Written questions by Johnson.

What plans he has for the National Health Data Service to collect data on rare cancers.

The Government is setting up the Health Data Research Service (HDRS) to help improve healthcare for everyone in the United Kingdom. The National Health Service has collected health information from millions of people over 75 years old and has a unique set of data which could hold the secret to curing and better treating major illnesses.HDRS will safely and responsibly capitalise on the UK's rich health and care datasets to unlock breakthroughs in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, including cancers. With streamlined access to this data, researchers will be able to carry out research that will prevent illness and benefit patients sooner, with improved and tailored treatments.HDRS will be open to a diverse range of customers with a legal and ethical research project and will be designed to support the broadest spectrum of research topics, including rare diseases.

What plans he has for the National Health Data Service to collect data on pancreatic cancer.

The Government is setting up the Health Data Research Service (HDRS) to help improve healthcare for everyone in the United Kingdom. The National Health Service has collected health information from millions of people over 75 years old and has a unique set of data which could hold the secret to curing and better treating major illnesses.HDRS will safely and responsibly capitalise on the UK's rich health and care datasets to unlock breakthroughs in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, including cancers. With streamlined access to this data, researchers will be able to carry out research that will prevent illness and benefit patients sooner, with improved and tailored treatments.HDRS will be open to a diverse range of customers with a legal and ethical research project and will be designed to support the broadest spectrum of research topics, including rare diseases.

For what reason some people with motor neurone disease are receiving tofersen during its evaluation by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence; and if he will take steps to make it available to all patients who would benefit from it.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of resources. The NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended by NICE, normally within three months of the publication of final guidance.NICE has selected tofersen for treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis caused by the superoxide dismutase – 1 (SOD1) gene mutations as a topic for guidance development through its Highly Specialised Technology (HST) programme. The HST programme appraises medicines for the treatment of very rare, and often very severe diseases, and evaluates whether they can be considered a clinically and cost-effective use of NHS resources. NICE has not yet been able to start the evaluation of tofersen as it is unable to issue guidance on the use of the technology without receiving an evidence submission about the technology’s clinical and cost-effectiveness from the marketing authorisation holder. Therefore, NICE is ready to review tofersen via its HST programme, as soon as Biogen indicates that it is ready to start the NICE evaluation.I am aware that the marketing authorisation holder has established early access programmes (EAPs) through which some patients are currently accessing tofersen. Participation in company-led schemes is decided at an individual NHS trust level and under these programmes, the cost of the drug is free to both patients taking part in it, and to the NHS, but NHS trusts must still cover the administration costs and must provide clinical resources to deliver the EAP. No assessment has been made of regional variation in access to tofersen through the programme.NHS England has published guidance for integrated care systems (ICS) on free of charge medicines schemes, providing advice on potential financial, resourcing, and clinical risks. ICSs should use the guidance to help determine whether to implement any of these schemes, including assessing suitability and any risks in the short, medium, and long term. The guidance is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/free-of-charge-foc-medicines-schemes-national-policy-recommendations-for-local-systems/

How many and what proportion of NHS neonatal units have parental accommodation available.

Not all maternity hospitals are currently able to offer adequate accommodation for families. This is due to the historic undercapitalisation across the National Health Service, as highlighted by the Darzi Report.All trust boards should review their estate data and seek assurance that all healthcare premises from which they are delivering maternity services are of appropriate standard. This should include a review of community-based maternity services, which were not in the scope of the estate survey. In instances where the estate is not of appropriate standard, trust boards should ensure mitigating action is being taken accordingly.As a first step towards improving our maternity and neonatal estate, we are investing over £100 million through the 2025/26 estates safety fund to address critical safety risks on the maternity estate, enabling better care for mothers and their newborns.

What steps he is taking to ensure people with Huntington's disease have equitable access to mental health services.

Access to mental health services is based on clinical need, including for people with Huntington’s disease.We know that too many people are not receiving the mental health care they need and waiting times to access mental health services are too long. We are determined to change that. Backed by an extra £688 million in Government funding this year, we are transforming mental health services – hiring more staff, delivering more talking therapies sessions, and getting waiting lists down through our 10-Year Health Plan.National Health Service Talking Therapies - Long Term Conditions services have been established across the country to support integrated pathways between Talking Therapies services and physical health pathways for people with long term conditions, including neurological conditions. All integrated care boards are expected to expand services locally by commissioning NHS Talking Therapies services integrated into physical healthcare pathways.

What assessment he has made with the Secretary of State for Education of the potential merits of using geofence technology to tackle the use of vaping devices by children in schools.

It is concerning that youth vaping has more than doubled in the last five years and that one in four children aged between 11 and 15 years old tried vaping in 2023. That is why we are committed to bringing about definitive and positive change to stop future generations from becoming hooked on nicotine. To do this, we are acting to reduce the appeal, availability, and accessibility of these products to children whilst not impacting on their use as a quit aid for adult smokers.The Government’s policy, as set out in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, is that all products are age verified at the point of sale rather than the point of use.We are examining the role of certain technology in vapes as part of our secondary legislation programme, and we are currently running a call for evidence on vapes which explores this area, and which we would encourage stakeholders to respond to. In addition, next year we will run a consultation on introducing smoke-free and vape-free places, restrictions on vape packaging, and on changing how and where vapes are displayed in shops.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of using technology within vapes to verify the age of vape users.

It is concerning that youth vaping has more than doubled in the last five years and that one in four children aged between 11 and 15 years old tried vaping in 2023. That is why we are committed to bringing about definitive and positive change to stop future generations from becoming hooked on nicotine. To do this, we are acting to reduce the appeal, availability, and accessibility of these products to children whilst not impacting on their use as a quit aid for adult smokers.The Government’s policy, as set out in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, is that all products are age verified at the point of sale rather than the point of use.We are examining the role of certain technology in vapes as part of our secondary legislation programme, and we are currently running a call for evidence on vapes which explores this area, and which we would encourage stakeholders to respond to. In addition, next year we will run a consultation on introducing smoke-free and vape-free places, restrictions on vape packaging, and on changing how and where vapes are displayed in shops.

With reference to the oral contribution by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care of 27 March 2025, Official Report, column 447WH, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the research study led by Dr Rebecca Bromley entitled Fetal Exposure Study (FES): Understanding Clinical Teratogen Syndromes.

The Department will give careful consideration to the findings of Dr Bromley’s study, once the research has been finalised and published. The Department recognises the importance of robust, evidence-based research in shaping policy and improving outcomes for those affected by prenatal exposure to certain medications. We remain committed to reviewing emerging evidence and will ensure that the implications of this study are fully assessed in the context of existing and future departmental policies.

When he expects the independent maternity and neonatal investigation to publish its final recommendations.

The independent maternity and neonatal investigation will produce an initial set of national recommendations by December 2025. The investigation will publish its final report and recommendations in Spring 2026.

With reference to HM Treasury's and HMRC's document entitled Strengthening the Soft Drinks Industry Levy - consultation, published on 28 April 2025, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of lowering trends in the level of sugar consumption on trends in the level of artificial sweetener consumption.

No formal assessment has been carried out by the Government to date. While businesses are required to declare the sweeteners that have been used in products in the ingredients panel on food packaging, they are not required to provide information on the amounts of sweetener that have been used. Without this information, it is not possible to undertake a robust assessment of the levels of sweeteners that are used in products or consumed or how this has changed over time.United Kingdom legislation dictates the amount of additives, including sweeteners, that can be used and in which products, along with any specific conditions of use. Compliance is monitored by the Food Standards Agency and supported in assessing the safety of additives by the independent Committee on Toxicity.On 2 April 2025, the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) published a position statement on the World Health Organization guideline on non-sugar sweeteners. The SACN concluded that the evidence of a risk to health from consuming non-sugar sweeteners (NSS) is inconsistent. The SACN made a precautionary recommendation that intake of NSS be minimised. With greater certainty of the impact of sugars on health, the SACN recommended that “swapping sugars for NSS may help reduce sugar intake from foods and drinks (and so reduce energy intake), at least in the short term. The long-term goal is to limit both sugar and NSS intake”.The SACN also recommended that the Government monitor the sweetener content of food and drinks, evaluate the impact of policies on intakes of sweeteners and compel industry to make publicly available data on the amounts of individual NSS within foods. The SACN also made several research recommendations including exploration of innovative ways to reliably monitor exposure to NSS.

What discussions he has had with the food industry on the proposed update of the Nutrient Profiling Model.

As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan, we will take decisive action on the obesity crisis to ease the strain on our National Health Service and create the healthiest generation of children ever. This includes implementing junk food advertising restrictions on TV and online, introducing mandatory healthy food sales reporting for large businesses and setting new targets to increase the healthiness of sales in all communities, and boosting the impact of our advertising and promotions restrictions by applying the updated Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM).The existing advertising restrictions and the location and volume price promotions restrictions on ‘less healthy’ food and drink use the NPM 2004/5 to determine which products are ‘less healthy’ and therefore in scope of the restrictions. The NPM 2004/5 is out of date, and we committed in the 10-Year Health Plan to updating these standards to reflect the latest dietary advice. This will strengthen the restrictions and more effectively target the products of most concern to childhood obesity.We have started to engage with stakeholders across sectors of the food and drinks industry and will continue this ahead of and during a consultation period in 2026 on the policy application of an updated NPM to ensure stakeholders can feed in their views.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Big Brush Club on rates of dental decay among children who participated in that scheme.

No assessment has been made of this locally commissioned scheme. However, supervised toothbrushing is evidence based and cost effective, with a five-year return on investment of £3.06 for every £1 spent. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/improving-oral-health-supervised-tooth-brushing-programme-toolkit/commissioning-and-delivering-supervised-toothbrushing-schemes-in-early-years-and-school-settingsThe national supervised toothbrushing programme currently underway is targeting up to 600,000 three- to five-year-olds in the most deprived areas of England. This is backed with investment of £11 million in 202525/26 and a five-year collaboration with Colgate-Palmolive. The National Institute of Health and Care Research will evaluate effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the national targeted supervised toothbrushing programme, where we expect an impact on population outcomes from two years of implementation. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.nihr.ac.uk/funding/evaluation-national-targeted-supervised-toothbrushing-programme-england/2025435

How many (a) schools, (b) nurseries and (c) early years settings have signed up to the Big Brush Club supervised toothbrushing scheme.

The Big Brush Club is commissioned across seven integrated care boards (ICBs) in the National Health Service South West region in England to deliver supervised toothbrushing at schools and nurseries. The total number of schools participating is 738. The number of nurseries and early years settings are not available separately, but the total number of nurseries and early years settings participating, combined, is 462.The national supervised toothbrushing programme now being implemented across England will reach up to 600,000 children between the ages of three and five years old in the 20% most deprived Lower Super Output Areas according to the Indices of Multiple Deprivation. This is backed by £11 million funding to local authorities in 2025/26 and a five-year partnership with Colgate-Palmolive. Where there are existing schemes in place, there is local flexibility to provide additional programmes, including those for older or younger children, those with special educational needs and disabilities and other vulnerable groups.

How many posts have been (a) allocated and (b) filled in the dental recruitment incentive scheme, broken down by (i) region, (ii) integrated care board and (iii) in total.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) have started to recruit dentists through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.Golden Hello data will be published next year and will consist of data showing the regional distribution of the original allocation of posts and the number of posts recruited to at both a national and regional level.

What assessment he has made of the quality of (a) maternity and (b) neonatal services in each of the 14 NHS Trusts chosen for the maternity and neonatal investigation.

The Department has not selected which trusts to include in the independent maternity and neonatal investigation.The 14 NHS trusts were selected by the independent investigation based on a variety of factors, including results from the Care Quality Commission’s maternity patient survey and Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK’s perinatal mortality rates, in addition to variation in case mix, trust type, geographic coverage, provision of care to individuals from diverse backgrounds, and family feedback. Three of the trusts have been included due to their inclusion in previous investigations, these three trusts being the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, the East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust, and the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust.The chair’s selection of the 14 trusts has been made with a view to ensuring a diverse mix of trusts, including variation in case mix, trust type, geographic and demographic coverage and views expressed by families. By taking this approach, the investigation can capture learning from a wide range of provision and experiences, ensuring that the findings are relevant across the system.The Department does not specifically hold data on whether National Health Service trusts are high performing, poor performing, and/or substantially improved. The latest available data on all 14 trusts is available at the following link:https://www.cqc.org.uk/

With reference to the press notice entitled 14 NHS trusts the focus of national maternity investigation, published on 15 September 2025, which NHS Trusts selected for the maternity investigation were examples of (a) high performing, (b) poor performing and (c) substantially improved Trusts.

The Department has not selected which trusts to include in the independent maternity and neonatal investigation.The 14 NHS trusts were selected by the independent investigation based on a variety of factors, including results from the Care Quality Commission’s maternity patient survey and Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK’s perinatal mortality rates, in addition to variation in case mix, trust type, geographic coverage, provision of care to individuals from diverse backgrounds, and family feedback. Three of the trusts have been included due to their inclusion in previous investigations, these three trusts being the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, the East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust, and the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust.The chair’s selection of the 14 trusts has been made with a view to ensuring a diverse mix of trusts, including variation in case mix, trust type, geographic and demographic coverage and views expressed by families. By taking this approach, the investigation can capture learning from a wide range of provision and experiences, ensuring that the findings are relevant across the system.The Department does not specifically hold data on whether National Health Service trusts are high performing, poor performing, and/or substantially improved. The latest available data on all 14 trusts is available at the following link:https://www.cqc.org.uk/

With reference to the press notice entitled 14 NHS trusts the focus of national maternity investigation, published on 15 September 2025, what criteria his Department used to decide which NHS Trusts would be included in the maternity investigation.

The Department has not selected which trusts to include in the independent maternity and neonatal investigation.The 14 NHS trusts were selected by the independent investigation based on a variety of factors, including results from the Care Quality Commission’s maternity patient survey and Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK’s perinatal mortality rates, in addition to variation in case mix, trust type, geographic coverage, provision of care to individuals from diverse backgrounds, and family feedback. Three of the trusts have been included due to their inclusion in previous investigations, these three trusts being the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, the East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust, and the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust.The chair’s selection of the 14 trusts has been made with a view to ensuring a diverse mix of trusts, including variation in case mix, trust type, geographic and demographic coverage and views expressed by families. By taking this approach, the investigation can capture learning from a wide range of provision and experiences, ensuring that the findings are relevant across the system.The Department does not specifically hold data on whether National Health Service trusts are high performing, poor performing, and/or substantially improved. The latest available data on all 14 trusts is available at the following link:https://www.cqc.org.uk/

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the closure of NHS England on levels of NHS service provision, in the context of (a) the closure of the NHS and Care Volunteer Responders programme and (b) and reductions in levels of availability of hyperbaric chamber services.

Volunteers play an important role supporting and complementing National Health Service services, staff, and patients but they do not replace staff or services. Following the closure of the NHS Volunteer Responders programme, all volunteers have been signposted to other NHS and voluntary sector organisations to continue their volunteering. Referrers were informed of the change in service provided so that they can source alternative support for their patients if needed. In addition, there are over 70,000 volunteers who continue to support NHS trusts directly in over 300 different volunteer roles, as well as many local voluntary sector organisations that provide other forms of support.NHS England is committed to ensuring equitably accessible, high-quality services, for anyone who requires Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT). This will be achieved through the commissioning of six geographically dispersed services across England. The geographical scope of these services will ensure that there are no more than four hours travelling time by road from coastal locations, furthest borders or between neighbouring commissioned HBOT centres. This is in line with good practice guidelines.

If he plans to make interim payments to people affected by sodium valproate as recommended in the Hughes report on Options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh, published on 7 February 2024.

The Government is carefully considering the work by the Patient Safety Commissioner and her Report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh, including around interim payments. This is a complex issue involving input from different government departments. The Government will provide a further update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s Report.

When he plans to respond to the recommendations of the Hughes report on Options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh, published on 7 February 2024.

The Government is carefully considering the work by the Patient Safety Commissioner and her Report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex issue involving input from different government departments. The Government will provide a further update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s Report.