Written questions by Stephenson.

Whether he has made an assessment of the reasons for the difficulties in the recruitment of health staff in rural areas, in the context of his plans for a Neighbourhood Health Service.

We have found that people tend to settle and practice in areas where they train, as identified on page 209 of the Chief Medical Officer’s Annual Report 2021 – Health in Coastal Communities, which is available at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/60f98750e90e0703bbd94a41/cmo-annual_report-2021-health-in-coastal-communities-accessible.pdfA central part of the 10-Year Health Plan is our workforce and how we ensure that we train and provide the staff, technology and infrastructure the National Health Service needs to care for patients across our communities, including rural and coastal areas.

With reference to the policy paper entitled 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, published on 3 July 2025, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of new neighbourhood GP providers on patient choice.

The ambition for our Neighbourhood Health Service is to rebalance our health and care system so that it fits around people’s lives, moving away from a one-size-fits-all approach and giving people more power and choice over the care that they receive.Neighbourhood Health Services will bring together teams of professionals, including nurses, doctors, social care workers, pharmacists, and health visitors, closer to people’s home, to work together to provide comprehensive care in the community.This Government will bring back the family doctor for those who would benefit from seeing the same clinician regularly, for example, those living with chronic illness. In doing so, we will improve continuity of care, which is associated with better health outcomes and fewer accident and emergency department attendances. We will make sure the future of general practice is sustainable by training thousands more general practitioners and delivering a modern booking system.

If he will publish an impact assessment on the proposed creation of a Bedfordshire, Milton Keynes, Cambridgeshire, Peterborough and Hertfordshire ICB.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) should engage with all other organisations within their integrated care partnership, including with local authorities, to ensure they are involved where there are boundary changes.Clustering ICBs remain separate organisations and so must necessarily continue to duplicate some activities, which is unwieldy. Mergers allow those inefficiencies to be removed and brings stability for leaders, staff, and partners. It is not possible to estimate the difference in savings between clusters and mergers because these may vary in footprints, in starting points, and in transition arrangements.When NHS England decides on ICB mergers, it must take into account its wider duties, including duties relating to value for money and equalities. These will be considered in decision making, but NHS England is not required to publish impact assessments.

If he will set out how the role of multi-neighbourhood providers will differ from that of ICBs, in the context of the 10 Year Health Plan.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) will act primarily as strategic commissioners of services to their local populations and will not be providing services directly to the public. They will be working to ensure the best possible care is delivered through commissioned providers with a focus on long-term strategic planning.The multi-neighbourhood providers will be a voluntary provider arrangement for the delivery of coordinated services across a place or multiple neighbourhoods (populations of around 250,000), acting as a link between local general practice services and ICBs and trusts.

With reference to page 139 of his Department's 10 Year Health Plan, published on 3 July 2025, whether bridging loan capabilities will be permitted in order to allow the provision of new GP surgeries prior to the receipt of Section 106 funding.

The Department of Health and Social Care continues to work closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to determine how developer contributions from new housing developments can be better used towards local health services and infrastructure.The primary care estate is a complex mix of general practice (GP) private ownership, third-party ownership and lease arrangements with approximately half of GP premises owned by general practitioners. The bridging loan capabilities referenced in the 10-Year Health Plan are based on powers that my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has to provide financing to NHS trusts and foundation trusts and thus are not permitted to GP surgeries directly. We advise those schemes looking to utilise section 106 to work with their integrated care board (ICB), which can provide information on eligibility for bridging loan capabilities or alternatives to support delivery of health infrastructure in the area.ICBs are responsible for commissioning, including planning, securing, and monitoring, GP services within their health systems through delegated responsibility from NHS England. The National Health Service has a statutory duty to ensure that there are sufficient medical services, including GP services, in each local area. It should take account of population growth and demographic changes.

Pursuant to the Answer of 4 August 2025 to Question 62005 on Care Workers: Migrant Workers, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of collecting that information.

Home Office immigration statistics show the numbers of Health and Care Worker visas granted under this category for the ‘Caring Personal Services’ occupation group (613), which broadly covers occupations across social care, over time, and for the specific “care workers and home carers” occupation code (6135) from the fourth quarter of 2024. Not all visa grants will result in a worker travelling to the United Kingdom. Skills for Care collects data on the adult social care workforce from employers on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care, with the voluntary Adult Social Care Workforce Dataset data collection. From July 2024, it added a question about the Health and Care Worker visa status of employees, supplementing existing data on nationality and, for non-UK nationals, the year of entry to the UK. However, the uncertainty of any estimate of the total number of current workers with this status would depend on how many employers have chosen to respond to that question and whether their responses could be considered representative of the workforce in its entirety. Any estimate could not be directly compared to data on visa grants from the Home Office.

If he will make an estimate of the number of workers working in the social care sector who are in the UK on a social care worker visa.

Home Office immigration statistics show the numbers of Health and Care Worker visas granted under this category for the ‘Caring Personal Services’ occupation group (613), which broadly covers occupations across social care, over time, and for the specific “care workers and home carers” occupation code (6135) from the fourth quarter of 2024. Not all visa grants will result in a worker travelling to the United Kingdom. Skills for Care collects data on the adult social care workforce from employers on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care, with the voluntary Adult Social Care Workforce Dataset data collection. From July 2024, it added a question about the Health and Care Worker visa status of employees, supplementing existing data on nationality and, for non-UK nationals, the year of entry to the UK. However, the uncertainty of any estimate of the total number of current workers with this status would depend on how many employers have chosen to respond to that question and whether their responses could be considered representative of the workforce in its entirety. Any estimate could not be directly compared to data on visa grants from the Home Office.

With reference to the 10-Year Health Plan, whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities & Local Government about the role of placemaking in improving public health.

Ministers from the Department of Health and Social Care and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government meet periodically to discuss shared priorities and links to health.The Government’s initial response to the report of the independent New Towns Taskforce makes clear the importance of health in placemaking, stating that this work “is about creating new places and new communities, each place with a distinct sense of identity and the necessary infrastructure and amenities to support the health and wellbeing of its residents and neighbouring communities”. The taskforce report specifically recommends learning from the former NHS England Healthy New Towns programme.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled Millions more appointments as more than 2,000 extra GPs recruited, published on 24 July 2025, what proportion of additional GP appointments have been held in person.

Eight million more general practitioner (GP) appointments have been delivered this year compared to last.The General Practice Appointments Data (GPAD) does not enable us to attribute delivered appointments to individual GPs. As a result, it is not possible to determine how many of these additional appointments were delivered specifically by the 2,300 newly recruited GPs.The GPAD provides information on the total number of appointments delivered face to face, and similarly, but not specifically, how many face-to-face appointments are delivered by individual GPs, including the 2,300 newly recruited GPs. Appointment mode, whether face to face, telephone, or online, is determined by clinical need and patient preference, and is not inherently directly linked to the number of GPs recruited.

Pursuant to the Answer of 4 August 2025 to Question 62005 on Care Workers: Migrant Workers, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of collecting data on visa status and ongoing employment in adult social care or UK residence.

Home Office immigration statistics show the numbers of Health and Care Worker visas granted under this category for the ‘Caring Personal Services’ occupation group (613), which broadly covers occupations across social care, over time, and for the specific “care workers and home carers” occupation code (6135) from the fourth quarter of 2024. Not all visa grants will result in a worker travelling to the United Kingdom. Skills for Care collects data on the adult social care workforce from employers on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care, with the voluntary Adult Social Care Workforce Dataset data collection. From July 2024, it added a question about the Health and Care Worker visa status of employees, supplementing existing data on nationality and, for non-UK nationals, the year of entry to the UK. However, the uncertainty of any estimate of the total number of current workers with this status would depend on how many employers have chosen to respond to that question and whether their responses could be considered representative of the workforce in its entirety. Any estimate could not be directly compared to data on visa grants from the Home Office.

With reference to page 15 of the policy paper entitled 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, published on 3 July 2025, whether support to purchase wearables will be provided to patients outside areas where health need and deprivation are highest.

As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, we will ensure fair and equitable access by making wearables available for patients that need them.We are exploring how wearable technology can best support prevention, early intervention, and the management of long-term conditions, while reducing health inequalities and improving outcomes across the country.The type of wearable technology provided will depend on the specific health need being addressed. The focus will be on deploying the most relevant and effective technology to support individual care pathways and improve patient outcomes.Any future decisions about wider support for the purchase or provision of wearables will be subject to evaluation findings, value-for-money assessments, and future spending review decisions.

What estimate he has made of the cost of non-healthcare professionals in his plans for the NHS; and how this compares to the current figure.

No specific assessment has been made of the future cost of non-healthcare professionals. The NHS England 2025/26 Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance though states that integrated care boards and providers should review their workforce and spending to identify savings, including on non-frontline staff, in order to prioritise frontline care. The guidance requires systems to conduct a robust review of establishment growth and return spend on support functions to April 2022 levels. The guidance is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/PRN01625-25-26-priorities-and-operational-planning-guidance-january-2025.pdfThe Department estimates that expenditure on total paybill for substantive staff employed in National Health Service infrastructure support roles was around £14.4 billion in the 2024-25 financial year. For context, the total paybill for NHS staff in 2024-25 was around £86.6 billion, meaning infrastructure support staff account for around 17% of the total paybill which has been essentially unchanged since 2010-11.NHS infrastructure support roles includes staff working in central functions such as human resources and finance, staff working in property and estates roles and also NHS managers. This paybill figure includes the cost of basic pay, additional earnings, employer national insurance contributions and employer pensions contributions. It covers staff employed by NHS trusts, integrated care boards and also central NHS bodies and support organisations.

With reference to page 73 of his Department's 10 Year Health Plan, published on 3 July 2025, whether patients will be able to opt out of viewing their risk of major conditions.

The National Health Service’s 10-Year Health Plan included a commitment that the NHS will develop a Unified Genomic Record, integrating genomic data with relevant clinical and diagnostic data. This will be linked to the NHS Single Patient Record. Patients will be able to view a complete account of their risk of major conditions and manage their personal health risks through the NHS App.The information that a patient chooses to receive from the Unified Genomic Record via the NHS App will be tailored to individual preferences.Clinicians will be able to view the patient’s risk of major conditions and can work with individual patients to manage that risk and mitigate the risk of the condition developing.

Whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing ongoing access to therapy for people with complex mental health needs.

We recognise the importance of providing ongoing access to therapy for people with complex mental health needs. The 10-Year Health Plan sets out our vision for a Neighbourhood Health Service and the three big shifts needed in the system – analogue to digital, sickness to prevention and hospital to community.As part of this, we are piloting neighbourhood mental health centres. These pilots aim to provide open access holistic care for anyone with a severe mental illness or complex mental health needs 24 hours a day, seven days a week, bringing together a range of community mental health services and other forms of relevant support under one roof, including crisis services and short-stay beds.NHS England is also developing a Modern Service Framework which will focus on services for people with severe and enduring mental illness and services for people with complex emotional needs.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled £75 million boost for hospices to transform end-of-life care, published on 20 July 2025, whether he has made an assessment of the revenue implications for hospices of this investment.

Hospices do incredible work by supporting people and families when they need it most, and we recognise the incredibly tough pressures they are facing.Palliative care services are included in the list of services an integrated care board (ICB) must commission. ICBs are responsible for the commissioning of palliative and end of life care services, to meet the needs of their local populations.Most hospices are charitable, independent organisations which receive some statutory funding from their respective ICBs for providing National Health Services.The £75 million capital funding boost for hospices was intended to help them to provide the best end of life care to patients and their families in a supportive and dignified physical environment by, for example, funding refurbishments, overhauling IT systems, and improving facilities for patients and visitors. The impact this may have had on revenue has not been assessed.Additionally, we are providing £26 million in revenue funding to support children and young people’s hospices for 2025/26. This is a continuation of the funding which, until recently, as known as the Children’s Hospice Grant.I can also now confirm the continuation of this vital funding for the three years of the next spending review period, 2026/27 to 2028/29 inclusive. This funding will see circa £26 million, adjusted for inflation, allocated to children and young people’s hospices in England each year, via their local ICBs on behalf of NHS England, as happened in 2024/25 and 2025/26. This amounts to approximately £80 million over the next three years.

If he will make an assessment of the causes of the resident doctor strikes in 2025.

On 9 April, The British Medical Association resident doctors committee (BMA RDC) entered into dispute in relation to the timing of the Review Body on Doctors' and Dentists' Remuneration report and subsequently ran a statutory ballot, which closed on 8 July, in response to the report and the 2025/26 pay award. They have since run another statutory ballot exclusively for their foundation year 1 members in relation to lack of training places.Following these ballots the BMA RDC currently holds two live mandates for strike action. One is in relation to pay, which applies to all the resident doctor membership, and one is in relation to pay and training places, which applies to their foundation year 1 membership only.They took five days of strike action from 25 to 30 July under their mandate over pay.My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has regular engagement with resident doctors and is aware of the issues that they are experiencing as they work and train in the National Health Service. My Rt. Hon. Friend intends to continue to work with the BMA RDC to resolve their disputes and improve working conditions. This Government has already made significant improvements on the issues which impact doctors most through NHS England’s 10 Point Plan to improve resident doctors’ working lives.

What steps he plans to take with the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology to help ensure that rural communities with poor (a) broadband and (b) mobile signal can access digital NHS services from home.

Digital health should be seen as part of a multi-channel offering that meets the needs and preferences of users. Digital services must be designed to alleviate healthcare inequalities rather than exacerbate them. Our goal is to ensure that reducing healthcare inequalities and improving digital inclusion have due focus in wider inclusive user design and delivery for all digital health products and services. Digital health tools should be part of a wider offering that includes face-to-face support with appropriate help for people who struggle to access digital services.We continue to work with partners, including the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), to reduce digital barriers and support those at risk of digital exclusion.The National Health Service Digital Inclusion Framework supports delivery of the 10-Year Health Plan by providing a structured approach to tackling digital barriers across connectivity, skills, confidence, and accessibility. It ensures digital transformation is inclusive and aligned with the Plan’s ambition to personalise care, reduce inequalities, and create a health system that works for everyone.Integrated care systems (ICSs) have also been asked, through NHS priorities and operational planning guidance for financial year 2025/26, to implement the NHS Digital Inclusion Framework and identify local populations most at risk of exclusion, including those affected by poor connectivity.

Whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of being able to view the risk of major conditions on people with poor mental health.

The 10-Year Health Plan includes a commitment to begin implementing integrated risk scores that bring together polygenic risk scores (PRS) and other non-biological risk factors. NHS England, in partnership with Our Future Health and clinical experts, will carry out a service evaluation, considering a number of factors including clinical impact and the impact on individuals of the implementation of PRS, beginning with a targeted number of major conditions.

With reference to page 36 of the policy paper entitled 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, published on 3 July 2025, what his definition is of community, in this context.

The Government is committed to delivering a Neighbourhood Health Service that brings care closer to communities, ensuring that care happens as locally as it can, digitally by default, in a person’s home if possible, in a neighbourhood health centre when needed, and only in hospital if necessary.The 10-Year Health Plan set out our aim to establish a neighbourhood health centre in every community that will be a ‘one stop shop’ for patient care and the place from which multi-disciplinary teams operate.In this context, ‘community’ refers to the local place where people live and receive care and support, encompassing the networks of health, care, and voluntary services that exist around individuals, families, and neighbourhoods.Care in the community will be supported through multidisciplinary neighbourhood teams and neighbourhood health centres.Neighbourhood health centres will provide easier, more convenient access to a full range of health and care services on people’s doorsteps, joining up the National Health Service and local authority and voluntary services.

With reference to the policy paper entitled 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, published on 3 July 2025, how clinical negligence cases involving mistakes by surgical robots will be handled.

NHS Resolution (NHSR) manages clinical negligence and other claims against the National Health Service in England.The bulk of NHSR’s workload is handling negligence claims on behalf of the members of their indemnity schemes. One of the indemnity schemes is the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts (CNST). CNST handles all clinical negligence claims against member NHS bodies where the incident in question took place on or after 1 April 1995.The scheme covers all clinical negligence claims arising from the diagnosis, care, or treatment of patients by the Member, rather than specifying particular procedures.In every claim pursued, NHSR assesses whether their member has been negligent in treating the patient. This will include an assessment of whether any technology employed to assist the treatment has been used appropriately.It is important to note that surgical robots are not in anyway autonomous and are used as a surgical instrument by a qualified surgeon. This Government is setting a target of 500,000 robotic surgical operations by 2035 where the evidence supports it, in terms of faster recovery and reduced complications for patients.