Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

What steps he is taking to roll out immunotherapy for cancer treatment more widely.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that develops evidence-based guidance on whether new medicines should be routinely funded by the National Health Service, based on an assessment of their costs and benefits. The NICE aims to publish recommendations as close as possible to the point of licensing, and the NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended in a NICE appraisal, usually within three months of final guidance. NICE recommended cancer medicines are eligible for funding from the Cancer Drugs Fund from the point of a draft recommendation.The NICE has evaluated and recommended a large number of immunotherapies for the treatment of different cancers that are now routinely available to eligible NHS patients in England.

What steps he is taking to provide increased access to high-intensity focused ultrasound laser therapy for the treatment of prostate cancer.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has developed interventional procedures guidance on high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment for prostate cancer and focal therapy using HIFU for localised prostate cancer. This type of guidance considers if interventional procedures are safe and work well enough for wider use in the National Health Service, and both pieces of guidance acknowledge that there is a lack of evidence on quality-of-life benefits and long-term survival.The NICE’s guidelines recommend that HIFU should not be offered to people with localised or locally advanced prostate cancer, other than in the context of controlled clinical trials comparing their use with established interventions.

How many nursing positions for the provision of care in corridors have been advertised in NHS hospitals since 4 July 2024.

The Department does not hold the information requested.

Whether he has written to NHS Trusts on the use of sex-specific language in NHS guidance.

The Department has not written to the National Health Service trusts on the use of sex-specific language in NHS guidance. The Government understands the need for health information to be as clear as possible and to use language that appropriately reflects sex, as defined as a protected characteristic in the Equality Act 2010.

If he will take steps to ensure that there is no discrimination in NHS IVF treatment.

Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards and are based on the clinical needs of their local population. Organisations are expected to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. The NICE is currently reviewing the fertility guidelines and will consider whether the current recommendations for access to National Health Service-funded treatment are still appropriate. We expect this review to be published in 2025. NHS England will also be providing advice on this issue to inform the Government’s considerations of future policy options.

What recent progress the Government has made on implementing the recommendations of the report by Dr Hilary Cass entitled Independent review of gender identity services for children and young people, published in April 2024.

The Government and NHS England are fully committed to implementing the recommendations of the Cass Review. My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care updated the House on the progress to implement the Cass Review on 11 December.In line with NHS England’s ambitious two-year implementation plan, three new Children and Young People’s Gender Services have opened in the North-West, London, and the South-West. These services operate under a fundamentally different model, where children and young people get the tailored and holistic care they need from multi-disciplinary teams of experts in paediatrics, neurodiversity, and mental health. NHS England remains on schedule to open a Children and Young People’s Gender Service in each region of England by 2026.NHS England has updated its service specification in line with the recommendations from the Cass Review. A referral to the specialist Children and Young People’s Gender Service can now be made only by a National Health Service-commissioned, secondary care-level paediatric service, or a children’s and young people’s mental health service. This will ensure that the needs of these children and young people are met holistically The Government is supporting NHS England to set up a study into the potential benefits and harms of puberty suppressing hormones as a treatment option for children and young people with gender incongruence.The study team’s application for funding is going through all the usual review and approval stages, including peer review and National Institute for Health and Care Research funding committee consideration, and full ethical approval processes ahead of set up. The trial will be uncapped and aims to begin recruiting participants in early 2025.As recommended by the Cass Review, NHS England has commissioned a comprehensive study of adult gender services, which is currently underway.

What (a) his and (b) NHS policy is on the use of (i) BAME and (ii) BME (A) in public policy on health and (B) generally.

The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities recommended in March 2021 that the Government stop using the term BAME, which stands for Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic. Since then, where possible, the Department has referred to ethnic minority groups individually, rather than as a single group. Where an aggregated ethnic group is referred to, the term ‘ethnic minority’ has been used. Further information about how the Government refers to different ethnic groups can be found on GOV.UK website, at the following link:https://www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk/style-guide/writing-about-ethnicity/The National Health Service is always specific, where possible, about the ethnic groups referred to, only using collective terminology where there is a legitimate need to do so. Where collective terminology is needed, it is guided by context.

What steps he is taking to reduce suicide levels amongst men.

We have committed to tackling suicide, as one the biggest killers in this country. As part of this, the 8,500 new mental health staff we will recruit will be specially trained to support people at risk, to reduce the lives lost to suicide.The Suicide Prevention Strategy for England, published in September 2023, identifies a number of groups for tailored or targeted action at a national level, including middle-aged men, and we are exploring opportunities to go further.79 organisations have been allocated funding between 2023 and 2025, through the £10 million Suicide Prevention Grant Fund, and are delivering a broad and diverse range of activity that will prevent suicides and save lives. Organisations benefitting include the Lancaster Men’s Hub, Mankind UK, and UK Men’s Sheds Association.

How many taskings for Military Aid to the Civil Authorities from his Department required the use of RAF CH-47 Chinook helicopters since 2019.

The Department does not hold information on the number or type of military assets used to fulfil a Military Aid to Civil Authorities request. It is the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence to determine the appropriate military assets, and therefore the need for a CH-47 Chinook helicopter.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2024 to Question 901341 on Drugs: Safety, what the outcome was of the recent ministerial roundtable.

Following this roundtable, the Government is developing its strategy to support a move away from the use of animals, in favour of suitable alternative methods, in both basic scientific research and in the development of products, and also in the regulatory oversight thereof. This involves input from representatives of those organisations who were present at the roundtable. A detailed strategy document will be published early in the new year.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing mobile dental services in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Peterborough.

We are clear that Faster, simpler and fairer: our plan to recover and reform NHS dentistry, also known as the Dentistry Recovery Plan, published on 7 February 2024, did not go far enough to improve access for dentistry patients in the National Health Service. As part of our ambitions for dentistry, we will review what elements of the Dentistry Recovery Plan can be taken forward and within NHS budgets, including the proposals for dental vans.

How many tonnes of medical waste are incinerated annually by the NHS in the East of England.

The information is not collected in the format requested. However, the National Health Service collects data for all of England in the Estates Returns Information Collection, which is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/estates-returns-information-collection/england-2022-23

What plans he has for spending on mental health support in schools; and if he will provide a breakdown of projected spending by (a) local authority area and (b) spending type.

The Department is working across the Government to deliver our commitment of a specialist mental health professional in every school. We need to ensure any support meets the needs of young people, teachers, parents, and carers which is why we are exploring a range of options. This includes existing programmes of support with evidence of a positive impact, such as Mental Health Support Teams in schools and colleges.