Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

How many days were lost to sickness absence by civil servants in their Department (a) in total and (b) on average per employee between 5 July 2024 and 4 July 2025.

Sickness absence data for the Civil Service, including departmental breakdowns, is published annually, and is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sickness-absenceThe next update will be for the year ending 31 March 2025.

For which financial year will the updated Carr-Hill formula be applied from.

The review of the Carr-Hill formula will draw on a range of evidence and advice from experts. Decisions about implementation will need to be taken following consideration of the recommendations of the Carr-Hill review and cannot be pre-empted. Further detail on the review will be confirmed in due course.

Pursuant to the Answer of 6 June 2025 to Question 56675 on Hinchingbrooke Hospital: Roads, what discussions he has had with North-West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust on issues delaying construction of the new Hinchingbrooke Hospital.

There are currently no delays to the construction for the scheme commencing as set out in the New Hospital Programme Plan for Implementation, which is between 2027 to 2028. The final construction dates will be confirmed once the main scheme’s Full Business Case is reviewed and approved.The New Hospital Programme team in the Department and NHS England continue to support the North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust in the development of its scheme, including support with discussions the trust is having with the Cambridge Constabulary on the potential acquisition of land for a new access road.

How many of the 44 double-vehicle electrical chargepoints planned by the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust will be in Huntingdon constituency.

62 National Health Service trusts were awarded funding from the £8 million NHS Chargepoint Accelerator Scheme to install electric vehicle chargepoints across over 200 NHS sites.The East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust was awarded £219,332 to install chargepoints across nine sites. None were in the Huntingdon constituency.Sites were put forward by trusts according to clinical and operational decisions on the roll out of electric vehicles within their fleet, and factors such as cost and feasibility of installation.

What recent progress has been made in digitising patient records systems in North-West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust.

The North-West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust is collaborating urgently with NHS England regional and national colleagues on an investment case for the procurement of a modern, enterprise-wide electronic patient record system, to advance the organisation's digital maturity in line with the national Digital Capability Framework and the requirements of the 10-Year Health Plan.

What estimate he has made of the level of the increase in the NHS backlog at Hinchingbrooke Hospital following strike action by resident doctors in July 2025.

The Department of Health and Social Care has not made a formal estimate of the level of increases in NHS waiting lists at individual hospital site level.NHS England regularly publishes its Referral to Treatment Waiting Times every month, which are available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/rtt-data-2025-26/. This data goes down to provider level, but not individual hospital site level.

What estimate he has made of the level of available resource within the NHS of (a) resident doctors, (b) consultants and (c) nurses in the event of strike action.

The National Health Service makes every effort through rigorous contingency planning to minimise disruption as a result of industrial action and its impact on patients and the public. Assessments are made by local Trusts about the level of resourcing, and they can escalate via regions and nationally, where appropriate.NHS staff are not obliged to inform their employer that they will be taking part in strike action ahead of strike action taking place.

With reference to page 26 of the National Security Strategy 2025, published on 24 June 2025, who will be responsible for the creation of a National Action Plan on confronting Antimicrobial Resistance.

A cross-government National Action Plan (NAP) to confront antimicrobial resistance (AMR) exists. The NAP, covering 2024 to 2029, was published on 8 May 2024, and is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-5-year-action-plan-for-antimicrobial-resistance-2024-to-2029/confronting-antimicrobial-resistance-2024-to-2029It is the second of four five-year NAPs that the United Kingdom Government committed to developing in order to deliver its 20-year vision that AMR is contained, controlled, and mitigated by 2040.The content of this NAP was developed by the Department in consultation with a broad range of stakeholders across different sectors and the four UK nations. This allowed the NAP to take a One Health approach, encompassing cross-sector activity to drive collaborative and innovative action.Organisations responsible for delivery provide regular updates to the Department, and the appropriate governance structures ensure delivery is kept on track and that progress is being made on the NAP’s commitments and targets.

With reference to the Number 10 press release entitled UK to deliver on 5% NATO pledge as Government drives greater security for working people, published on 23 June 2025, if he will list his Department's (a) projects and (b) programmes by directorate that will contribute to the resilience and security element of national security spending for each year between 2025-26 and 2034-35 inclusive; and if he will list the amount of spending for each item (a) in real terms (b) as a proportion of concurrent forecast GDP.

We will set out detailed plans for meeting this new target at the appropriate time. The Government will continue to report to NATO on delivery against the headline investment pledge and the split, in line with NATO’s reporting schedule.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of banning the advertising of alcohol products on the alcohol industry.

The Department has made no formal assessment of the impact of banning the advertising of alcohol products on the alcohol industry. As part of the Plan for Change, the Government is committed to five missions. We will continue to work across Government to ensure all policies under consideration are assessed in order to understand the range of potential impacts both on public health and the health system, and on industry.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 56675 on Hinchingbrooke Hospital: Roads, what support the New Hospital Programme team in his Department has given to the North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust in relation to that Trust's discussions with Cambridgeshire Constabulary on the potential acquisition of land for a new access road.

Pursuant to our answer for Question 56675 on 6 June 2025, the New Hospital Programme (NHP) team in the Department are not involved in the negotiations to acquire the land with either the trust, the Cambridgeshire Constabulary, or National Highways. However, the NHP team has met with the trust to discuss the progress they have made with the Cambridgeshire Constabulary, and has also met with the National Highways team to discuss the issue. Furthermore, the trust team is supported by the NHP delivery team in NHS England, who are providing technical advice and guidance.

What his planned timetable is for establishing a fair pay agreement process in the adult social care sector.

The Government is committed to consulting on the design of the Fair Pay Agreement process and aims to begin the public consultation after the bill receives Royal Assent later this year. Secondary legislation and the establishing of the Negotiating Body will follow. The body will then negotiate the first Fair Pay Agreement. The Government is committed to establishing the first Fair Pay Agreement, and to doing so within this Parliament.

Pursuant to the Answer of 29 May 2025 to Question 52925 on Hinchingbrooke Hospital: Roads, what recent discussions his Department has had with (a) Cambridgeshire Constabulary and (b) Hinchingbrooke Hospital on resolving the land ownership dispute.

Pursuant to our answer to Question 52026 on 15 May 2025, the Department is not directly involved in the negotiations over ownership of the land that is proposed for the new access road to Hinchingbrooke Hospital. The New Hospital Programme team in the Department is engaging with the North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust and supporting them in their discussions with the Cambridgeshire Constabulary on the potential acquisition of this land for the new access road.

How the NHS deflator works in relation to the General Dental Service.

The NHS Cost Inflation Index (NHSCII) is a measure of inflation that is used in productivity calculations, and is produced annually in conjunction with NHS England, the Centre for Health Economics at the University of York, and the Office for National Statistics.National Health Service dentists are typically employed under General Dental Services (GDS) contracts. The NHSCII plays no role in determining the value of GDS contracts.GDS contract uplifts comprise of pay and non-pay elements. The non-pay element is uplifted by a measure of inflation. Since the 2022/23 financial year, this measure has been the gross domestic product (GDP) deflator. The GDP deflator has been taken from the rates published as part of the Autumn Statement, and is consistent with the GDP deflator rate used in other areas of primary care.The Government has accepted the recommendation of the Review Body on Doctors' and Dentists' Remuneration to increase the pay of doctors and dentists by 4%. The uplift to the value of GDS contracts will be net of pay and expenses.

What his Department's timetable is for publishing the 10-Year Health Plan.

The 10-Year Health Plan to reform the National Health Service will make it fit for the future. It will describe a shared vision for the health and care system in 2035, drawing directly from the extensive engagement we have undertaken with the public, patients and staff. We are in the final stages of working on the plan and will publish it in summer 2025.

What recent progress he has made toward meeting the NHS standard that 92% of patients should wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to start consultant-led treatment of non-urgent health conditions.

As of March 2025, performance against the 18-week standard was at 59.8%, a 2.6 percentage point improvement on March 2024 when it stood at 57.2%. The national referral to treatment waiting list is published monthly, and is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/As set out in the Plan for Change, we have committed to returning to the 18-week constitutional standard by the end of March 2029. Planning Guidance for 2025/26 set a target that 65% of patients wait for 18 weeks or less by March 2026, with every trust expected to deliver a minimum five percentage point improvement on current performance over that period.As an important first step to delivering on this commitment, we have now exceeded our pledge to deliver an additional 2 million appointments, tests and operations, having delivered 3.6 million more since July. We have reduced the waiting list by more than 200,000, so that patients get the care they need as soon as possible.Our Elective Reform Plan sets out the productivity and reform efforts needed to return to this standard and includes measures such as widening the opening hours of Community Diagnostic Centres and launching and expanding 17 new surgical hubs so that patients are diagnosed and treated more quickly.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of restricting access to overseas recruitment on levels of recruitment from the in-country redeployment pool.

The care worker route has seen unacceptable levels of abuse and exploitation; between July 2022 and December 2024, the Home Office revoked over 470 sponsor licences, impacting approximately 40,000 workers in the care sector.Although overseas recruitment in adult social care will end, in-country switching for those already in the country with working rights will be permitted for a transition period until 2028. This will be kept under review. These arrangements include those who need to switch employers following a sponsor licence revocation and the Department of Health and Social Care is providing up to £12.5 million to regional partnerships in 2025/26 to support these international recruits to find alternative employment.No specific assessment has been made of the impact of restricting overseas recruitment on the levels of recruitment from the in-country redeployment pool. However, in the technical annex published alongside the Immigration White Paper on 12 May 2025, the Home Office has estimated an annual reduction of approximately 7,000 main visa applicants because of ending overseas recruitment for care workers and senior care workers. This is based on its internal management information for entry visas granted covering the period March 2024 to February 2025. This estimate reflects that there was a drop in visa grants of more than 90% compared with the 12 months ending March 2024. This analysis will be refined and included within the relevant Impact Assessments accompanying the rule changes, as appropriate.The technical annex is available at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6821b49bdb6463b14cd8189c/restoring-control-over-the-immigration-system-technical-annex.pdf

If he has conducted an impact assessment on the updating of the Carr-Hill funding formula.

The Department has not conducted an impact assessment on updating the Carr-Hill formula.

If he will list those medicines used by the NHS that were subject to (a) animal and (b) non-animal testing in the UK as part of the pre-clinical testing process.

Compiling a list of all the products that were developed with and without animal testing would take the medicine regulator a significant and disproportionate amount of time and resources.Whilst new medicines are usually tested in animals, unless there is an alternative validated method, the majority of medicines used by the National Health Service are generic products, and these are usually licensed without any animal testing.The Government is supporting and accelerating advances in biomedical science and technologies to reduce reliance on the use of animals in research, and importantly to avoid some of the scientific limitations of animal models of human diseases.

Pursuant to the Answer of 13 May 2025 to Question 50264 on General Practitioners: Pay, from which year is the Labour Force survey data.

The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is conducted by the Office for National Statistics. The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) uses the LFS’ data from April to June, from the relevant year. For example, in the ASHE for 2025, the LFS’ data from April to June of 2025 will be used.