Every parliamentary written question tabled by Caroline Johnson this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 161–180 of 432 · this parliament
When he plans to publish the NHS long-term workforce plan.
The Government will publish the 10 Year Workforce Plan in spring 2026.This plan will set out action to create a workforce able to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. It is important we do this in a robust and joined up way. We are therefore engaging extensively with partners to ensure this plan delivers for staff and patients.
With reference to the oral contribution of the Minister of State for Health of 23 October 2025 on Impact of NHS workforce levels on cancer patients, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the time taken to publish the NHS workforce plan.
The Government will publish the 10 Year Workforce Plan in spring 2026.This plan will set out action to create a workforce able to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. It is important we do this in a robust and joined up way. We are therefore engaging extensively with partners to ensure this plan delivers for staff and patients.
What plans he has to improve access to dermatology services.
As set out in the Plan for Change, we will ensure that by March 2029 we return to the standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment, a standard which has not been met consistently since September 2015. The Government is clear that reforming elective care must be done equitably and inclusively for all adults, children, and young people, and across all services, including dermatology. One of the ways we are improving access to services, including dermatology, is through NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) programme, which runs a Further Faster programme to deliver rapid clinical transformation with the aim of reducing 52-week waits. It brings together hospital trust clinicians and operational teams to transform patient pathways, helping to reduce waiting lists despite the increase in dermatology demand. It focuses on increasing the use of Advice and Guidance and technology such as teledermatology alongside reducing non-attendance in clinics and unnecessary follow-up appointments.GIRFT has developed a number of practices to ensure high quality care, such as the standardised best practice pathways for dermatological conditions, to ensure that patients have the shortest route to see the right person the first time. GIRFT provides resources so general practitioners can manage patients in community care without needing to wait for hospital referral, and offers direct, targeted support, working with trusts and integrated care boards who have approached GIRFT for support. Further information on the standardised best practice pathways for dermatological conditions is available at the following link:https://gettingitrightfirsttime.co.uk/medical_specialties/dermatology/#dermatology
What steps he is taking to implement the Getting It Right First Time recommendations on improving the (a) access to and (b) quality of dermatology care.
As set out in the Plan for Change, we will ensure that by March 2029 we return to the standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment, a standard which has not been met consistently since September 2015. The Government is clear that reforming elective care must be done equitably and inclusively for all adults, children, and young people, and across all services, including dermatology. One of the ways we are improving access to services, including dermatology, is through NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) programme, which runs a Further Faster programme to deliver rapid clinical transformation with the aim of reducing 52-week waits. It brings together hospital trust clinicians and operational teams to transform patient pathways, helping to reduce waiting lists despite the increase in dermatology demand. It focuses on increasing the use of Advice and Guidance and technology such as teledermatology alongside reducing non-attendance in clinics and unnecessary follow-up appointments.GIRFT has developed a number of practices to ensure high quality care, such as the standardised best practice pathways for dermatological conditions, to ensure that patients have the shortest route to see the right person the first time. GIRFT provides resources so general practitioners can manage patients in community care without needing to wait for hospital referral, and offers direct, targeted support, working with trusts and integrated care boards who have approached GIRFT for support. Further information on the standardised best practice pathways for dermatological conditions is available at the following link:https://gettingitrightfirsttime.co.uk/medical_specialties/dermatology/#dermatology
With reference to the 2023 2023 UK surgical workforce census report compiled by the Royal College of Surgeons, what steps he is taking to expand surgical training capacity in the context of bottlenecks in posts.
The 10-Year Health Plan, published on 3 July, set out that over the next three years we will create 1,000 new specialty training posts with a focus on specialties where there is the greatest need.The plan also sets out that 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 set out next steps in due course.
Whether he plans to publish the new health strategy in this calendar year.
We are developing a Men's Health Strategy which will seek to improve the health and wellbeing of all men in England. This includes finding the right ways to promote healthier behaviours, improving outcomes for health conditions that hit men harder, and improving engagement with healthcare. The strategy will be informed by the Call for Evidence which closed on 17 July 2025. We aim to launch the Men’s Health Strategy later this year.
What plans he has to reduce premature deaths in men.
We are developing a Men's Health Strategy which will seek to improve the health and wellbeing of all men in England. This includes finding the right ways to promote healthier behaviours, improving outcomes for health conditions that hit men harder, and improving engagement with healthcare. The strategy will be informed by the Call for Evidence which closed on 17 July 2025. We aim to launch the Men’s Health Strategy later this year.
With reference to the Government's response to recommendation 6 included in the Government response to the House of Lords inquiry into preterm birth: reducing risks and improving lives, published on 14 January 2025, what his Department's timetable is for publishing the findings of the NHS maternity and neonatal estates survey on the requirements of neonatal parental accommodation.
The findings from the Maternity and Neonatal Infrastructure Review were published on 11 September 2025. The full report is available to read at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/maternity-and-neonatal-infrastructure-review-findings/
What plans he has had to ensure the neonatal services are fully incorporated into the scope of the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation.
Both maternity and neonatal services are fully encompassed within the remit of the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation. The terms of reference state that the investigation will examine the quality and safety of the care provided across the entire maternal and neonatal pathway. This includes the care provided to mothers before and throughout pregnancy, labour and delivery, as well as the care and support offered to newborns within neonatal services. The terms of reference can be found at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-maternity-and-neonatal-investigation-terms-of-reference/national-maternity-and-neonatal-investigation-terms-of-reference
How many and what proportion of British citizens have have required remedial surgery in the NHS as a result of poor elective overseas surgery.
The data requested is not held centrally by the Department.
How many British citizens have died as a result of elective overseas surgery in each of the last five years.
The data requested is not held centrally by the Department.
Whether he plans to allocate capital to bring parents accommodation for neonatal units up to national standard.
We recognise that delivering high quality National Health Services requires safe, sustainable, and effective infrastructure.As a first step towards improving our maternity and neonatal estate, we are investing £131 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. The funded works will deliver vital safety improvements, enhance patient and staff environments, and support NHS productivity by reducing disruptions across NHS clinical services.The Government is also backing the NHS with over £4 billion in operational capital in 2025/26, enabling systems to allocation funding to maternity and neonatal services where this is a local priority.In addition, our 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy set out 10 year maintenance budgets for the public estate, confirming £6 billion per year for maintenance and repair of the NHS estate up to 2034/35.
What proportion of current capital funding budget will be allocated towards the expansion of the surgical hub programme.
The Government is increasing the Department’s capital budgets to over £14.6 billion by the end of the Spending Review period for 2029/30, to invest into the National Health Service and wider health infrastructure, including elective care. This will deliver the largest ever health capital budget, representing a more than 20% real terms increase by the end of the Spending Review period.We are investing £6 billion of capital over five years for diagnostic, elective, and urgent and emergency capacity in the NHS. This includes £1.65 billion in 2025/26 for investments aimed at improving NHS secondary and emergency care performance against constitutional standards, £330 million of which has been indicatively allocated for elective care. This funding includes the expansion or creation of surgical or elective hubs.Regional indicative capital allocations for 2026/27 to 2029/30, including elective care, will be published imminently following publication of the NHS capital planning guidance for 2026/27 to 2029/30. These regional allocations will form the basis for integrated care board and provider planning.
What plans he has to help reduce suicides in men.
On 19 November, we published the Men’s Health Strategy. The strategy includes tangible actions to improve access to healthcare, provide the right support to enable men to make healthier choices, develop healthy living and working conditions, foster strong social, community and family networks and address societal norms. It also considers how to prevent and tackle the biggest health problems affecting men of all ages, which include mental health and suicide prevention, respiratory illness, prostate cancer, and heart disease.Through the Men’s Health Strategy, we are launching a groundbreaking partnership with the Premier League to tackle male suicide and improve mental health literacy, by embedding health messaging into the matchday experience.We also announced the Suicide Prevention Support Pathfinders programme for middle-aged men. This program will invest up to £3.6 million over three years in areas of England where middle-aged men are at most risk taking their own lives and will tackle the barriers that they face in seeking support.The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to boost mental health support across the country. This includes transforming mental health services into 24/7 neighbourhood mental health centres, improving assertive outreach, expanding talking therapies, and giving patients better access to 24/7 support directly through the NHS App.We are expanding NHS Talking Therapies so that 915,000 people, including men, complete a course of treatment by March 2029, with improved effectiveness and quality of services. We will also expand Individual Placement and Support for severe mental illness so that 73,500 people receive access by March 2028.
What plans he has to improve data collection on diagnostic pathways for (a) teenagers and (b) children with cancer.
The Department is committed to getting the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster so that more patients survive, including children and teenagers. The Department, NHS England and other NHS partner organisations are taking a range of steps to improve waiting times for cancer diagnosis and treatment across all cancer patient groups.The Department set out expectations for renewed focus on cancer targets in the Elective Reform Plan, published on 6 January 2025. The department has asked systems and providers to identify local opportunities in both community diagnostic centres and hospital based diagnostic services to improve performance against the faster diagnosis standard, to reduce the number of patients, including children and teenagers, waiting too long for a confirmed diagnosis of cancer.As a first step to reducing waiting times for cancer diagnosis and treatment, the NHS has now exceeded its pledge to deliver an extra two million operations, scans, and appointments in our first year of Government, delivering 5.2 million more appointments. This means that patients are being seen and diagnosed more quickly for cancer. Between October 2024 and September 2025, around 193,000 more patients got a diagnosis or the all-clear on time than in the year from July 2023 to June 2024.We have already made significant strides in enhancing cancer diagnosis and treatment. The performance against the 31-day decision-to-treat standard has shown a year-on-year improvement, rising from 90.6% in September 2024 to 91.2% in September 2025. Similarly, the performance for the 62-day referral-to-treatment standard has advanced from 67.4% in September 2024 to 67.9% in September 2025. As set out in the Medium Term Planning Framework, we are committed to improving performance against key cancer standards: Maintaining performance against the 28-day faster diagnosis standard at 80% and improving 31- and 62-day standards to 96% and 85% respectively by 2028/29.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has set out detailed guidance for general practitioners on the symptoms of cancer in children and young people, recommending referral within 48 hours for those presenting with a range of potential cancer symptoms.NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including those that are most common in children and teenagers. Further information on cancer signs and symptoms is available on the NHS.UK website.The Department has recently launched Jess’s Rule, a patient safety initiative that asks general practitioners (GPs) to think again if, after three appointments, they have been unable to diagnose a patient, or their symptoms have escalated. This means when a patient returns three times with worsening or undiagnosed symptoms, GPs must reflect, review and rethink. This could include seeking a second opinion, offering episodic continuity of care, ordering additional tests, and offering more face-to-face appointments.The National Disease Registration Service (NDRS) collects patient data on cancer, congenital anomalies and rare diseases. The NDRS currently has imaging data undertaken in the NHS in England for all cancers, including for children and teenagers with cancer. This is linked to the main cancer registration data. The NDRS collaborates and advises through a number of partners, in the United Kingdom and internationally to improve data accuracy on cancer.On 4 February 2025, the department relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce to identify tangible ways to improve outcomes and experiences for young cancer patients. The taskforce will explore opportunities for improvement, including detection and diagnosis, genomic testing and treatment, research and innovation, and patient experience. The taskforce will also ensure that the unique needs of children and teenagers with cancer are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan for England.
What assessment he has made of the (a) speed of diagnosis and (b) time from diagnosis to treatment in (i) children and (ii) teenagers with cancer.
The Department is committed to getting the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster so that more patients survive, including children and teenagers. The Department, NHS England and other NHS partner organisations are taking a range of steps to improve waiting times for cancer diagnosis and treatment across all cancer patient groups.The Department set out expectations for renewed focus on cancer targets in the Elective Reform Plan, published on 6 January 2025. The department has asked systems and providers to identify local opportunities in both community diagnostic centres and hospital based diagnostic services to improve performance against the faster diagnosis standard, to reduce the number of patients, including children and teenagers, waiting too long for a confirmed diagnosis of cancer.As a first step to reducing waiting times for cancer diagnosis and treatment, the NHS has now exceeded its pledge to deliver an extra two million operations, scans, and appointments in our first year of Government, delivering 5.2 million more appointments. This means that patients are being seen and diagnosed more quickly for cancer. Between October 2024 and September 2025, around 193,000 more patients got a diagnosis or the all-clear on time than in the year from July 2023 to June 2024.We have already made significant strides in enhancing cancer diagnosis and treatment. The performance against the 31-day decision-to-treat standard has shown a year-on-year improvement, rising from 90.6% in September 2024 to 91.2% in September 2025. Similarly, the performance for the 62-day referral-to-treatment standard has advanced from 67.4% in September 2024 to 67.9% in September 2025. As set out in the Medium Term Planning Framework, we are committed to improving performance against key cancer standards: Maintaining performance against the 28-day faster diagnosis standard at 80% and improving 31- and 62-day standards to 96% and 85% respectively by 2028/29.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has set out detailed guidance for general practitioners on the symptoms of cancer in children and young people, recommending referral within 48 hours for those presenting with a range of potential cancer symptoms.NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including those that are most common in children and teenagers. Further information on cancer signs and symptoms is available on the NHS.UK website.The Department has recently launched Jess’s Rule, a patient safety initiative that asks general practitioners (GPs) to think again if, after three appointments, they have been unable to diagnose a patient, or their symptoms have escalated. This means when a patient returns three times with worsening or undiagnosed symptoms, GPs must reflect, review and rethink. This could include seeking a second opinion, offering episodic continuity of care, ordering additional tests, and offering more face-to-face appointments.The National Disease Registration Service (NDRS) collects patient data on cancer, congenital anomalies and rare diseases. The NDRS currently has imaging data undertaken in the NHS in England for all cancers, including for children and teenagers with cancer. This is linked to the main cancer registration data. The NDRS collaborates and advises through a number of partners, in the United Kingdom and internationally to improve data accuracy on cancer.On 4 February 2025, the department relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce to identify tangible ways to improve outcomes and experiences for young cancer patients. The taskforce will explore opportunities for improvement, including detection and diagnosis, genomic testing and treatment, research and innovation, and patient experience. The taskforce will also ensure that the unique needs of children and teenagers with cancer are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan for England.
What steps he is taking to help improve public awareness of the symptoms of cancer in teenagers.
The Department is committed to getting the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster so that more patients survive, including children and teenagers. The Department, NHS England and other NHS partner organisations are taking a range of steps to improve waiting times for cancer diagnosis and treatment across all cancer patient groups.The Department set out expectations for renewed focus on cancer targets in the Elective Reform Plan, published on 6 January 2025. The department has asked systems and providers to identify local opportunities in both community diagnostic centres and hospital based diagnostic services to improve performance against the faster diagnosis standard, to reduce the number of patients, including children and teenagers, waiting too long for a confirmed diagnosis of cancer.As a first step to reducing waiting times for cancer diagnosis and treatment, the NHS has now exceeded its pledge to deliver an extra two million operations, scans, and appointments in our first year of Government, delivering 5.2 million more appointments. This means that patients are being seen and diagnosed more quickly for cancer. Between October 2024 and September 2025, around 193,000 more patients got a diagnosis or the all-clear on time than in the year from July 2023 to June 2024.We have already made significant strides in enhancing cancer diagnosis and treatment. The performance against the 31-day decision-to-treat standard has shown a year-on-year improvement, rising from 90.6% in September 2024 to 91.2% in September 2025. Similarly, the performance for the 62-day referral-to-treatment standard has advanced from 67.4% in September 2024 to 67.9% in September 2025. As set out in the Medium Term Planning Framework, we are committed to improving performance against key cancer standards: Maintaining performance against the 28-day faster diagnosis standard at 80% and improving 31- and 62-day standards to 96% and 85% respectively by 2028/29.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has set out detailed guidance for general practitioners on the symptoms of cancer in children and young people, recommending referral within 48 hours for those presenting with a range of potential cancer symptoms.NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including those that are most common in children and teenagers. Further information on cancer signs and symptoms is available on the NHS.UK website.The Department has recently launched Jess’s Rule, a patient safety initiative that asks general practitioners (GPs) to think again if, after three appointments, they have been unable to diagnose a patient, or their symptoms have escalated. This means when a patient returns three times with worsening or undiagnosed symptoms, GPs must reflect, review and rethink. This could include seeking a second opinion, offering episodic continuity of care, ordering additional tests, and offering more face-to-face appointments.The National Disease Registration Service (NDRS) collects patient data on cancer, congenital anomalies and rare diseases. The NDRS currently has imaging data undertaken in the NHS in England for all cancers, including for children and teenagers with cancer. This is linked to the main cancer registration data. The NDRS collaborates and advises through a number of partners, in the United Kingdom and internationally to improve data accuracy on cancer.On 4 February 2025, the department relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce to identify tangible ways to improve outcomes and experiences for young cancer patients. The taskforce will explore opportunities for improvement, including detection and diagnosis, genomic testing and treatment, research and innovation, and patient experience. The taskforce will also ensure that the unique needs of children and teenagers with cancer are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan for England.
What steps he is taking to help improve early recognition of cancer symptoms of teenagers in primary care.
The Department is committed to getting the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster so that more patients survive, including children and teenagers. The Department, NHS England and other NHS partner organisations are taking a range of steps to improve waiting times for cancer diagnosis and treatment across all cancer patient groups.The Department set out expectations for renewed focus on cancer targets in the Elective Reform Plan, published on 6 January 2025. The department has asked systems and providers to identify local opportunities in both community diagnostic centres and hospital based diagnostic services to improve performance against the faster diagnosis standard, to reduce the number of patients, including children and teenagers, waiting too long for a confirmed diagnosis of cancer.As a first step to reducing waiting times for cancer diagnosis and treatment, the NHS has now exceeded its pledge to deliver an extra two million operations, scans, and appointments in our first year of Government, delivering 5.2 million more appointments. This means that patients are being seen and diagnosed more quickly for cancer. Between October 2024 and September 2025, around 193,000 more patients got a diagnosis or the all-clear on time than in the year from July 2023 to June 2024.We have already made significant strides in enhancing cancer diagnosis and treatment. The performance against the 31-day decision-to-treat standard has shown a year-on-year improvement, rising from 90.6% in September 2024 to 91.2% in September 2025. Similarly, the performance for the 62-day referral-to-treatment standard has advanced from 67.4% in September 2024 to 67.9% in September 2025. As set out in the Medium Term Planning Framework, we are committed to improving performance against key cancer standards: Maintaining performance against the 28-day faster diagnosis standard at 80% and improving 31- and 62-day standards to 96% and 85% respectively by 2028/29.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has set out detailed guidance for general practitioners on the symptoms of cancer in children and young people, recommending referral within 48 hours for those presenting with a range of potential cancer symptoms.NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including those that are most common in children and teenagers. Further information on cancer signs and symptoms is available on the NHS.UK website.The Department has recently launched Jess’s Rule, a patient safety initiative that asks general practitioners (GPs) to think again if, after three appointments, they have been unable to diagnose a patient, or their symptoms have escalated. This means when a patient returns three times with worsening or undiagnosed symptoms, GPs must reflect, review and rethink. This could include seeking a second opinion, offering episodic continuity of care, ordering additional tests, and offering more face-to-face appointments.The National Disease Registration Service (NDRS) collects patient data on cancer, congenital anomalies and rare diseases. The NDRS currently has imaging data undertaken in the NHS in England for all cancers, including for children and teenagers with cancer. This is linked to the main cancer registration data. The NDRS collaborates and advises through a number of partners, in the United Kingdom and internationally to improve data accuracy on cancer.On 4 February 2025, the department relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce to identify tangible ways to improve outcomes and experiences for young cancer patients. The taskforce will explore opportunities for improvement, including detection and diagnosis, genomic testing and treatment, research and innovation, and patient experience. The taskforce will also ensure that the unique needs of children and teenagers with cancer are carefully considered as part of the National Cancer Plan for England.
What steps he is taking to improve the retention of surgical staff.
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, the Government is committed to making the National Health Service the best place to work, by supporting and retaining our hardworking and dedicated healthcare professionals.To support this ambition, the Government plans to introduce a new set of standards for modern employment in April 2026. The new standards will reaffirm our commitment to improving retention by tackling the issues that matter to staff, including promoting flexible working, improving staff health and wellbeing, and dealing with violence, racism, and sexual harassment in the NHS workplace. They will provide a framework for leaders across the NHS to build a supportive culture that embeds retention.NHS England is already leading work nationally through its retention programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.In August, NHS England published the 10-point plan for improving resident doctors working lives which addresses issues such as annual leave and payroll errors. The Department continues to work to improve working conditions for all resident, specialty, associate specialists and specialist (SAS) doctors and consultant doctors.This year, we accepted the Pay Review Body recommendations for headline pay for 2025/26 such that consultant and SAS doctors received an above inflation pay uplift of 4% and resident doctors received 4% + £750.
How many additional surgical hubs are due to (a) open and (b) be built in the next 12 months.
Dedicated and protected surgical hubs transform the way the National Health Service provides elective care by focusing on providing high volume, low complexity surgery, as recommended by the Royal College of Surgeons of England.There are currently 123 elective surgical hubs that are operational across England.We are working on delivering six additional hubs, five of which are currently expected to open in the next 12 months.The Department is committed to ramping up the number of hubs over the next three years, so more operations can be carried out.