Written questions by Thomas.

What steps he is taking to help increase public awareness of Martha's Rule.

NHS England has undertaken extensive work to develop, test, and rollout communication products in relation to Martha’s Rule. This includes public communication materials for hospitals that have implemented Martha’s Rule to ensure inpatients, and their families and carers, are aware of and informed about this important patient safety initiative. NHS England is considering plans for a wider communications campaign once Martha’s Rule is fully implemented in all relevant settings, later in 2026/27. This will take account of feedback in relation to the communication materials produced so far.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential benefits of removing the three-year statue of limitations for offences under Part 1 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

The Government is extending the statute of limitations period for bringing proceedings for offences under Part 1 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008, Section 90(2).This change aims to give the Care Quality Commission more time to gather evidence, conclude investigations, and prosecute where appropriate.By extending the period in which proceedings can be brought, the Department seeks to encourage learning from failures in care and provide greater assurance and confidence for families seeking justice. The change will support the ambitions of the 10-Year Health Plan to improve quality of care generally.

What additional support is available to (a) parents and (b) carers of children awaiting neurodevelopmental assessment.

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) in England to make appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including pre-and-post diagnostic support for neurodevelopmental conditions, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.The Government’s 10-Year Health Plan will make the National Health Service fit for the future and it recognises the need for early intervention and support. The Government is supporting inclusive environments and earlier intervention for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) through the Early Language Support for Every Child and the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools programmes. In addition, through local commissioning, the Government will ensure that Neighbourhood Health Services work in partnership with family hubs, schools, nurseries, and colleges to offer timely and joined-up support to children, young people, and their families, including for those with SEND.NHS England commissions Autism Central, a peer education programme, which aims to make it easier for parents and carers to learn more about autism and the services available to them.NHS England also established an attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) taskforce to better understand the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including in accessing services and support. An interim report was published on 20 June, with the final report expected later in the year, and we will carefully consider its recommendations.

What support is available for (a) parents and (b) children who receive diagnoses of neurodevelopmental conditions.

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) in England to make appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including pre-and-post diagnostic support for neurodevelopmental conditions, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.The Government’s 10-Year Health Plan will make the National Health Service fit for the future and it recognises the need for early intervention and support. The Government is supporting inclusive environments and earlier intervention for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) through the Early Language Support for Every Child and the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools programmes. In addition, through local commissioning, the Government will ensure that Neighbourhood Health Services work in partnership with family hubs, schools, nurseries, and colleges to offer timely and joined-up support to children, young people, and their families, including for those with SEND.NHS England commissions Autism Central, a peer education programme, which aims to make it easier for parents and carers to learn more about autism and the services available to them.NHS England also established an attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) taskforce to better understand the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including in accessing services and support. An interim report was published on 20 June, with the final report expected later in the year, and we will carefully consider its recommendations.

What steps he is taking to reduce wait times for people requiring new wheelchairs.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the provision and commissioning of local wheelchair services.NHS England supports ICBs to commission effective, efficient, and personalised wheelchair services. Since July 2015, NHS England has collected quarterly data from clinical commissioning groups, now ICBs, on wheelchair provision, including waiting times, to enable targeted action if improvement is required.NHS England is taking steps to reduce regional variation in the quality and provision of National Health Service wheelchairs, and to support ICBs to reduce delays in people receiving timely intervention and wheelchair equipment. This includes publishing a Wheelchair Quality Framework on 9 April 2025, which sets out quality standards and statutory requirements for ICBs, such as offering personal wheelchair budgets. The framework is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/wheelchair-quality-framework/

Whether he has had discussions with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on the prescription of Fampridine as a treatment for MS.

Ministers and departmental officials have regular discussions with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) on a range of issues, including in relation to its guidelines.NICE’s guideline on the diagnosis and management of multiple sclerosis in adults, published in June 2022, recommends that fampridine should not be offered to treat mobility issues in people with multiple sclerosis as it is not found to be a cost-effective treatment.

What steps he is taking to help ensure that parents with children in hospital have access to care close to their home.

On 3 July 2025, the Government published the 10-Year Health Plan, setting out its vision for a Neighbourhood Health Service to bring care into local communities, transform access to health services, and prevent unnecessary hospital admissions. This will mean millions of patients, including children with complex and chronic needs, are treated and cared for closer to their home.The Government aims to establish a Neighbourhood Health Centre in every community by 2035, building care closer to where children live, learn and play. We have launched the National Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme, which will support systems across the country to test new ways of working, share learning, and scale what works. This Programme will inform future strategy and policy development, and outcome metrics will be rigorously monitored.

What steps he is taking to improve paediatric care in hospitals.

The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever and improving paediatric care in hospitals will be critical to achieving this ambition. Through the Elective Reform Plan, we have set out how we will deliver the 18-week referral target for all those waiting for care by March 2029, including children and young people. The Plan is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/reforming-elective-care-for-patients.pdf.The Urgent and Emergency Care Plan 2025/26, published jointly by the Department and NHS England on 6 June 2025, also outlines increasing the number of children seen within 4 hours of attending A&E as a priority area. To achieve this, NHS trusts have been asked to make use of urgent treatment centres and to revise services and standards to meet the needs of children and young people. The Plan is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/urgent-and-emergency-care-plan-2025-26/.

What steps he is taking to improve the support available for people diagnosed with osteoporosis.

In July, we published the 10 Year Health Plan, which committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030. We have invested in 13 new bone density, or DEXA, scanners, which are expected to provide up to 29,000 extra scans per year to ensure people with bone conditions get diagnosed earlier.We are also working to deliver the Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) MSK Community Delivery Programme. GIRFT teams are working with integrated care board leaders to further reduce musculoskeletal community waiting times and improve data and metrics, and referral pathways to wider support services.In the last three years, two new drugs have been recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence for the treatment of osteoporosis in post-menopausal women, Abaloparatide and Romosozumab. These medications help to strengthen the bones and prevent bone loss, thereby reducing the risk of fractures.

What steps his Department is taking to help improve (a) early diagnosis and (b) treatment of osteoporosis.

In July, we published the 10 Year Health Plan, which committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030. We have invested in 13 new bone density, or DEXA, scanners, which are expected to provide up to 29,000 extra scans per year to ensure people with bone conditions get diagnosed earlier.We are also working to deliver the Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) MSK Community Delivery Programme. GIRFT teams are working with integrated care board leaders to further reduce musculoskeletal community waiting times and improve data and metrics, and referral pathways to wider support services.In the last three years, two new drugs have been recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence for the treatment of osteoporosis in post-menopausal women, Abaloparatide and Romosozumab. These medications help to strengthen the bones and prevent bone loss, thereby reducing the risk of fractures.

What steps he is taking to help ensure that essential home adaptations required for hospital discharge are (a) supported and (b) delivered in a timely manner.

The statutory ‘Hospital discharge and community support guidance’ outlines that health and care systems and providers should collaborate to share information early to support a safe and timely discharge, minimise issues that may disrupt care provision, and ensure necessary home adaptations and equipment are considered, while also requiring local authorities to engage housing services to provide support and advice where needed.In January, we published a new policy framework for the Better Care Fund, which requires local areas to agree joint plans, developed in collaboration with local housing authorities, that achieve more timely and effective hospital discharge.Housing adaptations, including those delivered through the Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) play a key role in supporting these objectives by funding changes that help people remain well, safe, and independent at home for longer. We have provided an additional £172 million across this and the last financial year to uplift the DFG, which could provide around 15,600 home adaptations to give older and disabled people more independence in their homes. This brings the total funding for the DFG to £711 million in 2024/25 and 2025/26.Alongside this, local authorities have a statutory duty under various legislations, including the Care Act 2014 and the Children and Families Act 2014, to ensure provision of community equipment and disability aids in order to meet the assessed eligible needs of individuals who are resident in their area, which help support independent living at home. This facilitates safe discharge into the community from hospital and prevents avoidable admissions into acute services, such as hospitals or care homes.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing standardised charges for (a) non-core GP services and (b) the D4 medical check for drivers.

There are some medical evidence letters, certificates, or reports that general practices (GPs) may charge for, and other certificates that they must not charge patients for. The legislation that sets this out is the General Medical Services and Personal Medical Services Regulations, which forms the basis of the GP Contract with the National Health Service. The D4 medical checks are considered private work.The Professional Fees Committee of the British Medical Association suggests guideline fees for such services to help doctors set their own fees, and in some instances, have agreed standardised fees directly with organisations for some public services. For GPs setting their own fees, we would expect practices to charge a reasonable sum for any workload involved, and to forewarn patients at the earliest opportunity.The Government is intent on reducing the burden of administrative tasks and unnecessary bureaucracy. This includes encouraging the use of alternative evidence where medical evidence is not part of the GP Contract, and this may include hospital discharge letters, previous reports, or prescriptions, as in many cases these will be accepted as evidence.The Government and NHS England have launched a Red Tape Challenge to cut down on bureaucracy, to free up time to spend with patients. The 10-Year Health Plan set outs our commitment to deliver the recommendations of the Red Tape Challenge, which includes ensuring that GPs can spend less time filling in forms and more time caring for patients.

What steps his Department have taken to improve support in the community for mental health.

As part of our mission to build a National Health Service that is fit for the future and that is there when people need it, the Government is recruiting 8,500 mental health workers to help ease the pressure on busy mental health services. The latest data shows that more than 6,700 extra mental health workers have been recruited since July.We are working with NHS England on a refreshed workforce plan, which will revolve around the three shifts to deliver our 10-Year Health Plan: moving more care from hospitals to communities; making better use of technology in health and care; and focusing on preventing sickness, not just treating it.We are also piloting 24 hour a day, seven day a week neighbourhood mental health centres to support our ambition to shift care from hospitals to communities. People will also get better direct access to mental health support and advice 24 hours a day, seven days a week through the NHS App, without needing a general practice appointment.Additionally, the Government is providing £7 million of funding to extend support for 24 Early Support Hubs that have a track record of helping thousands of young people in their community. We will also provide access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England and roll out Young Futures Hubs to provide open access mental health support for children and young people.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that people suffering a mental health crisis are able to access suitable treatment quickly.

Substantial progress has been made in building more robust crisis care pathways across all ages and in all regions, ensuring that people in a mental health crisis can receive the right care. However, the 10-Year Health Plan sets out our ambitions to go further.The plan commits to increasing capacity for urgent mental health care by developing dedicated mental health emergency departments (MHEDs), thereby ensuring patients get fast, same-day access to specialist support in an appropriate setting. We will invest up to £120 million to bring the number of MHEDs to approximately 85, meaning there will be one co-located, or very close to, 50% of existing type 1 accident and emergency units. This expansion builds on a number of early implementer sites that have been established in recent years by local health systems to provide a dedicated therapeutic alternative to emergency departments for individuals in a mental health crisis.This is building on the £26 million in capital investment in 2025/26 to support people in a mental health crisis, including opening new mental health crisis centres across England, which aim to provide accessible and responsive care for individuals in a mental health crisis.In addition, we are piloting six, 24 hour a day, seven day a week neighbourhood mental health centres which provide support to individuals with severe mental illness, without needing to book an appointment.People of all ages in England experiencing a mental health crisis can speak to a trained National Health Service professional at any time, 24 hours a day, via the NHS 111 service. This service gives people the chance to be listened to by a trained member of staff who can help direct them to the right place.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on mental health.

The latest adult psychiatric morbidity survey, published on 26 June 2025, provides data on the prevalence of both treated and untreated mental health disorders and neurodevelopmental conditions in the adult population in England, those aged 16 years old and over. This is the first survey since 2014 and covers the period of the COVID-19 pandemic. The results of part 1 of the survey are available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/adult-psychiatric-morbidity-survey

What steps he is taking to improve the availability of beds at psychiatric inpatient units.

As part of our mission to build a National Health Service that is fit for the future, we need to focus treatment away from hospital and inpatient care and improve community and crisis services. Through our 10-Year Health Plan we will make sure more mental health care is delivered in the community, close to people’s homes, through new models of care and support, so that fewer people need to go into hospital.NHS England has already begun piloting this innovative model of mental health care for people with serious mental health needs through six neighbourhood adult mental health centres that are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and which bring together community, crisis, and inpatient care.Integrated care boards have published plans to localise inpatient care by 2026/27 under the national commissioning framework for mental health inpatient services, improving both care quality and value for money.

What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of access to primary care services.

Too many patients are finding it impossible to access care. In May, a staggering 1.4 million patients waited for over a month for an appointment. That is why we are committed to: fix the front door to the NHS; bring back the family doctor; and shift the focus of care away from hospitals and into the community.