Written questions by Jones.

With reference to the oral contribution by the Prime Minister in response to the Leader of the Opposition on 2 April 2025, how 1,000 new GPs were recruited.

Previously, primary care networks were limited in how they could use their funding, but now they can hire recently qualified doctors through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS), a practical solution which is boosting general practitioner (GP) numbers across the country.Data on the number of recently qualified GPs for which primary care networks are claiming reimbursement via the ARRS was published by NHS England on 7 April 2025. Since 1 October 2024, 1,503 GPs were recruited through the scheme.The recruitment boost, part of the Government’s Plan for Change, will help to ease pressure on GPs and cut waiting times. Alongside changes to the GP Contract for 2025/26, these additional GPs will help end the 8.00am scramble for appointments which so many patients currently endure every day.

When he plans to respond to Question 35076 tabled by the hon. Member for Wokingham on 3 March 2025.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave on 7 April 2025 to Question 35076.

If he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the requirement for opportunity cost neutrality in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence severity modifier on funding for treatments for severe conditions.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is responsible for developing the methods and processes that its independent committees use in their evaluations, independently and in consultation with stakeholders. The severity modifier is based on evidence of societal preferences and was introduced in 2022 as part of a comprehensive review of the NICE’s methods and processes, following extensive public and stakeholder engagement.The NICE carried out a review of the severity modifier in 2024, and found that it is operating as intended. Since its introduction, the severity modifier has resulted in a higher approval rate for cancer medicines compared to the NICE’s previous methods, and has also allowed greater weight to be applied to non-cancer medicines that address a broader range of severe diseases, enabling the NICE to recommend medicines for conditions such as cystic fibrosis, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, childhood epilepsy, hepatitis D, and sickle cell disease. The NICE has commissioned research to gather further evidence on societal preferences that will inform future method reviews, but there is no prospect of any change until it concludes, and any future changes would need to be consistent with the principle of cost neutrality.

If he will make it his policy to assess the potential impact of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s severity modifier on people with secondary breast cancer.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is responsible for developing the methods and processes that its independent committees use in their evaluations, independently and in consultation with stakeholders. The severity modifier is based on evidence of societal preferences and was introduced in 2022 as part of a comprehensive review of the NICE’s methods and processes, following extensive public and stakeholder engagement.The NICE carried out a review of the severity modifier in 2024, and found that it is operating as intended. Since its introduction, the severity modifier has resulted in a higher approval rate for cancer medicines compared to the NICE’s previous methods, and has also allowed greater weight to be applied to non-cancer medicines that address a broader range of severe diseases, enabling the NICE to recommend medicines for conditions such as cystic fibrosis, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, childhood epilepsy, hepatitis D, and sickle cell disease. The NICE has commissioned research to gather further evidence on societal preferences that will inform future method reviews, but there is no prospect of any change until it concludes, and any future changes would need to be consistent with the principle of cost neutrality.

What assessment he has made on the potential impact of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s severity modifier on the approval of treatments for severe conditions.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is responsible for developing the methods and processes that its independent committees use in their evaluations, independently and in consultation with stakeholders. The severity modifier is based on evidence of societal preferences and was introduced in 2022 as part of a comprehensive review of the NICE’s methods and processes, following extensive public and stakeholder engagement.The NICE carried out a review of the severity modifier in 2024, and found that it is operating as intended. Since its introduction, the severity modifier has resulted in a higher approval rate for cancer medicines compared to the NICE’s previous methods, and has also allowed greater weight to be applied to non-cancer medicines that address a broader range of severe diseases, enabling the NICE to recommend medicines for conditions such as cystic fibrosis, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, childhood epilepsy, hepatitis D, and sickle cell disease. The NICE has commissioned research to gather further evidence on societal preferences that will inform future method reviews, but there is no prospect of any change until it concludes, and any future changes would need to be consistent with the principle of cost neutrality.

If he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the requirement for opportunity cost neutrality in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence severity modifier.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is responsible for developing the methods and processes that its independent committees use in their evaluations, independently and in consultation with stakeholders. The severity modifier is based on evidence of societal preferences and was introduced in 2022 as part of a comprehensive review of the NICE’s methods and processes, following extensive public and stakeholder engagement.The NICE carried out a review of the severity modifier in 2024, and found that it is operating as intended. Since its introduction, the severity modifier has resulted in a higher approval rate for cancer medicines compared to the NICE’s previous methods, and has also allowed greater weight to be applied to non-cancer medicines that address a broader range of severe diseases, enabling the NICE to recommend medicines for conditions such as cystic fibrosis, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, childhood epilepsy, hepatitis D, and sickle cell disease. The NICE has commissioned research to gather further evidence on societal preferences that will inform future method reviews, but there is no prospect of any change until it concludes, and any future changes would need to be consistent with the principle of cost neutrality.

If he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the abolition of NHS England on funding for integrated care boards.

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, as we undertake the integration of NHS England and the Department, to ensure that the expected savings will be reinvested in frontline services to deliver better care for patients.As part of the necessary changes to support the National Health Service to recover, NHS England has also indicated that integrated care boards (ICBs) should reduce in size. We will work with the NHS to make the necessary choices that are needed to get the NHS back on its feet.In a letter from Sir Jim Mackey to all ICBs and NHS trusts and foundation trusts on 1 April 2025, NHS England published further detail on the future of the ICBs. 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/

How the National Cancer Plan will be funded; and whether the funding will include ring-fenced resources specifically for children's and young people's cancers.

The National Cancer Plan will focus on how we make things better for patients through reforming the cancer sector and improving efficiency, building on the steps announced in the Elective Reform Plan. This will support a more scrupulous and effective use of funds in the future.At the 2024 Autumn Budget, the Government made nearly £26 billion available to the health and care system over two years, to fix the foundations of our broken National Health Service. We will review cancer funding, including funding for children and young people’s cancers, as part of the forthcoming Spending Review.

What steps he is taking to help ensure that people living in the most deprived areas receive earlier cancer diagnoses.

We recognise that there are challenges for several different populations, particularly for people living in the most deprived areas of the country, and that this impacts early diagnosis rates. The National Health Service’s wider Core20Plus5 approach to reducing healthcare inequalities includes early cancer diagnosis as a specific priority.To ensure that people living in the most deprived areas receive earlier cancer diagnoses, we are directly targeting our activity in areas we know will make a difference. This includes awareness-raising campaigns such as the NHS Help Us, Help You campaign, to increase awareness of cancer symptoms and encourage people to get checked.We know that some cancers disproportionately impact those living in deprived areas, notably lung cancer. People living in deprived areas are four times more likely to smoke, and smoking causes 72% of lung cancers. Through the lung cancer screening programme, early diagnosis rates have increased for all deprivation quintiles, with biggest gains among those living in most deprived areas. When fully rolled out, the programme is expected to detect approximately 9,000 cancers earlier each year.

With reference to Cancer52's report entitled, Improving diagnosis: Patient and clinician perspectives on increasing early diagnosis in rare and less common cancers, published in February 2025, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a target that 75% of children and young people with cancer are diagnosed within ten days of first symptom presentation to a clinician.

We are committed to getting the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster, so that more patients survive, including children, teenagers, and young adults.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.The Department is also taking steps to improve waiting times for cancer diagnosis and treatment across all cancer patient groups, including children and young people. This will be achieved by delivering an extra 40,000 scans, appointments, and operations each week to ensure that patients are seen and treated as quickly as possible.To further support timely investigation after referral, we are working with the NHS to maximise the pace of the roll-out of additional diagnostic capacity, delivering the final year of the three-year investment plan for establishing community diagnostic centres, with capacity prioritised for cancer.On 4 February 2025, the Department relaunched the Children and Young People Cancer Taskforce. The taskforce will explore a range of issues, including early detection and diagnosis, in order to identify improvements for this patient group.

With reference to page 10 of the report by Cancer Research UK entitled Cancer in the UK 2025: Socioeconomic Deprivation, published in February 2025, what steps he is taking to increase the 5-year net survival rate for lung cancer.

We welcome Cancer Research UK’s report on socioeconomic deprivation and will consider its findings as we develop a new National Cancer Plan. As part of this, my Department is working closely with individuals, professionals and organisations, including Cancer Research UK, to improve outcomes and address inequalities.To diagnose lung cancer earlier and boost survival rates, we are rolling out a national Lung Cancer Screening Programme, targeted at those aged between 55 and 74 years old with a history of smoking. This has led to over 3,000 more lung cancers being diagnosed at an early stage, with the biggest gains in early diagnosis rates among those living in the most deprived areas. We will build on these recent successes with the further roll out of the Lung Cancer Screening Programme.NHS England’s Core20PLUS5 approach informs current action to reduce healthcare inequalities, including in early cancer diagnosis. To achieve this, we are improving public awareness of cancer signs and symptoms, streamlining referral routes, and increasing the availability of diagnostic capacity through the roll-out of more community diagnostic centres. In addition, the National Health Service is now delivering an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week, during our first year in government as the first step to ensuring early diagnosis and faster treatment.

If he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the report by Cancer Research UK entitled Cancer in the UK 2025: socioeconomic deprivation, published on 21 February 2025; and what steps he is taking to help reduce the potential impact of socioeconomic deprivation on (a) the time taken to diagnose and (b) survival rates for cancer.

We welcome Cancer Research UK’s report on socioeconomic deprivation and will consider its findings as we develop a new National Cancer Plan. As part of this, my Department is working closely with individuals, professionals and organisations, including Cancer Research UK, to improve outcomes and address inequalities.To diagnose lung cancer earlier and boost survival rates, we are rolling out a national Lung Cancer Screening Programme, targeted at those aged between 55 and 74 years old with a history of smoking. This has led to over 3,000 more lung cancers being diagnosed at an early stage, with the biggest gains in early diagnosis rates among those living in the most deprived areas. We will build on these recent successes with the further roll out of the Lung Cancer Screening Programme.NHS England’s Core20PLUS5 approach informs current action to reduce healthcare inequalities, including in early cancer diagnosis. To achieve this, we are improving public awareness of cancer signs and symptoms, streamlining referral routes, and increasing the availability of diagnostic capacity through the roll-out of more community diagnostic centres. In addition, the National Health Service is now delivering an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week, during our first year in government as the first step to ensuring early diagnosis and faster treatment.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the absorption of NHS England into his Department on his Department's timetable for the publication of the updated NHS Long Term Workforce Plan.

Sir Jim Mackey will lead the transition team bringing the work of NHS England and the Department together over the next two years. This work will have no impact on the forthcoming publication of the 10-Year Health Plan and the subsequent reconsideration of the long-term workforce needs of the National Health Service which will follow.

What steps his Department is taking to implement the recommendations made by NICE in the House of Commons Coronavirus: Long Covid Research Briefing, published on 31 October 2024 for future research into the management of long covid.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) research recommendations for managing the long-term effects of COVID-19 were made in 2020 and 2021. Since this time, the Government has invested £58 million in research through two specific funding calls to better understand long COVID and how to treat it. Many of the funded research projects address the NICE’s research recommendations.As findings emerge from the current research, we encourage researchers to apply for funding to build on and develop the newly established infrastructure, partnerships, and research capabilities. Government research funders remain available to support long COVID researchers in their applications for funding. For example, the National Institute for Health and Care Research has an open call for applications to meet the research recommendations identified in NICE guidance.

Pursuant to the Answer of 5 March 2025 to Question 32470 on Radiotherapy: Medical Equipment, if he will publish the funding allocation for the investment for replacing older radiotherapy machines.

NHS England has written to those trusts which have been allocated funding for replacement radiotherapy machines. There remain no plans to publish full details of the funding allocation.

Whether his Department plans to take steps through the national cancer plan to help prepare for innovations in (a) diagnostics and (b) treatments.

The National Cancer Plan will look at how we can maximise our impact through the most up-to-date technology and innovations. The plan will ensure that we continue to maximise the access to and the impact of clinical trials in diagnostics and treatments, building on the success of projects such as the NHS cancer vaccine launch pad. The plan will also consider the ways that we can accelerate the uptake of innovative, life-saving treatments so all National Health Service patients can benefit. We will work closely with partners including the National Institute for Health and Care Research on this.

What recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of reforming integrated care boards.

The Department has not taken any recent assessment to reform integrated care boards (ICBs). As part of the necessary changes to support the National Health Service to recover, NHS England has indicated that ICBs should reduce in size. The Government is supportive of NHS England taking the action needed to get the NHS back on its feet.

Whether his Department plans to introduce accountability mechanisms through the national cancer plan.

Mechanisms for accountability will be considered as part of the development of the National Cancer Plan.

Pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2024 to Question 12286 on Pension Credit: Uptake, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of reducing the complexity of the Pension Credit application form.

As the Department continues to modernise the Pension Credit service, we review the user experience, balancing simplification of application with capturing the right information to ensure accuracy of award. A key objective of DWP’s Service Modernisation Programme is to utilise end user research to understand how the application process should operate in the future and consider the opportunities on how services can be more user friendly and easily accessible for citizens. To that end we are streamlining all Pension Credit application routes by using information held internally to reduce the number of questions the citizen must answer. Claims for Pension Credit can be made online, by telephone or by post. By far, the most popular way to claim is online where a claim can be made 24/7 with the help of a family member, a friend or a third party. The online claim form means it now takes just 16 minutes on average to complete, with 90 per cent of new customers applying using the simple online form, or over the phone. With the telephone service, the caller will be guided through the claim process. We will keep the Pension Credit application process under review.

What NHS England's functions are; and which (a) existing and (b) new Government bodies will take those functions on.

NHS England is being abolished as an arm’s length body and being brought back into the department. Ministers will work with the new transformation team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir James Mackey, to lead this transformation and return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department.The functions of NHS England are set out in legislation, these include but are not limited to:- Commissioning services in the National Health Service;- The establishment, oversight and support of integrated care boards;- The oversight and support of NHS trusts and foundation trusts;- Designing, developing and operating national digital and technology products and services and disseminate data to support the health and care system;- Planning, recruiting, educating and training the health workforce; and- Overseeing and promoting the use of research and innovation within the health service.The team will be focussed on ensuring that layers of bureaucracy are cut and more resources flow to the frontline as well as grasping the untapped potential of the NHS as a single payer public service, to get cutting-edge technology and treatments into the hands of staff and patients much faster and secure a better deal for taxpayers.