Written questions by Morgan.

If he will publish the referral network map for specialist centres for placenta accreta spectrum disorder.

Integrated care boards are leading on commissioning specialised placenta accreta spectrum (PAS) centres within their geographies. Clinicians will advise women under their care on referral routes to PAS centres. There are currently no plans to publish a referral network map for specialist PAS centres.To ensure effective diagnosis and management of PAS, national guidance is provided within the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guidance and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists’ Placenta Praevia and Placenta Accreta: Diagnosis and Management (Green-top Guideline No. 27a) guidance, both of which are available, respectively, at the following two links:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng192/documents/draft-guideline-2https://www.rcog.org.uk/guidance/browse-all-guidance/green-top-guidelines/placenta-praevia-and-placenta-accreta-diagnosis-and-management-green-top-guideline-no-27a/No assessment has been made of the gap between diagnosed and actual incidence of placenta accreta spectrum disorder.

Whether his Department holds guidance on histopathological examination of retained placenta to identify undiagnosed placenta accreta spectrum disorder.

Integrated care boards are leading on commissioning specialised placenta accreta spectrum (PAS) centres within their geographies. Clinicians will advise women under their care on referral routes to PAS centres. There are currently no plans to publish a referral network map for specialist PAS centres.To ensure effective diagnosis and management of PAS, national guidance is provided within the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guidance and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists’ Placenta Praevia and Placenta Accreta: Diagnosis and Management (Green-top Guideline No. 27a) guidance, both of which are available, respectively, at the following two links:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng192/documents/draft-guideline-2https://www.rcog.org.uk/guidance/browse-all-guidance/green-top-guidelines/placenta-praevia-and-placenta-accreta-diagnosis-and-management-green-top-guideline-no-27a/No assessment has been made of the gap between diagnosed and actual incidence of placenta accreta spectrum disorder.

If he will take steps to improve staff training for health professionals on the treatment of care experienced patients.

Awaiting answer.

What steps he is taking to support people with epidermolysis bullosa.

Awaiting answer.

If he will take steps to improve staff training for health professionals regarding the treatment of care experienced patients.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

What steps he is taking to ensure accurate recording of care experienced patients.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

What assessment his Department has made of the impact of the Iran war on the prices paid by community pharmacies to procure prescription medicines.

Awaiting answer.

Whether the Government expects to conclude the community pharmacy agreement by the start of June 2026.

Awaiting answer.

What steps the Government is taking to strengthen the resilience of the UK's supply of medicines, beyond establishing the Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund.

Awaiting answer.

Whether NICE plans to develop a new product for off-patent medicine reappraisals.

As the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) moves towards a whole life-cycle approach to producing guidance, it is considering whether its methods and processes for reviewing guidance on off-patent medicines need to change. NICE’s whole life-cycle approach will help the National Health Service keep guidance up to date with best practice, reflecting changes in evidence, costs, and clinical practice. It will support the ongoing review of what works best, identify where care can be improved, and will highlight where treatments should evolve over time. This means NICE will not assess a new medicine or treatment once and then move on, it will continue to review the evidence as it develops, so NHS care remains focused on what delivers the greatest benefit for patients.

Whether he plans to seek mutual recognition of batch testing for medicines manufacturing with the EU at the forthcoming UK-EU summit.

Awaiting answer.

If he will work towards a mutual recognition agreement with India on medicines regulation by 2030.

The United Kingdom and India have a strong relationship on healthcare issues, as evidenced through the memorandum of understanding signed between the governments on a health and life sciences partnership. This partnership recognises medicine and medical devices regulation as a key area of mutual interest, and we will continue to work closely together to identify opportunities for collaboration and alignment where this is suitable.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the UK’s health security pact with India on UK access to medicines exported from India.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of increasing heat risk to UK dairy farms on grazing land and silage production to feed livestock.

The Defra-funded Food, Farming & Natural Environment Climate Service led out of the Met Office has developed evidence on adaptation options which improve resilience of the agri-food sector, including cost and ease of implementation. These adaptation options include those which could be implemented in response to increasing heat risk to UK dairy farms such as using deep rooting and heat tolerant forage varieties. The Government needs long-term, nature-based solutions to manage the risks of extreme wet and dry weather. To support rural communities and farmers, the Government is funding actions to improve the environment, mitigate flood risk, and boost resilience, through Environmental Land Management schemes. Defra holds no data on potential impact of increasing heat risk to UK dairy farms on grazing land and silage production to feed livestock. However, Defra continues to work closely with the sector to monitor the production of grass and availability of silage as a feedstock. The UK Government must prepare a UK-wide Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA) every five years under the Climate Change Act 2008. The third CCRA assessed the risks to and opportunities for agricultural productivity from extreme events and changing climatic conditions such as increased temperatures and heat. The next assessment, CCRA4, is due to be published in 2027.

Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to establish a clear and consistent definition of good quality mobile connectivity, beyond coverage alone.

The draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for Telecommunications, the Management of Radio Spectrum, and Postal Services sets out a priority for Ofcom to keep under review its definitions of what constitutes “good” 4G and 5G and the signal strength thresholds it uses to measure this, so that these definitions continue to reflect consumer and business expectations as user requirements and behaviours evolve.In parallel, the Government is undertaking a Mobile Market Review to assess the impact of technological, structural and financial market developments on investment in comprehensive high-quality mobile connectivity.As part of the call for evidence to inform the review, we are asking for detailed evidence on how the Government should think about, and define, ‘good’ mobile coverage in relation to the quality of service provided to consumers, businesses and the public sector and what steps could Government take to ensure operators are able to provide this. We will use these responses to further inform policy on this issue. The call for evidence was published on 10 February 2026 and closes 5 May 2026.

Innovation and Technology, whether her Department plans to publish a refreshed spectrum strategy.

The government's ambition is for all populated areas to have access to higher quality standalone 5G by 2030. Our spectrum policy supports the industry achieve this.Spectrum is a strategic national asset and ensuring efficient use of spectrum is a priority for the government. A range of measures can support this including the adoption of innovative technologies, enhanced spectrum sharing and, in some cases, new spectrum allocations.Ofcom is responsible for spectrum management in the UK and its duties include balancing the needs of different spectrum users and encouraging the availability of mobile and other services throughout the UK.The government has no plans to publish a refreshed spectrum strategy currently. However, we frequently review our spectrum policy priorities, for example in the recent draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for Telecommunications, the Management of Radio Spectrum, and Postal Services.

Food and Rural Affairs, how her Department plans to support dairy farms in North Shropshire, who fall within the highest area for heat risk in the country and face escalating climate-related challenges.

The Defra-funded Food, Farming & Natural Environment Climate Service led out of the Met Office has developed evidence on adaptation options which improve resilience of the agri-food sector, including cost and ease of implementation. These adaptation options include those which could be implemented in response to increasing heat risk to UK dairy farms such as using deep rooting and heat tolerant forage varieties. The Government needs long-term, nature-based solutions to manage the risks of extreme wet and dry weather. To support rural communities and farmers, the Government is funding actions to improve the environment, mitigate flood risk, and boost resilience, through Environmental Land Management schemes. Defra holds no data on potential impact of increasing heat risk to UK dairy farms on grazing land and silage production to feed livestock. However, Defra continues to work closely with the sector to monitor the production of grass and availability of silage as a feedstock. The UK Government must prepare a UK-wide Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA) every five years under the Climate Change Act 2008. The third CCRA assessed the risks to and opportunities for agricultural productivity from extreme events and changing climatic conditions such as increased temperatures and heat. The next assessment, CCRA4, is due to be published in 2027.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of more closely aligning spectrum policy with mobile coverage and connectivity objectives across the UK.

The government's ambition is for all populated areas to have access to higher quality standalone 5G by 2030. Our spectrum policy supports the industry achieve this.Spectrum is a strategic national asset and ensuring efficient use of spectrum is a priority for the government. A range of measures can support this including the adoption of innovative technologies, enhanced spectrum sharing and, in some cases, new spectrum allocations.Ofcom is responsible for spectrum management in the UK and its duties include balancing the needs of different spectrum users and encouraging the availability of mobile and other services throughout the UK.The government has no plans to publish a refreshed spectrum strategy currently. However, we frequently review our spectrum policy priorities, for example in the recent draft Statement of Strategic Priorities for Telecommunications, the Management of Radio Spectrum, and Postal Services.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce the potential impact of climate change-driven food inflation on food security.

Defra is taking action to reduce this impact and support the continued production and supply of food for UK citizens. For example, we are actively implementing the third National Adaptation Programme which sets out a range of measures to improve resilience and adaptation to climate change across the food supply and farming sector. Defra works across Government to improve understanding of the drivers of food prices and their impact on households. This includes analysis of food inflation trends, engagement with industry to improve transparency where possible, and close collaboration with HM Treasury, the Department for Business and Trade, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department of Health and Social Care to mitigate cost pressures on consumers, particularly those most affected by the cost of living. Defra also works to reduce unnecessary regulatory costs that can feed through to consumer prices.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the adequacy of weight management support on patients required to lose weight to become eligible for joint replacement surgery.

The Department has made no specific assessment of the potential impact of body mass index (BMI) based restrictions on health inequalities.It is the responsibility of individual integrated care boards to determine policies for their local area, including that of the BMI threshold criteria for joint replacement surgery. As with all surgery, BMI should be considered as part of a holistic, personalised perioperative evaluation of the risks versus clinical need for joint replacement surgery of an individual patient. However, BMI should not be considered in isolation and in and of itself should not act as a barrier to surgery.While National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines are not mandatory, they do represent best practice and National Health Service organisations are expected to take them fully into account in ensuring that local services meet the needs of their populations.The NHS and local government provide a range of services to help people living with overweight and obesity to manage their weight, which may include individuals waiting for joint replacement surgery, where they meet other eligibility criteria. These range from multi-component behavioural programmes, such as the NHS Digital Weight Management Programme, to specialist services for those living with severe obesity and associated co-morbidities.