Written questions by Richards.

What progress he has made on implementing 24/7 mental health text lines.

Mental health crisis text services are an important part of delivering accessible and effective mental health support across the country. NHS England has confirmed that integrated care boards have plans to have 24 hour a day, seven day a week mental health crisis text services in place nationally by spring 2026. Integrated care boards who intend to procure these services via open-market approaches will publicly publish their intentions in the usual way.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the Armed Forces Covenant Duty across his Departmental responsibilities.

The Department is supportive of the extension of the Armed Forces Covenant. A key benefit of the Department having a legal duty to have due regard to the principles of the Armed Forces Covenant is greater awareness and consistency of the unique impacts of military service on health and care needs from the early stages of policy development through to operational delivery from the National Health Service and local authorities.NHS England and other specified NHS bodies have a statutory obligation to have due regard to the principles of the Armed Forces Covenant. Extending this duty to include the Department will build on the good work of the NHS to date and will play an important role within the new NHS model for the benefit of the Armed Forces Community.