Written questions by Swayne.

When he plans to answer the letter of 27th February from Valerie Lambert regarding hospital appointments booked by the 111 telephone service.

I responded to the Rt. Hon. Member’s correspondence on 24 April 2026.

What assessment he has made of recent trends in the length of NHS waiting lists.

Waiting lists have fallen by over 206,000 since we came to office, and we’ve delivered 5.2 million extra appointments in our first year – more than double what we promised.Our Elective Reform Plan sets out how we will return to the 18-week standard for elective care by the end of this Parliament, through a combination of investment and reform.

If he will publish (a) the long list of NHS trusts considered by the Chair for inclusion in the Independent Maternity and Neonatal Investigation and (b) the selection criteria used by the Investigation team to assess those trusts.

The 14 National Health Service trusts to be looked at in the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation were announced on 15 September 2025. There are no plans to publish the long list of NHS trusts considered by the Chair for inclusion in the National 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 or reviews, 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.

Who has been selected to represent (a) midwifery, (b) obstetrics and (c) neonatal care for his Independent Maternity and Neonatal Investigation.

The list of Expert Advisers supporting Baroness Amos is published in the terms of reference. They include:a) Professor Julia Sanders and Lesley Sharkey, both midwives.b) Professor Alex Heazell and Dr Christine Ekechi, both obstetricians.c) Dr Edile Murdoch and Dr Alison Bedford-Russell, both neonatologists.

What steps he is taking to ensure the provision of Estradot for women who react poorly to other HRT treatments.

There are over 70 hormone replacement therapy products, and the vast majority are in good supply. Currently, there are limited supplies of Estradot (estradiol) patches, which may be available to local pharmacies to order. We are working with the sole supplier of Estradot to expedite further resupplies where possible, however, supply issues are anticipated for the remainder of the year.We have a range of well-established processes to manage supply issues when they arise, working closely with industry, the National Health Service, and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to resolve issues as soon as possible. We have issued comprehensive management guidance to the NHS, which includes advice for prescribers to review patients individually if they are unable to tolerate suggested alternative products.We have also issued Serious Shortage Protocols for Estradot 25, 50, 75, and 100 microgram/24 hour patches, allowing community pharmacists to supply the equivalent strength patch of an alternative brand without the need for a new prescription.

Whether he plans to take further steps to encourage NHS Hospital Trusts to adopt the GIRFT pathway for Cauda Equina Syndrome.

We are aware of the challenges faced by those living with rare diseases such as Cauda Equina Syndrome and remain committed to making improvements across the healthcare system through implementation of the UK Rare Diseases Framework. The Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) programme is a national NHS England programme designed to improve the treatment and care of patients through in-depth review of services, benchmarking, and presenting a data-driven evidence base to support change. GIRFT’s work to raise awareness and support implementation of the NHS England pathway for patients with suspected Cauda Equina Syndrome is ongoing, and we have been encouraged to see signs of progress in many trusts across England since the pathway was shared in February 2023. Where trusts report barriers to implementation, for example, in the staffing of magnetic resonance imaging scanners 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, we are working to support them by sharing best practice and recommendations to help ensure the pathway can be fully adhered to. We are undertaking a programme of stakeholder engagement events at the national, regional, system and site level to promote the benefits of the pathway.