Written questions by Thomas.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact on of not offering prescriptions longer than the standard 28-day cycle to patients with long-term, stable conditions on both GP practices and patients of GPs; and whether he plans to amend the NHS standard prescription cycle guidance for GPs.

Prescribing durations are typically 28, 56, or 84 day intervals. There are no current national contract requirements, standards, criteria or guidance as to optimal prescription length from NHS England. Currently, prescription duration is guided by local prescribing policies, guidance from professional regulators, the General Medical Council, and professional bodies, including the British Medical Association. These indicate that determining the optimal prescription duration in any individual case requires consideration of many factors including clinical appropriateness, patient safety, patient compliance, types of medicines, and required monitoring frequency.

What steps his Department is taking to (a) improve medical supply chains and (b) ensure that patients are able to obtain medications prescribed to them; and what assessment he has made of the potential merits of a framework requiring follow-ups with patients issued prescriptions to confirm they have successfully accessed medication.

In early August, the Department published the policy paper Managing a robust and resilience supply of medicines, which provides greater transparency of the supply chains we rely on, the actions we take to protect patients from medicine shortages when they occur, and the steps we are taking to enhance resilience in our supply chains. The publication outlines a number of actions which are underway, including:consulting on better reporting of supply issues;consulting on pharmacist flexibilities to allow pharmacists to supply an alternative if they do not have the exact prescribed item available, under certain circumstances;publishing information guides for patients, community pharmacies, and general practices about what to do when faced with supply issues; andproviding shortage information at the point of prescribing in general practice.Although the Department has made no specific assessment of the potential merits of a framework requiring follow-ups with patients issued prescriptions, it is worth noting that prescribers are expected to provide information to their patients regarding their medicines and ensure that suitable arrangements are in place for the monitoring, follow-up, and review of medication.Pharmacists also play a key role in enabling patients to access medicines. For example, the New Medicine Service is an advanced service offered by community pharmacies, providing patients with advice to address any possible side effects, issues, or questions that patients who are prescribed a new medicine may have.The service focuses on treatments for long-term conditions including asthma and hypertension. Early interventions of this type can improve medication adherence, patient outcomes, and can reduce pressure on the wider National Health Service.

What steps his Department is taking to (a) work with GP practices to ensure nursing staff receive pay increases in line with national recommendations and (b) facilitate the shift of pay awards from October to April so that no portion of annual remuneration is lost; and what assessment he has made of the need for a framework that guarantees government-allocated funding for staff pay is used for that intended purpose.

The Government is committed to ensuring that the general practice (GP) nursing workforce is sustainable, supported, and valued for the work they do. As self-employed contractors to the National Health Service, it is up to GPs how they distribute pay and benefits to their staff. Funding for GP nursing pay is not ringfenced and contractual arrangements do not place any specific obligations on GPs with regard to GP nurse terms and conditions. The independent review body on Doctors’ and Dentists’ Remuneration has recommended an uplift of 4% to the pay ranges for salaried GPs, and to GP contractor pay for 2025/26. We have provided an increase to core funding for practices to allow this 4% pay uplift to be passed on to salaried and contractor GPs. We expect GP contractors to implement pay rises to other practice staff in line with the uplift in funding they have received. The Government has committed to a new substantive GP Contract within this Parliament cycle, and we will continue to engage constructively with the General Practitioners Committee England on issues such as staffing.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of modular construction for the delivery of healthcare infrastructure within the NHS.

We recognise the merits of modular construction for delivering National Health Service health infrastructure, including faster construction times, cost savings, minimised disruption, higher quality and safety standards, and the use of sustainable materials and methods.Modular construction is a modern method of construction (MMC). A toolkit has been developed to support MMC opportunities in healthcare, which is publicly available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/nhs-modern-methods-of-construction-assessment-tool-user-guide/The toolkit is recommended for use on all healthcare infrastructure projects and is mandated for projects over £25 million to meet the business case requirements of 70% new build and 50% refurbishment using MMC.The New Hospital Programme is already transforming the way that hospital infrastructure is constructed by using a national standardised approach, called Hospital 2.0. Hospital 2.0 uses a standardised ‘kit of parts’ for hospital components, ranging from doors to full bathroom pods, that can be assembled into different size hospitals in an optimised, consistent, and repeatable way and with off-site manufacturing and with modular construction, reducing costs and accelerating construction.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the provisions in place to make NHS healthcare accessible to people who are (a) deaf or (b) have hearing loss; and whether he plans to improve these provisions.

Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning services to meet the needs of their local population, including deaf people and people who have hearing loss.Under the Equality Act (2010), health and social care organisations must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled people are not disadvantaged.NHS England are rolling out a Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag which enables the recording of key information about a patient and their adjustment needs, to ensure support can be tailored appropriately.Since 2016, all National Health Service organisations and publicly funded social care providers are expected to meet the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), which details the approach to supporting the information and communication support needs of people with a disability, impairment or sensory loss.On 30 June 2025, NHS England published a revised AIS. NHS England is working to support implementation of the AIS with awareness raising, communication and engagement, and a review of the current e-learning modules on the AIS. The intention is to ensure that staff and organisations in the NHS are aware of the AIS and the importance of meeting the information and communication needs of disabled people using NHS services.

What steps she is taking to strengthen protections for mental health nurses in the workplace.

Everyone working in the National Health Service has a fundamental right to be safe at work, including those in mental health settings. Individual employers are responsible for the health and safety of their staff, and they put in place measures, including, security, training and emotional support for staff affected by violence.In April 2025, the Government announced that the Social Partnership Forum’s recommendations on tackling and reducing violence, part of the 2023 Agenda for Change pay deal, have been accepted. These include significant commitments to tackle violence and aggression against NHS staff including improving data and reporting of incidences and ensuring strengthened risk assessment, training and support for victims. This will be strengthened by the introduction of a new set of staff standards, as detailed in the 10-Year Health Plan, which will cover issues including tackling violence, racism and sexual harassment in the NHS workplace.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the funding for health bodies involved in the Right Care, Right Person framework; and what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on securing more funding for all bodies involved.

The Government has not made such an assessment and has instead asked all integrated care boards to estimate the resourcing requirements it would take for them to deliver the Right Care, Right Person framework. In November 2024, NHS England published the document, Guidance on implementing the National Partnership Agreement: Right Care, Right Person, which includes guidance on undertaking an impact assessment to identify how different agencies and services will be impacted and how any negative impacts will be mitigated. The Department and the Home Office continue to work together to monitor the framework and its impacts, and discussions have been had between departments at junior ministerial level.

How many Community Diagnostic Centres there are in Bromsgrove constituency; and how many appointments were delivered across those centres in the last 12 months.

No community diagnostic centres (CDCs) are currently located in the Bromsgrove constituency. The nearest CDC is the Kidderminster Treatment Centre CDC, which general practitioners in Bromsgrove may refer patients to. Bromsgrove patients can also access diagnostic services from the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust.We do not hold data on the number of appointments delivered in CDCs but do publish monthly activity figures. The Kidderminster Treatment Centre CDC delivered 30,853 tests, checks, and scans in the last 12 months, from June 2024 to June 2025.

What plans his Department has to (a) recruit, (b) train and (c) retain (i) radiologists and (ii) clinical oncologists.

We will ensure that the number of medical specialty training places, including for radiology and clinical oncology, meets the demands of the National Health Service in the future. Over the next three years, we will create 1,000 new specialty training places, with a focus on specialties where there is greatest need.We will publish a 10 Year Workforce Plan to create a workforce ready to deliver a transformed service. They will be more empowered, more flexible and more fulfilled. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure that the NHS has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it.

What steps he is taking to improve the oversight of NHS-funded care at private providers.

Throughout its history, the National Health Service has always worked with non-NHS healthcare providers to deliver essential services to patients. The Independent Sector Partnership Agreement, signed in January 2025, extends how the NHS and independent sector can work together to deliver more non-urgent care, free at the point of use. The safety of all NHS funded patients, whether they are treated in the NHS or in an independent sector provider (ISP), is a top priority for the Government. Private providers are commissioned and managed by integrated care boards under the terms of the NHS Standard Contract, which applies the same standards of oversight and regulation as are applied to NHS providers. All providers of healthcare, including ISPs, are regulated by the Care Quality Commission and follow a set of fundamental standards of safety and quality, below which care should never fall. Most independent sector care is rated as high quality by the Care Quality Commission, with 92% of providers rated as good or outstanding. Independent provider licensing and oversight was established in 2014 under the Health and Social Care Act 2012 to licence and regulate independent providers of NHS services. The oversight approach was originally focused on the financial oversight of independent providers but in 2023, in line with continuously improving the oversight of NHS-funded care at private providers, the Hard to Replace policy and the requirement to maintain standards of quality governance were introduced, giving NHS England powers to intervene with some providers where there was a risk to service continuity. Further details on these developments are available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/licensing-and-oversight-of-independent-providers/

What provisions his Department has put in place to monitor the quality-of-care patients receive in NHS-funded treatments at private hospitals.

Throughout its history, the National Health Service has always worked with non-NHS healthcare providers to deliver essential services to patients. The Independent Sector Partnership Agreement, signed in January 2025, extends how the NHS and independent sector can work together to deliver more non-urgent care, free at the point of use. The safety of all NHS funded patients, whether they are treated in the NHS or in an independent sector provider (ISP), is a top priority for the Government. Private providers are commissioned and managed by integrated care boards under the terms of the NHS Standard Contract, which applies the same standards of oversight and regulation as are applied to NHS providers. All providers of healthcare, including ISPs, are regulated by the Care Quality Commission and follow a set of fundamental standards of safety and quality, below which care should never fall. Most independent sector care is rated as high quality by the Care Quality Commission, with 92% of providers rated as good or outstanding. Independent provider licensing and oversight was established in 2014 under the Health and Social Care Act 2012 to licence and regulate independent providers of NHS services. The oversight approach was originally focused on the financial oversight of independent providers but in 2023, in line with continuously improving the oversight of NHS-funded care at private providers, the Hard to Replace policy and the requirement to maintain standards of quality governance were introduced, giving NHS England powers to intervene with some providers where there was a risk to service continuity. Further details on these developments are available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/licensing-and-oversight-of-independent-providers/

What steps his Department plans to take to reduce waiting times for specialist operations.

Tackling waiting lists, including for specialist operations, is a key priority for the Government. We have now exceeded our pledge to deliver an additional two million appointments, tests, and operations, having delivered 4.6 million more since July 2024. This additional 4.6 million includes specialist operations, consultations, diagnostic tests, and treatments such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and endoscopy.The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the productivity and reform efforts needed to return to the constitutional standard that 92% of patients will wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment by March 2029.The plan includes wide ranging reforms to improve patients’ access to, and experience of care, in part by reducing unnecessary appointments in favour of faster and more local diagnostics.Dedicated and protected surgical hubs will transform the way the National Health Service provides elective care by focusing on providing high volume low complexity (HVLC) surgery, helping patients get quicker access to common surgical procedures. These surgical hubs help place HVLC surgeries away from the acute site, improving outcomes for patients, reducing pressures on hospitals, and improving capacity for more specialist procedures in the acute site. The Department is committed to increasing the number of hubs over the next three years, so that more operations can be carried out. Surgical hubs are endorsed by Getting It Right First Time, a national NHS England programme which undertakes reviews of specialities and identifies changes to improve how services are run, to create efficiencies and improve patient outcomes, including for surgical specialties.

Whether his Department has put mechanisms in place to allow NHS patients to provide feedback to the commissioners of publicly-funded private healthcare treatments.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are the National Health Service organisations responsible for planning health services for their local population, including local commissioning decisions around publicly funded healthcare treatments by private providers. ICBs are also responsible for enforcing contracts with providers, including independent sector providers in their area, and are best placed to ensure providers are meeting the needs of their patients, delivering the best outcomes, and preventing delays. NHS patients can share their feedback to their local ICB, details of which can be found on the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/contact-us/about-nhs-services/contact-your-local-integrated-care-board-icb/

How his Department monitors agreed (a) standards and (b) targets within privately-provided services; and whether there are any contractual consequences if performance targets are not met.

The independent sector plays a vital role in partnership with the National Health Service, delivering more than 100,000 elective appointments and procedures every week for the NHS. Contracts are awarded to independent sector providers (ISPs) in line with the Provider Selection Regime (PSR). The PSR was introduced by regulations made under the Health and Care Act 2022, and helps ensure that decisions are made in the best interest of patients and service users. Those providers in receipt of NHS contracts must meet additional requirements, including the standards set out in the NHS Provider License and the NHS Standard Contract.ISPs are expected to deliver services agreed in contracts with integrated care boards (ICBs), progressing priorities set out in planning guidance, including an improvement in elective waiting time performance. ICBs can take action where these targets are not met. Data published monthly by NHS England on waiting list performance is used to track performance and ensure targets are being met, and can be accessed at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/

What steps he is taking to reduce the wait times for children’s neurodevelopmental pathway assessments.

The Government has recognised that, nationally, the demand for assessments for neurodevelopmental conditions, and specifically autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), has grown significantly in recent years, and that people are experiencing severe delays accessing such assessments. The Government’s 10-Year Health Plan will make the National Health Service fit for the future, recognising the need for early intervention and support, without the need for diagnosis, particularly for children and young people.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 provision of neurodevelopmental services, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to help ICBs and the NHS to deliver improved outcomes for people referred to an autism assessment service. The guidance also sets out what support should be available before an assessment and following a recent diagnosis of autism. Since publication, NHS England has been supporting systems and services to identify where there are challenges for implementation and how they might overcome these.NHS England has also established an ADHD taskforce which is bringing together those with lived experience with experts from the NHS, education, charity, and justice sectors to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including in accessing services and support. An interim report was published on 20 June, with the final report expected to be published later in the year, and we will carefully consider its recommendations.The Government is also supporting inclusive environments and earlier intervention for children through the Early Language Support for Every Child and the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools programmes.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of prioritising NHS jobs for British citizens who have gained medical qualifications (a) within the UK and (b) from institutions within other European countries.

As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan published on 3 July, we will work across Government to prioritise United Kingdom medical graduates for foundation training, and to prioritise UK medical graduates and other doctors who have worked in the National Health Service for a significant period for specialty training.We will publish a new 10 Year Workforce Plan later this year to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, and treat patients on time again.

What steps he is taking to improve palliative care in the context of assisted dying.

Irrespective of any legislation on assisted dying, we must continue to work towards creating a society where every person who needs it receives high-quality, compassionate palliative and end of life care. The Government will shift the focus of healthcare out of the hospital and into the community and we recognise that it is vital to include palliative care and end of life care in this shift.Palliative care services are included in the list of services that integrated care boards (ICBs) must commission. This promotes a more consistent national approach and supports commissioners in prioritising palliative care and end of life care. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications.We are supporting the hospice sector with a £100 million capital funding boost for adult and children’s hospices in England for 2024/25 and 2025/26 to ensure they have the best physical environment for care. Additionally, we are providing children and young people’s hospices with £26 million of revenue funding for 2025/26.Earlier this year, I met with key palliative care and end of life care and hospice stakeholders, in a roundtable format, with a focus on long-term sector sustainability within the context of our 10-Year Health Plan.

Whether his Department plans to take steps with the Health and Care Professions Council to include psychotherapists on the list of protected titles within the healthcare industry.

While there are no current plans to protect the professional title “psychotherapist” in law, the Government keeps professions subject to statutory regulation and the list of protected titles under review. The Government is clear that the statutory regulation of healthcare professionals should only be used where the risks to public and patient protection cannot be addressed in other ways, such as through employer oversight or accredited voluntary registration.

What plans he has to improve respiratory disease (a) prevention, (b) diagnosis and (c) care.

The 10-Year Health Plan will deliver the three big shifts our National Health Service needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. All of these are relevant to improving respiratory health in all parts of the country.More tests and scans delivered in the community will allow earlier diagnosis, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all help people manage their long-term conditions, including respiratory conditions, closer to home. Earlier diagnosis of conditions will help prevent deterioration and improve survival rates. Taking action to reduce the causes of the biggest killers, such as enabling a smoke free generation, can further help prevent lung conditions.

How many NHS Accident & Emergency admissions were made for cosmetic and aesthetic treatments requiring urgent medical attention in 2024.

Information on hospital admissions is not available in the format requested. However, an analysis of hospital episodes by diagnoses for 2023/24 is available at the following link: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/hospital-admitted-patient-care-activity/2023-24