Written questions by Jones.

What steps he is taking to reduce reliance on locum consultants in blood cancer teams at district general hospitals.

The planning guidance states that trusts should reduce their agency spend by 30% this year, and reduce bank spend by 10%. It also sets our ambition to eliminate agency use in the coming years.NHS England is investing in expanding specialty training posts in high-demand cancer disciplines, including haematology, and is supporting local systems to retain and develop multidisciplinary teams. This includes workforce modelling, to identify gaps, and rolling out an appropriate workforce skill mix through scientific workforce pathways.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the National Cancer Plan on increasing the number of blood cancer (i) nurses and (ii) doctors over the next 10 years.

The Department is committed to developing a skilled blood cancer workforce, including nurses and doctors, so that patients receive care from the right professionals, at the right time, and in the right place. A refreshed Workforce Plan will be published later this year to ensure the National Health Service has the necessary staff and expertise to deliver high-quality care, from diagnosis through to treatment.To ensure that people diagnosed with blood cancer have access to a Clinical Nurse Specialist, NHS England has committed to all patients, including those with blood cancer, having access to the right expertise and support, including a Clinical Nurse Specialist or other support worker. This is being delivered in line with the NHS Comprehensive Model for Personalised Care, empowering people to manage their care and the impact of their cancer and maximise the potential of digital and community-based support.Beyond the Workforce Plan, NHS England is currently working to strengthen pathways into cancer specialties by expanding training opportunities and creating structured career routes. This includes increasing medical training posts in haematology by 20 in 2024 and enhancing the scientific workforce supply through initiatives such as the Scientist Training Programme and Higher Specialist Scientist Training.

How the National Cancer Plan will include healthcare professionals working in blood cancer.

The Department is committed to developing a skilled blood cancer workforce, including nurses and doctors, so that patients receive care from the right professionals, at the right time, and in the right place. A refreshed Workforce Plan will be published later this year to ensure the National Health Service has the necessary staff and expertise to deliver high-quality care, from diagnosis through to treatment.To ensure that people diagnosed with blood cancer have access to a Clinical Nurse Specialist, NHS England has committed to all patients, including those with blood cancer, having access to the right expertise and support, including a Clinical Nurse Specialist or other support worker. This is being delivered in line with the NHS Comprehensive Model for Personalised Care, empowering people to manage their care and the impact of their cancer and maximise the potential of digital and community-based support.Beyond the Workforce Plan, NHS England is currently working to strengthen pathways into cancer specialties by expanding training opportunities and creating structured career routes. This includes increasing medical training posts in haematology by 20 in 2024 and enhancing the scientific workforce supply through initiatives such as the Scientist Training Programme and Higher Specialist Scientist Training.

How many (a) haematologists and (b) haemato-oncologists work in the NHS; and what the target numbers are for those professions.

As of January 2025, there are 2,181 full time equivalent (FTE) doctors working in the specialty of haematology across National Health Service trusts and integrated care boards in England. This includes 1,025 FTE consultant haematologists.The Department does not hold information on the number of haemato-oncologists. No specific targets have been set for the number of staff in these medical specialties. Appropriate levels of staffing will be decided by local system workforce planning.

Whether the National Cancer Plan will take steps to increase the number of clinical academics dedicated to blood cancer research.

The Government has announced that the National Cancer Plan will be published this year, following publication of the 10-Year Health Plan. We are now in discussions about what form it should take, including how we will ensure that cancer patients across England receive the benefits of the United Kingdom’s world-leading cancer research. We will provide updates on this in due course. We have received over 11,000 responses, from individuals, professionals, and organisations, to our call for evidence, which closed on 29 April 2025, and we are now considering those responses to inform our plan to improve cancer care.Through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the Department is the largest funder of research training for clinical academics in the UK, supporting clinical academics at all career stages and from all professions and specialties. Since 2006, The NIHR has supported 16,000 career development awards and 13,000 awardees across 200 different professions and specialties. Since 2006, the NIHR Academy has funded 137 academic clinical fellowships, 39 clinical lectureships, and nine awards at a doctoral and post-doctoral level in haematology. The total annual spend on research training across the NIHR is estimated at £220 million.The Department is committed to implementing the recommendations of Lord O'Shaughnessy’s review into commercial clinical trials, making sure that the UK leads the world in clinical trials, and ensuring that innovative, lifesaving treatments are accessible to National Health Service patients, including those with blood cancer.In September 2024, NHS England announced a new targeted treatment, Quizartinib, to be prescribed to newly diagnosed patients with a specific type of leukaemia, boosting their chance of remission and long-term survival, made available through NHS England’s Cancer Drugs Fund, which fast-tracks new innovative cancer treatments into standard care. This followed a previous announcement of the new treatment Zanubrutini, in August 2024, for those with marginal zone lymphoma, which could halt the progression of their cancer and provide an alternative to further rounds of chemotherapy.

What steps he is taking to support the (a) mental health and (b) emotional wellbeing of the blood cancer workforce.

It is important that all National Health Service staff are able to work in a supportive and inclusive environment that prioritises their health and wellbeing.Employers across the NHS have their own arrangements in place for supporting their staff, including occupation health provision, employee support programmes, and health and wellbeing guardian roles to ensure board level scrutiny.To support them, NHS England has a wide-ranging package of mental health and wellbeing support for all staff, which includes access to counselling services, access to a range of wellbeing apps, and tools and resources to support line managers on staff wellbeing. NHS employees also have access to the SHOUT helpline for crisis support, alongside the Practitioner Health offer for more complex mental health wellbeing support, including for trauma and addiction.

Pursuant to the Answer of 7 April 2025 to Question 41043 on Radiotherapy: Medical Equipment, what the cost was of each machine.

Specific information relating to which machines were purchased, including the supplier and the cost, is considered commercially sensitive, and as such will not be made public.

Pursuant to the Answer of 7 April 2025 to Question 41043 on Radiotherapy: Medical Equipment, what devices have been purchased; and from which companies they have been purchased.

Specific information relating to which machines were purchased, including the supplier and the cost, is considered commercially sensitive, and as such will not be made public.

Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with (a) Cabinet colleagues, (b) the Food Standards Agency and (c) other stakeholders on the potential impact of reducing UK tariffs on US meat and seafood products.

The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues. The department engages regularly with the Food Standards Agency and other stakeholders on a range of topics, including trade. Nobody wants a trade war, and our focus for now is on keeping calm and continuing to negotiate a wider economic deal with the United States. The UK will only do a deal that is in the national interest of the UK and its businesses. To enable the UK to have every option open to us in the future, the Business and Trade Secretary has launched a request for input on the implications for British businesses of possible retaliatory action.

Whether the national cancer strategy will include commitments to improve outcomes for (a) acute myeloid leukaemia and (b) other rare and less common cancers.

The National Cancer Plan will seek to improve the experience and outcomes for people with rarer and less common cancers, including acute myeloid leukaemia. The plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes, as well as speeding up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, and ultimately bringing this country’s cancer survival rates back up to the standards of the best in the world.The plan will foster opportunities for UK researchers to collaborate on international cancer research, which is particularly important for areas where affected populations are small, such as with rare cancers. The plan will also consider the ways that we can accelerate the uptake of innovative, life-saving treatments so all NHS patients can benefit. We will work closely with partners including the National Institute for Health and Care Research on this.

What measures to improve the quality of palliative and end of life care will be included in the 10 Year Health Plan.

We want a society where every person receives high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis through to the end of life. The Government is determined to shift more healthcare out of hospitals and into the community, to ensure patients and families receive the care they need when and where they need it, including those who need palliative and end of life care.As part of the work to develop a 10-Year Health Plan, we have been carefully considering policies, including those that impact people with palliative and end of life care needs, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our partners, including the hospice sector.

What estimate his Department has made of changes in the number of people with palliative care needs over the next 10 years.

We are aware that the Office for National Statistics has projected that, by 2040, approximately 800,000 people a year will die in the United Kingdom. Additionally, current trends point to a growing proportion of people dying from chronic disease, particularly cancer and dementia. Taking these considerations together, it has been estimated that the number of people needing palliative and end of life care could increase by 42% by 2040.We have committed to develop a 10-Year Health Plan to deliver a National Health Service fit for the future, by driving three shifts in the way health care is delivered, from hospital to community, from treatment to prevention and from analogue to digital. We will carefully be considering policies, including those that impact people with palliative and end of life care needs, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our stakeholders as we develop the plan.

What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the use of the Transformation Fund to reform palliative and end of life care services.

The Spending Review is underway and details will be announced on 11th June. As part of the Spring Statement, Government announced a £3.25bn Transformation Fund to drive efficiencies across government and save money later in the Parliament and set out how this would be allocated over the Spending Review process. Government is determined to make sure that everyone has access to high-quality end of life care. In December 2024 we announced a £100 million boost for adult and children’s hospices to ensure they have the best physical environment for care, and £26 million revenue to support children and young people’s hospices.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of colonoscopy capacity for providing the bowel cancer screening programme.

NHS England is assessing the potential impact of reducing the faecal immunochemical test (FIT) threshold for the Bowel Cancer Screening Programme from 120µg/g to 80µg/g. This is an ongoing assessment which includes evaluating and learning from early adopter sites, undertaking activity modelling, and reviewing the modelling carried out by the School of Health and Related Research which was commissioned by the UK National Screening Committee. Alongside multi-disciplinary regional planning, this will support the planning for the wider roll-out of the threshold reduction.Activity modelling shows that the wider roll-out is likely to increase demand on specialist screening practitioners and colonoscopy services by approximately 35%. The expectation is that the reduced threshold will increase polyp detection, thereby preventing bowel cancer and also diagnosing more bowel cancers earlier.TARGET DATE 29/04/2025To support the early adopters and plans for reducing the threshold across all bowel cancer screening sites, there is ongoing endoscopy transformation, of symptomatic pathways, which aims to release colonoscopy capacity through a number of routes. These include:the use of FIT as a clinical triage tool in accordance with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance;the use of alternative imaging modalities such as Colon Capsule Endoscopy and Computed Tomography Colonography; andthe use of other pre diagnostic tools such as capsule sponge testing.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the NHS England pilot of reducing the faecal immunochemical test threshold for the Bowel Cancer Screening Programme from 120µg/g to 80µg/g on his policies on the wider roll-out of that threshold.

NHS England is assessing the potential impact of reducing the faecal immunochemical test (FIT) threshold for the Bowel Cancer Screening Programme from 120µg/g to 80µg/g. This is an ongoing assessment which includes evaluating and learning from early adopter sites, undertaking activity modelling, and reviewing the modelling carried out by the School of Health and Related Research which was commissioned by the UK National Screening Committee. Alongside multi-disciplinary regional planning, this will support the planning for the wider roll-out of the threshold reduction.Activity modelling shows that the wider roll-out is likely to increase demand on specialist screening practitioners and colonoscopy services by approximately 35%. The expectation is that the reduced threshold will increase polyp detection, thereby preventing bowel cancer and also diagnosing more bowel cancers earlier.To support the early adopters and plans for reducing the threshold across all bowel cancer screening sites, there is ongoing endoscopy transformation, of symptomatic pathways, which aims to release colonoscopy capacity through a number of routes. These include:the use of FIT as a clinical triage tool in accordance with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance;the use of alternative imaging modalities such as Colon Capsule Endoscopy and Computed Tomography Colonography; andthe use of other pre diagnostic tools such as capsule sponge testing.

What estimate he has made of the colonoscopy capacity that would be required for the wider roll out of NHS England pilot to reduce the faecal immunochemical test threshold for the Bowel Cancer Screening Programme from 120µg/g to 80µg/g.

NHS England is assessing the potential impact of reducing the faecal immunochemical test (FIT) threshold for the Bowel Cancer Screening Programme from 120µg/g to 80µg/g. This is an ongoing assessment which includes evaluating and learning from early adopter sites, undertaking activity modelling, and reviewing the modelling carried out by the School of Health and Related Research which was commissioned by the UK National Screening Committee. Alongside multi-disciplinary regional planning, this will support the planning for the wider roll-out of the threshold reduction.Activity modelling shows that the wider roll-out is likely to increase demand on specialist screening practitioners and colonoscopy services by approximately 35%. The expectation is that the reduced threshold will increase polyp detection, thereby preventing bowel cancer and also diagnosing more bowel cancers earlier.TARGET DATE 29/04/2025To support the early adopters and plans for reducing the threshold across all bowel cancer screening sites, there is ongoing endoscopy transformation, of symptomatic pathways, which aims to release colonoscopy capacity through a number of routes. These include:the use of FIT as a clinical triage tool in accordance with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance;the use of alternative imaging modalities such as Colon Capsule Endoscopy and Computed Tomography Colonography; andthe use of other pre diagnostic tools such as capsule sponge testing.

What discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the Transformation Fund announced in the Spring Statement 2025; and whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of using a portion of this money for the palliative and end of life care sector.

We want a society where every person receives high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis through to the end of life. The Government is determined to shift more healthcare out of hospitals and into the community, to ensure patients and their families receive personalised care in the most appropriate setting, and palliative and end of life care services will have a big role to play in that shift. In February, I met with key palliative 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.As part of the Spring Statement, Government announced a £3.25 billion Transformation Fund to drive efficiencies across government and save money later in the Parliament, and set out how this would be allocated over the Spending Review process.The Spending Review is underway, and details will be announced on 11 June 2025.

What discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on providing long term, sustainable funding for palliative and end of life care services.

My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has regular discussions with my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and colleagues across the Cabinet on a whole host of issues across our brief, including palliative and end of life care services.However, as part of the work to develop the 10-Year Health Plan, we will be carefully considering policies, including those that impact people with palliative and end of life care needs, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our partners.We want a society where every person receives high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis through to the end of life. The Government is determined to shift more healthcare out of hospitals and into the community, to ensure patients and their families receive personalised care in the most appropriate setting, and palliative and end of life care services will have a big role to play in that shift.Additionally, in February, I met with key palliative 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.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of proposed Integrated Care Board cuts on Community Diagnostic Centres.

As part of the necessary changes to support the National Health Service to recover, NHS England has indicated that integrated care boards (ICBs) should reduce in size. The Government is supportive of NHS England’s decision and the necessary choices that are needed to get the NHS back on its feet. We expect ICBs to continue to deliver their responsibilities, including the planning and delivery of health and care services in community diagnostic centres. Further detail on the future of ICBs was provided in a letter issued to the ICBs, NHS trusts, and NHS foundation trusts on 1 April 2025. This letter is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/working-together-in-2025-26-to-lay-the-foundations-for-reform/

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of Integrated Care Board cuts on the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire West ICB.

NHS England has asked the integrated care boards (ICBs) to act as main strategic commissioners of health and care services and to reduce the duplication of responsibilities within their structure, to achieve a 50% cost reduction in their running cost allowance. NHS England provided additional guidance to the ICBs, National Health Service trusts, and NHS foundation trusts on 1 April 2025, and tasked ICBs with developing plans by the end of May setting out how they will manage their resources to deliver across their priorities.NHS England will be working closely with the ICBs to support the development of these plans, ensuring that their implementation reduces duplication and supports patient care. Further information is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/working-together-in-2025-26-to-lay-the-foundations-for-reform/ No specific impact assessment has been carried out with regards to the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West ICB.