Written questions by Anderson.

What funding has been allocated to initiatives targeting male mental health in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.

On 19 November 2025, to coincide with International Men’s Health Day, we published the first ever Men’s Health Strategy for England. This aims to improve the health of all men and boys in England, including those in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.The strategy includes investment in community-based men's health programmes and suicide prevention programmes, and a groundbreaking partnership with the Premier League to make sure people know what mental health support is available to them. It also includes comprehensive action on major health challenges including suicide, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and mental health.This strategy is a crucial first step, laying the foundation from which we can learn, iterate, and grow. We will work with the Men's Health Academic Network and the voluntary, community, and social enterprise sector to develop and publish a one-year-on report, highlighting the improvements made and where future efforts will need to be targeted.The strategy is not just a plan, it is a call to action to create a society where men and boys are supported to live longer, healthier, and happier lives. We recognise that many of the issues affecting men cannot be solved by the Government alone. The strategy also highlights how everyone can help by setting out how other sectors, such as the National Health Service, local government, employers, charities, research funders, and communities, can contribute to shared outcomes.We do not hold data on how much funding has been allocated specifically to men’s mental health initiatives in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency. This information may be held locally.

What steps is the Department taking to ensure providers of NHS services in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency have the resources to implement the men’s health strategy.

On 19 November 2025, to coincide with International Men’s Health Day, we published the first ever Men’s Health Strategy for England. This aims to improve the health of all men and boys in England, including those in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.The strategy includes investment in community-based men's health programmes and suicide prevention programmes, and a groundbreaking partnership with the Premier League to make sure people know what mental health support is available to them. It also includes comprehensive action on major health challenges including suicide, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and mental health.This strategy is a crucial first step, laying the foundation from which we can learn, iterate, and grow. We will work with the Men's Health Academic Network and the voluntary, community, and social enterprise sector to develop and publish a one-year-on report, highlighting the improvements made and where future efforts will need to be targeted.The strategy is not just a plan, it is a call to action to create a society where men and boys are supported to live longer, healthier, and happier lives. We recognise that many of the issues affecting men cannot be solved by the Government alone. The strategy also highlights how everyone can help by setting out how other sectors, such as the National Health Service, local government, employers, charities, research funders, and communities, can contribute to shared outcomes.We do not hold data on how much funding has been allocated specifically to men’s mental health initiatives in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency. This information may be held locally.

What metrics will the Department use to measure improvements in men’s health outcomes in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency over the next five years.

On 19 November 2025, to coincide with International Men’s Health Day, we published the first ever Men’s Health Strategy for England. This aims to improve the health of all men and boys in England, including those in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.The strategy includes investment in community-based men's health programmes and suicide prevention programmes, and a groundbreaking partnership with the Premier League to make sure people know what mental health support is available to them. It also includes comprehensive action on major health challenges including suicide, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and mental health.This strategy is a crucial first step, laying the foundation from which we can learn, iterate, and grow. We will work with the Men's Health Academic Network and the voluntary, community, and social enterprise sector to develop and publish a one-year-on report, highlighting the improvements made and where future efforts will need to be targeted.The strategy is not just a plan, it is a call to action to create a society where men and boys are supported to live longer, healthier, and happier lives. We recognise that many of the issues affecting men cannot be solved by the Government alone. The strategy also highlights how everyone can help by setting out how other sectors, such as the National Health Service, local government, employers, charities, research funders, and communities, can contribute to shared outcomes.We do not hold data on how much funding has been allocated specifically to men’s mental health initiatives in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency. This information may be held locally.

What estimate his Department has made of the additional public health support needs of families in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency targeted by the Child Poverty Strategy.

Tackling child poverty is at the heart of the Government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and its commitment to raising the healthiest generation of children in history. We know that poverty can have a long-lasting impact on children’s health. In the ambitious Child Poverty Strategy, the Government reaffirmed our commitment to strengthen the support available for families to address their health needs. For example, we have committed to supporting those who need access to healthy, affordable nutrition by increasing the value of Healthy Start by 10% and setting out measures to give parents and carers the confidence to choose lower priced infant formula and to make infant formula more affordable.The assessment of the health needs of a local population is the responsibility of local authorities through a Joint Strategic Needs Assessment. These assessments are funded through the Public Health Grant. In Buckingham and Bletchley, Buckinghamshire County Council and Milton Keynes City Council provide these assessments, with further information available at the following link:https://miltonkeynes.jsna.uk/jsna/children-young-people/Child health data, including obesity and physical activity, is held on Fingertips at national, regional, and local levels in England. Data from the National Child Measurement Programme can serve as proxy measures of nutritional status. Aggregated data on obesity and overweight prevalence is not available at Parliamentary constituency level but is available at ward and local authority levels. The following table shows the percentage of obesity, including severe obesity, and the prevalence of overweight, including obesity, within each ward in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency, from 2022/23 to 2024/25:Ward namePercentage of obesity (%) including severe obesity 2022/23 to 2024/25Prevalence of overweight (%) including obesity 2022/23 to 2024/25Reception aged 4 to 5 years oldYear 6 aged 10 to 11 years oldReception aged 4 to 5 years oldYear 6 aged 10 to 11 years oldBletchley East11.826.524.738.8Bletchley West11.525.527.138.7Bletchley Park13.527.527.940.4Buckingham West7.416.521.029.9Buckingham East6.315.818.826.3Great Brickhill9.114.121.228.2Tattenhoe5.816.915.528.2Winslow10.414.322.925.0

What data his Department holds on projected child nutrition needs in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency associated with interventions in the Child Poverty Strategy.

Tackling child poverty is at the heart of the Government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and its commitment to raising the healthiest generation of children in history. We know that poverty can have a long-lasting impact on children’s health. In the ambitious Child Poverty Strategy, the Government reaffirmed our commitment to strengthen the support available for families to address their health needs. For example, we have committed to supporting those who need access to healthy, affordable nutrition by increasing the value of Healthy Start by 10% and setting out measures to give parents and carers the confidence to choose lower priced infant formula and to make infant formula more affordable.The assessment of the health needs of a local population is the responsibility of local authorities through a Joint Strategic Needs Assessment. These assessments are funded through the Public Health Grant. In Buckingham and Bletchley, Buckinghamshire County Council and Milton Keynes City Council provide these assessments, with further information available at the following link:https://miltonkeynes.jsna.uk/jsna/children-young-people/Child health data, including obesity and physical activity, is held on Fingertips at national, regional, and local levels in England. Data from the National Child Measurement Programme can serve as proxy measures of nutritional status. Aggregated data on obesity and overweight prevalence is not available at Parliamentary constituency level but is available at ward and local authority levels. The following table shows the percentage of obesity, including severe obesity, and the prevalence of overweight, including obesity, within each ward in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency, from 2022/23 to 2024/25:Ward namePercentage of obesity (%) including severe obesity 2022/23 to 2024/25Prevalence of overweight (%) including obesity 2022/23 to 2024/25Reception aged 4 to 5 years oldYear 6 aged 10 to 11 years oldReception aged 4 to 5 years oldYear 6 aged 10 to 11 years oldBletchley East11.826.524.738.8Bletchley West11.525.527.138.7Bletchley Park13.527.527.940.4Buckingham West7.416.521.029.9Buckingham East6.315.818.826.3Great Brickhill9.114.121.228.2Tattenhoe5.816.915.528.2Winslow10.414.322.925.0

What steps he is taking to ensure that clinical commissioning structures are prepared for changes arising from the HIV Action Plan.

The new HIV Action Plan (HIV AP), published on 1 December 2025, sets out how the Government will enable every level of the healthcare system to work together to engage everyone in prevention, testing and treatment, tackling stigma, and reaching our ambition to end new HIV transmissions by 2030.National Health Service integrated care boards hold commissioning responsibility for adult HIV services in line with the relevant NHS England service specification. NHS England is supportive of the HIV AP and its recommendations and is committed to the implementation and delivery of the plan.The HIV AP asks local partners across the NHS and local authorities to carry out a HIV needs assessment which will inform the development and publication of local HIV plans across the country during 2026/27.Local areas will monitor uptake and outcomes to identify gaps and improve equity in access to HIV prevention, testing, and treatment. The UK Health Security Agency will continue to support this with robust data monitoring and reporting.

What estimate he has made of the laboratory capacity required to meet anticipated levels of HIV screening during the HIV Action Plan for England 2025–2030 period.

As part of the new HIV Action Plan, we will continue the success of the blood-borne virus emergency department opt-out testing programme, investing £156 million from April 2026 to March 2029 to deliver opt-out HIV, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C testing in emergency departments in very high and high HIV prevalence areas.We will also expand digital provision of HIV testing, investing £5 million in 2025/26 to trial HIV testing through the NHS App, working in partnership with existing commissioned sexual health providers, such as those already used by local authorities, rather than building a new service from scratch. These services have a strong track record in at-home HIV testing, and the NHS App will provide a new entry point that routes people into that established service.National Health Service trusts are responsible for ensuring laboratories have adequate capacity for all testing, including HIV screening.

What steps he is taking to ensure the national HIV surveillance system remains compatible with international reporting standards.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and its predecessors have led HIV surveillance since the beginning of the epidemic in the early 1980s. In addition to continued collaboration and acting as expert advisors on HIV surveillance to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) European region, the UKHSA ensures that its data remains compatible by reporting standard data to ECDC/WHO European region and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS on an annual basis.

What plans he has to review guidance for local authorities on HIV support service commissioning.

The new HIV Action Plan, published on 1 December 2025, sets out how the Government will enable every level of the healthcare system to work together to engage everyone in prevention, testing and treatment, tackling stigma, and reaching our ambition to end new HIV transmissions by 2030. Services to support people living with HIV are primarily the responsibility of National Health Service integrated care boards, who commission adult HIV care in line with the relevant NHS England service specification. Providers of HIV care are responsible for collaborating with local authority commissioned social care where needed.The HIV Action Plan also asks local partners across the NHS and local authorities to carry out a HIV needs assessment which will inform the development and publication of local HIV plans across the country during 2026/27. Local areas will monitor uptake and outcomes to identify gaps and improve equity in access to HIV prevention, testing, and treatment. The UK Health Security Agency will continue to support this with robust data monitoring and reporting.

What steps his Department will take to ensure integrated care boards covering the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency have the capacity to deliver palliative and end of life care closer to home.

The Government is developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework (MSF) for England. The MSF will drive improvements in the services that patients and their families receive at the end of life, including in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency, and enable integrated care boards to address challenges in access, quality, and sustainability through the delivery of high-quality, personalised care. This will be aligned with the ambitions set out in the 10-Year Health Plan.I refer the Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement HCWS1087, which I gave to the House on 24 November 2025.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the forthcoming palliative care and end-of-life care framework on the provision of palliative care services in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.

The Government is developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework (MSF) for England. The MSF will drive improvements in the services that patients and their families receive at the end of life, including in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency, and enable integrated care boards to address challenges in access, quality, and sustainability through the delivery of high-quality, personalised care. This will be aligned with the ambitions set out in the 10-Year Health Plan.I refer the Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement HCWS1087, which I gave to the House on 24 November 2025.

How many patients in (a) Buckinghamshire and (b) Milton Keynes have received home-based NHS care in each of the last three years.

NHS England does not hold data on the number of patients in Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes who have received home-based National Health Service care in each of the last three years.The NHS provides a range of services in peoples’ homes such as community health services, virtual wards, community mental health support, and palliative care.The 10-Year Health Plan sets out our vision for a Neighbourhood Health Service.The Neighbourhood Health Service will embody our new preventative principle that care should happen 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 a hospital if necessary.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of home-based NHS care on hospital admissions.

Whilst no comprehensive quantitative assessment has been made, we recognise that home and community-based National Health Services play a crucial role in preventing admissions for people with conditions that can be safely managed in the community, thereby helping to manage demand pressures on accident and emergency departments, and improving patient experience.Key features of home and community based services include: anticipating and preventing exacerbations using personalised care plans delivered through neighbourhood health teams for people with long-term conditions and frailty; directing people to the most appropriate service at first contact using clearly established routes for clinical advice supported by digital tools and neighbourhood teams; and delivering integrated community based services including Urgent Community Response, Hospital at Home, and therapy-led intermediate care.Our Urgent and Emergency Care Delivery Plan, published in June 2025, commits to increasing the number of patients receiving urgent care in the community by expanding these services.

What workforce planning measures he has implemented to support the delivery of home-based NHS care in (a) Buckinghamshire and (b) Milton Keynes.

This Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure that the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it.The NHS is increasingly using virtual wards, also known as hospital at home, to support people at the place they call home, and enable the shift from hospital to community care. Virtual wards allow patients to get the care they need at home safely and conveniently, rather than being in hospital.

Whether his Department has assessed the potential effectiveness of digital scheduling tools in improving outpatient capacity.

As set out in the Elective Reform Plan, the Department is committed to ensuring that outpatient capacity is planned and used effectively, and that processes are streamlined to free up capacity where possible. This includes ensuring that all appointments are necessary and reducing missed appointments.Digital scheduling tools like the NHS e-Referral Service (NHS e-RS), the NHS App, and the Manage Your Referral service are key enablers of this. The NHS e-RS is a digital platform used for referring patients from primary care into elective services. Manage Your Referral is the patient facing side of the NHS e-RS, allowing a patient to book, check, change, or cancel their first outpatient appointment online through its website or through the NHS App.The 10-Year Health Plan builds on this vision. It introduces tools like My NHS GP, My Choices, and My Specialist for personalised scheduling. By 2028, the NHS App will become the primary gateway for patients to book appointments and manage their appointments. The Medium Term Planning Framework, published in October 2025, sets out the initial phase of this work starting this year, to bring forward a roadmap for the delivery of the NHS App’s functions as described in the 10-Year Health Plan. This will help deliver a technology-enabled model of planned care which gives patients one place to manage all their appointments, referrals, and interactions, while bringing efficiencies that reduce referral-to-treatment times.

Whether his Department plans to introduce mandatory reporting on productivity improvements linked to capital investment.

The Department is committed to ensuring that capital investment in the National Health Service delivers measurable improvements in productivity and patient outcomes. While there is currently no mandatory reporting framework specifically linking capital investment to productivity gains, NHS organisations are expected to demonstrate value for money and the impact through business case processes and post-project evaluations. The Department is exploring options to strengthen the monitoring and evaluation of capital investments, including how productivity gains can be more systematically captured and reported in future.More broadly, the NHS plans to begin regularly publishing assessments of productivity performance against the 2% year-on-year improvement target we set in our 10-Year Health Plan. Data published in September 2025 showed an estimated 2.7% year-on-year improvement in acute productivity in the NHS over the 2024/25 financial year, with further information available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/patients-treated-more-quickly-as-nhs-productivity-rises-over-yearEarly data for the first quarter of 2025/26 suggests this trend is continuing with a further 2.4% improvement in acute productivity, with further information available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nhs-recovery-continues-with-above-target-productivity-growth

Whether his Department has undertaken analysis of productivity variation across integrated care systems.

The Department recognises the importance of understanding productivity variation across integrated care systems (ICSs) to support improvement and to ensure value for money. NHS England routinely collects and analyses data on performance outcomes across ICSs, which is used to provide insight into relative performance at a trust level.For acute providers, this is included in the NHS Oversight Framework and trusts are segmented based on the latest estimates of a range of metrics, including productivity performance, and ranked in the NHS league tables, which are available at the following link:https://data.england.nhs.uk/dashboard/nofacute

What steps his Department is taking to support NHS trusts to increase same-day elective procedure capability.

Same-day elective procedures, or day surgeries, allow patients to be treated and discharged on the same day, helping to reduce waiting times, minimising cancellations due to bed pressures, and supporting patients to recover more quickly, in the comfort of their own home.To expand same-day capability, we are investing in dedicated elective surgical hubs focused on high-volume, low-complexity procedures. These hubs improve productivity and support more patients to return home the same day, in line with the Right Procedure, Right Place principles.There are currently 124 operational hubs in England, 23 of which have opened since the Government took office. Over the next three years, we are committed to increasing the number of hubs to boost surgical capacity and deliver faster access to common procedures.NHS England also continues to run the Getting It Right First Time programme, as part of which trusts are supported to maximise hub productivity and increase the proportion of inpatient procedures completed as day surgeries.

What the timetable is for the extension of community water fluoridation (a) Buckinghamshire and (b) Milton Keynes.

Water fluoridation at levels recommended in the United Kingdom is a safe and effective intervention to reduce tooth decay and inequalities in dental health.The Government’s 10-Year Health Plan for National Health Service recovery and reform prioritises prevention.As part of this strategy, the Government is expanding fluoridation schemes in north east England, aiming to reach 1.6 million more people by April 2030. We will assess further rollout in areas where oral health outcomes are worst.

What criteria his Department applied to define deprived areas for the provision of free dental products in early years settings in the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.

National supervised toothbrushing programme funding and free dental products are based on the Office for National Statistics’ Indices of Multiple Deprivation mid-2020 population estimates. These were used to identify the number of three to five-year-olds living in the 20% most deprived Lower Super Output Areas of local authorities, including Buckinghamshire Council and Milton Keynes City Council.