Written questions by Rosindell.

Whether his Department plans to provide additional funding for domestic plasma collection; and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of such funding on supply chains, in the context of the UK’s reliance on US plasma imports.

The Department, NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), and NHS England are working in partnership to develop a more sufficient and resilient supply of plasma, reducing the need for reliance on imports of plasma derived medicines.A new end-to-end supply chain has been built, enabling the first National Health Service patients to receive life-saving plasma treatments made from the blood of United Kingdom donors in March, and increasing self-sufficiency for plasma derived medicines, specifically for immunoglobulins, from 0% to 25% self-sufficiency, and for albumin, from 0% to 80% self-sufficiency.NHSBT has incorporated plasma collection into its business model, enabling growth in domestic plasma collection. This includes the use of modern automated collection technologies, used to enhance efficiency and consistency in the donation process. NHSBT is currently exploring future locations to expand its collection footprint and develop more donor centres.Plasma collection is benefitting from the Department’s investment in NHSBT’s work to increase blood collection capacity and resilience, as plasma is collected from whole blood donations as well as dedicated plasma donation.

What steps he has taken with relevant authorities to reduce instances of skin cancer in (a) England and (b) Romford constituency.

The Department will get the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier, including skin cancer, and treating it faster so more patients survive. As a first step we have delivered an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week during our first year in Government to ensure earlier diagnoses and faster treatment for those who need it most.Since 2023/24, NHS England has also been rolling out teledermatology services, which allow a virtual review of dermoscopic images. In providers where this has been fully implemented, improvements in workforce capacity have been seen doubling the number of patients that can be reviewed per clinic in some cases, and improving faster diagnosis standard performance.NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) national report has provided recommendations to encourage the wider use of technology to ensure skin cancer patients get faster and more equitable access to care. Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) is also planning a programme to support primary care colleagues, offering training for new staff to recognise harmless skin lesions, like moles and warts, with the aim of reducing unnecessary referrals to hospital and freeing up capacity for other patients on the waiting list. NHS England runs Help Us Help You campaigns in England to increase knowledge of cancer symptoms and address barriers to acting on them, to encourage people to come forward as soon as possible to see their general practitioner. The campaigns focus on a range of symptoms, as well as encouraging body awareness, to help people spot symptoms across a wide range of cancers at an earlier point.NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including skin cancer. This information can be found at sources such as NHS.UK.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of EU investment in local pharmaceutical production in the Caribbean on UK-Caribbean healthcare partnerships.

The Government has not made any assessment of the potential impact of this investment. The United Kingdom remains committed to working with Caribbean partners to strengthen healthcare systems, and to supporting healthcare development and collaboration in the Caribbean region through bilateral and multilateral engagement.

What steps he has taken to improve (a) diagnosis and (b) treatment of skin cancer.

The Department will get the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier, including skin cancer, and treating it faster so more patients survive. As a first step we have delivered an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week during our first year in Government to ensure earlier diagnoses and faster treatment for those who need it most.Since 2023/24, NHS England has also been rolling out teledermatology services, which allow a virtual review of dermoscopic images. In providers where this has been fully implemented, improvements in workforce capacity have been seen doubling the number of patients that can be reviewed per clinic in some cases, and improving faster diagnosis standard performance.NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) national report has provided recommendations to encourage the wider use of technology to ensure skin cancer patients get faster and more equitable access to care. Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) is also planning a programme to support primary care colleagues, offering training for new staff to recognise harmless skin lesions, like moles and warts, with the aim of reducing unnecessary referrals to hospital and freeing up capacity for other patients on the waiting list. NHS England runs Help Us Help You campaigns in England to increase knowledge of cancer symptoms and address barriers to acting on them, to encourage people to come forward as soon as possible to see their general practitioner. The campaigns focus on a range of symptoms, as well as encouraging body awareness, to help people spot symptoms across a wide range of cancers at an earlier point.NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including skin cancer. This information can be found at sources such as NHS.UK.

What steps he has taken to improve (a) diagnosis and (b) treatment of learning difficulties in adults.

A learning difficulty is a reduced ability for a specific form of learning and includes conditions such as dyslexia and dyspraxia. These are life-long conditions.It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population. Information on dyslexia assessments as well as those for dyspraxia in adults are available at the following links:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/dyslexia/diagnosis/https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/developmental-coordination-disorder-dyspraxia-in-adults/The Department for Education has invested £1.34 billion in the 2024/25 academic year in education and skills training for adults through the Adult Skills Fund (ASF). This is funded by the Education and Skills Funding Agency and includes funds for learning support, which helps adult education providers to meet the additional needs of learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, including the costs of reasonable adjustments, as set out in the Equality Act 2010.Learning support can cover a range of needs, including an assessment for dyslexia, funding to pay for specialist equipment or helpers, and/or arranging signers or note takers. The Mayoral Strategic Authorities and the Greater London Authority have a devolved ASF and decide how to make best use of the ASF, beyond the ASF’s statutory entitlements, to meet their local needs.

What steps he is taking to work with faith groups to support the terminally ill.

We do acknowledge the importance of access to psychological, social and spiritual support for those who wish to access such support, including those at the end of life, as well as those important to them.NHS England’s statutory guidance for palliative and end of life care states that integrated care board commissioners should work to ensure that there is sufficient provision of care service providers available to deliver high-quality end of life care, paying particular attention to access to mental health and wellbeing support and spiritual care.Chaplains promote pastoral, spiritual and religious wellbeing through compassionate, person-centered care. This is available to patients, their families and carers, and to National Health Service staff, volunteers and students.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of a ban on the (a) marketing and (b) advertising of (i) e-cigarette and vaping products, (ii) non-medically licensed nicotine products and (iii) heated tobacco products on the number of adults switching from cigarettes to alternatives.

The health advice is clear that vaping is only recommended for adult smokers who wish to quit smoking. Youth vaping has more than doubled in the last five years with one in four children aged between 11 and 15 years old having tried vaping in 2023. It is unacceptable that vapes are deliberately promoted and advertised to children, and this must be stopped to prevent future generations from being hooked on nicotine.The Government has published a thorough impact assessment of the measures included in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, including the prohibition on the advertising of vaping products and nicotine products.Public health messaging and campaigns will continue to support the promotion of vapes as a quit aid for smokers, as outlined on the Better Health and National Health Service websites. Additionally, the Government is committed to supporting smokers to quit, through a range of services. We are investing an additional £70 million in 2025/26 for local Stop Smoking Services in England and are working to ensure all NHS hospitals offer ‘opt-out’ smoking cessation purposes.All tobacco products are harmful to health. There is evidence of toxicity from heated tobacco in laboratory studies. The aerosol generated by heated tobacco also contains carcinogens, and there will be a risk to the health of anyone using these products.The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002 prohibits the advertisement and sponsorship of tobacco products, and that prohibition applies to tobacco products intended to be smoked, sniffed, sucked or chewed. It is the Department’s view that the legislation applies to any tobacco product, regardless of when it was developed, and that heated tobacco products and the heating device to be used with it are caught under this legislation.

What steps he is taking to ensure a regular supply of Pancreatic Enzyme Replacement Therapy medication in the North East London NHS Foundation Trust area.

The Department monitors and manages medicine supply issues at a national level so that stocks remain available to meet regional and local demand. Information on stock levels within individual National Health Service trusts is not held centrally.The Department is continuing to engage with all suppliers of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT) to mitigate the supply issue that is affecting the whole of the United Kingdom. Through this, we have managed to secure additional volumes of PERT for 2025 for the UK. We are continuing to work with all suppliers to understand what more can be done to add further resilience to the market. The Department has also reached out to specialist importers who have sourced unlicensed stock to assist in covering the remaining gap in the market.In the longer term, the Department has had interest from non-UK suppliers wishing to bring their products to the UK and, along with colleagues in the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, we are working with these potential suppliers, and if authorised, these products could further diversify and strengthen the market.In December 2024, the Department issued further management advice to healthcare professionals. This directs clinicians to consider the unlicensed imports when licensed stock is unavailable and includes actions for integrated care boards to ensure local mitigation plans are put in place and implemented. The Department continues to collaborate closely with NHS England colleagues, clinicians, patient groups, and charities to ensure that these mitigation plans are supporting patients, and routinely updates advice and issues further guidance when necessary. There are no current plans to provide additional funding for unlicensed imports.The Department will continue to meet with suppliers, clinicians, representatives from the impacted patient advocacy groups, and charities so that they are informed on the supply situation and the mitigation actions being taken.

How many NHS prescriptions for cannabis-based products have been issued in Romford constituency in each year since 2018.

The following table shows the total number of cannabis-based medicines with a marketing authorisation, namely nabilone, sativex, and epidyolex, dispensed in the community in the North East London Integrated Care Board against a National Health Service prescription, each year from 2018 to 2024:Calendar yearNumber of prescription items201822201927202014202130202244202361202472Source: NHS Business Services Authority.Data on unlicensed cannabis-based medicines is withheld in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulations, due to the number of items attributed to fewer than ten patients and the enhanced risk of release of patient identifiable information.

What steps he is taking to improve patient treatment for pancreatic cancer within the North East London NHS Foundation Trust area.

The Department is working with NHS England to deliver interventions to improve treatment for those with pancreatic cancer across England, including within the North East London NHS Foundation Trust area. As the first step to ensuring faster diagnosis and treatment, the National Health Service is delivering an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week. Early diagnosis is imperative to improving outcomes for all types of cancer, especially pancreatic cancer due to the non-specific nature of its symptoms. NHS England is providing a route into pancreatic cancer surveillance for those at inherited high-risk to identify lesions before they develop into cancer, creating pathways to support faster referral routes for people with non-specific symptoms, and increasing direct access for general practitioners to diagnostic tests. On 12 September 2024, the National Cancer Audit Collaborating Centre published their State of the Nation Report on Pancreatic Cancer. The NHS cancer programme is currently considering how to take forward the initial recommendations of that audit. NHS England is also funding a new audit into pancreatic cancer to increase the consistency of access to treatments, and to stimulate improvements in cancer treatments and outcomes for patients.

What steps he has taken to improve (a) diagnosis and (b) treatment of dyspraxia in adults.

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including diagnosis and support for dyspraxia. Further information on dyspraxia assessments and treatment is available on the NHS.UK website, at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/developmental-coordination-disorder-dyspraxia-in-adults/

What steps he has taken to improve (a) diagnosis and (b) treatment of dyslexia in adults.

Dyslexia is a life-long condition, and there is therefore no treatment for dyslexia. Adults who wish to be assessed for dyslexia are advised to contact a local or national dyslexia association for advice. Further information on dyslexia assessments can be found on the NHS.UK website, at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/dyslexia/diagnosis/The Department for Education has invested £1.34 billion in the 2024/25 academic year in education and skills training for adults through the Adult Skills Fund (ASF). The Education and Skills Funding Agency funded ASF includes funds for learning support, which helps providers to meet the additional needs of learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, including the costs of reasonable adjustments, as set out in the Equality Act 2010.Learning support can cover a range of needs, including an assessment for dyslexia, funding to pay for specialist equipment or helpers, and/or arranging signers or note takers. The Mayoral Strategic Authorities and the Greater London Authority have a devolved ASF, and decide how to make best use of the ASF, beyond the ASF’s statutory entitlements, to meet their local needs.

What steps he has taken to improve (a) diagnosis and (b) support for adults with autism.

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including autism assessments and support services for autistic people, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. The NICE guideline, Autism spectrum disorder in adults: diagnosis and management, aims to improve access and engagement with interventions and services, and the experience of care, for autistic adults.On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to help ICBs and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for children, young people, and adults referred to an autism assessment service. The guidance also sets out what support should be available before an assessment and what support should follow a recent diagnosis of autism, based on the available evidence.The Department is launching an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service. The commission, led by Baroness Casey, will start a national conversation about what working age adults, older people, and their families expect from adult social care. While the commission carries out its work, the Department is taking immediate action to improve adult social care. The Government is making available up to £3.7 billion of additional funding for social care authorities in 2025/26, which includes a £880 million increase in the Social Care Grant. The Department is also taking forward a range of initiatives in 2025/26, including funding more home adaptations, promoting better use of care technologies, and professionalising the adult social care workforce.

How many people are using mental health facilities in Romford constituency.

The number of people accessing all mental health facilities is not available for Romford, although data is available on referrals to specific services, such as Talking Therapies and secondary mental health services, for North East London Integrated Care Board (ICB).During December 2024, there were 5,150 referrals received for Talking Therapies for the first time in the ICB, while in the same month, there were 12,175 referrals received by secondary mental health services in the same ICB.

What steps he has taken to work with relevant authorities to reduce instances of infant deaths in (a) Romford constituency and (b) England.

The Office of Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID), within the Department, has looked in detail at the drivers of infant mortality. Most infant deaths occur in the first four weeks of life. The leading causes of death are prematurity and congenital abnormalities, and a large proportion of these deaths are preventable. This work has been used to drive work through regional teams working with integrated care systems and local authorities to target specific interventions.In London, the OHID regional team has developed, with partners, an infant mortality reduction action plan, setting out 10 recommendations, based on the best available data and evidence. The OHID London is working with all London local authorities and the National Health Service to implement the action plan, including working with Havering and Romford. Learning from infant deaths is being shared across London to identify opportunities to avoid future infant deaths and address potentially modifiable causes wherever possible.The local authority, the acute hospital trust, primary care, and the integrated commissioning board are coordinating efforts in Romford and Havering to reduce infant mortality, working in partnership with the OHID London, NHS England, and the Greater London Authority.The Department continues to work across directorates, and with NHS England and other Government departments to maximise opportunities to improve pre-conception health and the wider building blocks of health that contribute to infant deaths.

What steps she has taken to work with relevant authorities to ensure that there is adequate supply of lidocaine.

The Department is aware of the supply issues affecting some products that contain lidocaine. For all of these, there are alternatives available, and we are working with the suppliers of each product to expedite resupply and minimise the impact on patients.

What steps he has taken to work with relevant authorities to support new parents in (a) Romford constituency and (b) England.

In London, the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID), within the Department, and NHS England’s London regional teams work together to champion and embed a focus on giving every child the best start in life, providing support to National Health Service organisations, local government, and wider partners to deliver joined up services for babies and families. This includes focused work on infant feeding, perinatal mental health, addressing inequalities in maternity care and outcomes, and developing the health visiting workforce in London.In Havering, the local authority has developed an online family services hub to help new parents in Romford find and access locally available services and support, and an online gateway for early years health and other professionals to access, enabling them to better advise, support, and refer new parents into the local offer.A £126 million funding boost in 2025/26 will help set up every child for the best start in life by strengthening and joining up family services and improving support through pregnancy and early childhood. This will fund a network of family hubs with Start for Life services, which support the period from conception to the age of two years old, in 75 local authorities in England with high levels of deprivation.

What steps he has taken to work with relevant authorities to reduce bowel cancer deaths in (a) Romford constituency and (b) England.

The National Health Service in England has been gradually reducing the age for bowel screening from 60 years old down to 50 years old, since 2021/22. The extension to 50 years old is expected to be completed by 31 March 2025.We will improve NHS cancer waiting time performance across the country, so that patients, including those with bowel cancer, are diagnosed and treated faster. The NHS is prioritising the roll-out of additional diagnostic capacity, delivering the final year of the three-year investment plan for establishing community diagnostic centres, with capacity prioritised for cancer diagnostics.

What steps he has taken to work with relevant authorities to reduce alcohol related deaths in (a) Romford constituency and (b) England.

In 2023, there were 8,274 alcohol-specific deaths, namely deaths wholly due to alcohol, in England, which was an increase of 63.8% from 5,050 deaths in 2006 and a 4.6% increase since 2022. The majority of these deaths are caused by alcohol-related liver disease.The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) has an action plan to reduce drug and alcohol-related deaths, which is being reviewed in light of the recent Office for National Statistics data to ensure that it is grounded in the latest understanding of the drivers of drug and alcohol related deaths and responding to these. In 2024, the Department of Health and Social Care published guidance for local authorities and their partnerships on how to review adult drug and alcohol-related deaths and near-fatal overdoses to prevent future deaths. Additionally, OHID has published the document, Commissioning Quality Standard: alcohol and drug services, providing guidance for local authorities to support them in commissioning effective alcohol and drug treatment and recovery services.The Department of Health and Social Care will soon publish the UK clinical guidelines on alcohol treatment which will include recommendations on developing effective, accessible and inclusive services. The aim of the guidelines is to promote and support good practice and improve quality of service provision, resulting in better outcomes. The Department of Health and Social Care continues to work with all local areas to address unmet need and drug and alcohol misuse deaths, and to drive improvements in continuity of care. This includes the Unmet Need Toolkit which can be used by local areas to assess local need and plan to meet it.The Department of Health and Social Care is continuing to invest in improvements to local drug and alcohol treatment services. Funding for drug and alcohol treatment services is provided through the public health grant. In addition to the Public Health Grant, the Department allocated local authorities £267 million in 2024/25 to improve the quality and capacity of drug and alcohol treatment and recovery. An additional £105 million from the Department of Health and Social Care, Department for Work and Pensions, and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is improving treatment pathways and recovery, housing and employment outcomes for people affected by drug and alcohol use. The London Borough of Havering Council was allocated £626,673 of targeted funding in 2024/25 for drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services through a combination of grants.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of increasing the range of NHS-funded vaccinations available in community pharmacies.

The Government recognises that, alongside a core offer of vaccination in general practices, a wider delivery of vaccination services, including through sexual health services, maternity services, schools-based vaccination teams, health visitors, and community pharmacies, is helpful in driving increased uptake of vaccination, especially in areas of increased deprivation.Currently, NHS England commissions the Community Pharmacy Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Advanced Service and the COVID-19 Vaccination National Enhanced Service on a national level. Both services are delivered extensively in community pharmacies.The Government is looking to expand the number of vaccines offered in community pharmacies across the country through local, targeted vaccination programmes. This has already started, with NHS England commissioning community pharmacies in the East of England to help deliver year-round respiratory syncytial virus vaccination programmes for pregnant women, to protect newborns, and adults aged 75 to 79 years old. Eligible patients can book an appointment via the National Booking System or walk into a participating pharmacy to receive the vaccine.The Department will keep the scope of vaccinations available in community pharmacies under review and consider whether any expansion to the current offer provides both increased health protection benefits and value for money to the taxpayer.