health checks. To help deliver this, NHS England has recently launched a new National Diabetes Audit Care Processes and Treatment Targets dashboard to support systems to benchmark and improve delivery of the health checks.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of using uropathogen infection testing for diagnosing urinary tract infections.

The Department has not made a specific assessment. There are several sources of guidance regarding the diagnosis of urinary tract infections (UTIs), including from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence and the UK Health Security Agency.The TOUCAN study was part-commissioned by NHS England as an assessment of future more timely diagnostics, including various point of care tests for UTIs in primary care.

What steps his Department is taking to support research on vaccinations against recurrent and chronic urinary tract infections.

The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR funds, supports, and carries out high-quality research to improve health outcomes and care services. Over the last five financial years, the Department has provided over £22 million in programme research funding for urinary tract infection (UTI) research, including research on improved treatment for recurrent and chronic UTIs. In addition, NIHR infrastructure is supporting Phase 3 trials on vaccines against Escherichia coli infection in older adults who have a history of UTI, delivered by the NIHR Bristol Clinical Research Facility and the NIHR Wellcome Trust Manchester Clinical Research Facility. The NIHR also funds the James Lind Alliance, which has run a Priority Setting Partnership (PSP) focused on chronic and recurrent UTIs. This PSP, funded by AMR Action UK and delivered in partnership with Bladder Health UK and The Urology Foundation, has identified the top 10 research priorities in this area. A rolling funding opportunity is available for research projects that align with priorities aligning with PSPs.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of medical (a) gender inequality and (b) misogyny on the (i) diagnostics and (ii) treatment of urinary tract infections.

The Department has not made a specific assessment. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence’s (NICE) guidelines, such as those for the diagnosis and management of urinary tract infections, are subject to equality impact assessments as part of NICE’s governance processes, which mean that protected characteristics, including sex, are considered as part of the guideline's development.

Whether his Department is taking steps with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to introduce a definition for chronic urinary tract infections.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing evidence‑based guidance for the National Health Service on best practice in the care and treatment of patients with specific conditions.NICE does not ordinarily define specific clinical conditions. NICE has no current plans to develop guidance on chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs) at this time, and the topic has not been considered by its prioritisation board. However, NICE has produced a clinical guideline on antimicrobial prescribing for recurrent UTIs which provides recommendations on treatments and self-care for the prevention of recurrent UTIs. This guideline is available at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng112

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of phage medicines on tackling (a) recurrent and chronic urinary tract infections and (b) associated antimicrobial resistance.

The Department recognises bacteriophage, or phage, medicines as a promising complementary option for difficult bacterial infections, including recurrent and chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs), and as a potential tool to address antimicrobial resistance (AMR).However, phage therapy is not yet used routinely in the National Health Service. Although case reports and small studies show benefit in hard-to-treat infections, there is still insufficient largescale, high-quality clinical trial evidence to support widespread adoption.For UTIs specifically, there is currently no evidence of benefit of phage therapy from randomised controlled trials, the only trial to date showed no effect. The proposed UK Clinical Phage Service will help generate further clinical evidence and support individual patient use where treatment options are limited.As a result, phage therapy in the United Kingdom is generally accessed only through specialist or compassionate use pathways, typically when conventional antibiotics have failed and expert clinical teams judge it appropriate. This cautious approach ensures appropriate safety, efficacy, and regulatory oversight before routine use.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure the psychological impacts of chronic urinary tract infections are recognised.

The Department and NHS England recognise the psychological impact of chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs). NHS England published the Excellence in Continence Care framework on 23 July 2018, which is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/excellence-in-continence-care/This framework brings together evidence-based resources and research as guidance for commissioners, providers, health and social care staff, and it explicitly acknowledges a range of psychological impacts including loss of self-esteem, depression, loss of independence, and impacts on relationships and employment prospects.Further, NHS England’s existing system wide clinical messaging around UTIs acknowledges behavioural and cognitive impacts, particularly confusion, agitation, and changes in mental state, indicating institutional recognition of psychological and neuro‑behavioural effects associated with UTIs.NHS England’s national UTI awareness campaign states that UTIs can cause agitation and confusion in older adults, demonstrating the system’s acknowledgement that infection-related symptoms extend beyond physical pain to include cognitive and psychological changes. This ensures clinicians are prompted to consider psychological and cognitive changes as part of UTI presentations. The awareness campaign can be found at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/2023/10/new-awareness-campaign-to-help-reduce-hospital-admissions-for-urinary-tract-infections/

What recent progress has been made on incorporating menopause screening into NHS Health Checks.

We are currently working with experts, including general practitioners, to co-design the menopause content for the NHS Health Check.The inclusion of menopause in the NHS Health Check will support eligible women across England to access high quality information on the menopause, including advice on managing symptoms and where to seek support.We will ask local authorities to implement this addition in the NHS Health Checks later this year and will urge them to implement it as quickly as possible.

With reference to the introduction of HPV self-sampling planned for January 2026, a) what information and awareness-raising programmes are being developed to inform under-screened women of the advantages and disadvantages of the available cervical screening options and b) when will the programmes be rolled out.

NHS England is committed to eliminating cervical cancer by 2040. Following ministerial endorsement of a UK National Screening Committee recommendation, in June 2025, NHS England indicated its intention to transform its approach to cervical screening for under-screened women. From early 2026, they will receive home testing kits starting with those that are the most overdue for screening. This will help tackle deeply entrenched barriers that keep some away from life-saving screening.As part of implementation, NHS England is developing a communications and engagement plan to raise awareness of the option of self-testing. This includes underserved groups, NHS staff providing screening services, and key stakeholders such as charities. Materials developed have been tested with the Eve Appeal and build on extensive insights and user testing in the NHS cervical screening programme.

What steps his Department is taking to help ensure that cancer patients receive radiotherapy treatment within the 62 day standard wait time in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.

The Department remains committed to ensuring that all patients receive a swift diagnosis and timely access to treatments, including patients in the Stoke-on-Trent South constituency. We know that patients are often waiting too long for treatment which is why we have recently invested £70 million into new LINAC radiotherapy machines, replacing older, less efficient machines. These machines are currently being rolled out. This will be the first step in boosting productivity across the country, thereby allowing more patients to be seen per session, reducing waiting times for patients who require radiotherapy treatment.In addition, the National Health Service is delivering an additional 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week. The NHS has exceeded its pledge to deliver an extra two million operations, scans, and appointments in our first year of Government, having delivered 5.2 million more appointments.