Written questions by McMurdock.

Pursuant to his Department’s press release entitled Patients to benefit from improved access to dental appointments, published on 21 February 2026, how many additional urgent appointments each high street dentist will be required to provide.

The Government is committed to ensuring people can access urgent dental care when they need it. Over the past year, integrated care boards (ICBs) have been commissioning additional urgent dental appointments and there is now an urgent care safety net available in all areas of the country.We are broadening the scope of the commitment to deliver additional appointments so that they can be used for more patients, not just those who meet the clinical criteria for “urgent” care. This will allow ICBs to use the extra commissioned capacity more flexibly and deliver more appointments, ensuring resources reach those who genuinely need treatment. Each ICB is responsible for commissioning dental services in their area from local providers.We will ensure a continued urgent care safety net by requiring, from April 2026, high street dentists to deliver 8.2% of their total contract value as urgent or unscheduled care.The Mid and South Essex ICB, which includes the South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency, delivered 53,376 additional courses of treatment in the first seven months of this financial year, from April to October 2025, compared to the corresponding months of the year before the general election.

With reference to his Department’s press release entitled Patients to benefit from improved access to dental appointments, published on 21 February 2026, how many additional urgent appointments will be available in (a) Basildon and (b) Thurrock as a result of the broadening of the scope of the target.

The Government is committed to ensuring people can access urgent dental care when they need it. Over the past year, integrated care boards (ICBs) have been commissioning additional urgent dental appointments and there is now an urgent care safety net available in all areas of the country.We are broadening the scope of the commitment to deliver additional appointments so that they can be used for more patients, not just those who meet the clinical criteria for “urgent” care. This will allow ICBs to use the extra commissioned capacity more flexibly and deliver more appointments, ensuring resources reach those who genuinely need treatment. Each ICB is responsible for commissioning dental services in their area from local providers.We will ensure a continued urgent care safety net by requiring, from April 2026, high street dentists to deliver 8.2% of their total contract value as urgent or unscheduled care.The Mid and South Essex ICB, which includes the South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency, delivered 53,376 additional courses of treatment in the first seven months of this financial year, from April to October 2025, compared to the corresponding months of the year before the general election.

What steps he is taking to help reduce avoidable demand on Accident and Emergency departments.

The Government recognises that urgent and emergency care performance has fallen short in recent years. We are committed to restoring accident and emergency waiting times to the NHS Constitutional standard and reducing accident and emergency demand.Our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan for 2025/26 sets out clear actions to deliver improvements this winter and beyond. We are aiming for 78% of patients to be seen in four hours this year, meaning over 800,000 people will receive more timely care.We are investing £250 million into expanding same day and urgent care services, helping avoid unnecessary admissions to hospital and supporting faster diagnosis, treatment, and discharge for patients.In the longer-term, our 10-Year Health Plan will increase the urgent care capacity outside hospital through new neighbourhood health services, reducing demand pressures on accident and emergency.

What proportion of a) GP consultations and b) Accident and Emergency attendances in England were assessed as i) avoidable, ii) non-urgent and iii) more appropriately managed in alternative settings in the latest year for which figures are available.

NHS England publishes monthly data on General Practice Appointments, including the approximate length of time between appointments being booked and taking place, including same day appointments, for instance for patients needing more urgent care. However, this can’t be used as a proxy for avoidable, non-urgent, or if a particular patient would be more appropriately managed in alternative settings. In the 12-months to December 2025, 44% of all appointments were delivered on the same day and 88% of appointments not usually booked in advance were delivered within two weeks of booking.General practices (GP) are independent businesses that hold contracts with the National Health Service to provide essential services. The contracts are clear that patients must be offered an assessment of need or signposting to a different service on the day they contact their practice. The 2026/27 GP Contract makes it explicit that any requests identified as clinically urgent, as determined by the GP, must be dealt with on the same day. The Emergency Care Data Set is the national data set for urgent and emergency care, published by NHS England. In 2024/25, 25,822,265 patients attended accident and emergency departments, excluding planned follow ups, with data being published at the following link: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/hospital-accident--emergency-activity/2024-25 Of these, approximately 8%, or approximately two million, were recorded as non-urgent. However, this does not mean they were necessarily avoidable or could have been managed in alternative settings. We are taking action to reduce pressures on emergency departments and working to ensure patients are seen and treated in the most appropriate setting. This includes: encouraging the use of alternative community services before attending accident and emergency; expanding urgent care access in primary, community, and mental health settings, including more support from Urgent Community Response teams; and increasing the use of virtual wards.

With reference to the press release entitled Funding boost for young people’s mental health services, published on 13 February 2026, how many additional appointments in (a) Essex and (b) South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency this increased funding will result in.

The Government recently confirmed a £7 million funding boost for 24 early support hubs across England so they can continue to provide open-access, drop-in mental health and wellbeing support for young people aged 11 to 25 years old. These hubs offer open access, early intervention support for a wide range of issues, helping to prevent escalation to more severe mental illness without the need for a referral or a doctor’s appointment. This additional investment is expected to deliver approximately 10,000 extra interventions in the community for young people facing mental health challenges.While none of the 24 Government‑funded Early Support Hubs are located in Essex or in the South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency, there are approximately 65 Early Support Hubs operating across England through local funding. Because hubs are delivered by voluntary, community or social enterprise sector collaborations and are designed around local service footprints, they do not map neatly onto constituency boundaries.

Pursuant to the press release entitled Funding boost for young people’s mental health services, published on 13 February 2026, how much of the increased funding for early support hubs will be allocated to (a) Essex and (b) South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency.

The Government recently confirmed a £7 million funding boost for 24 early support hubs across England so they can continue to provide open-access, drop-in mental health and wellbeing support for young people aged 11 to 25 years old. These hubs offer open access, early intervention support for a wide range of issues, helping to prevent escalation to more severe mental illness without the need for a referral or a doctor’s appointment. This additional investment is expected to deliver approximately 10,000 extra interventions in the community for young people facing mental health challenges.While none of the 24 Government‑funded Early Support Hubs are located in Essex or in the South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency, there are approximately 65 Early Support Hubs operating across England through local funding. Because hubs are delivered by voluntary, community or social enterprise sector collaborations and are designed around local service footprints, they do not map neatly onto constituency boundaries.

What steps he is taking to reduce the time taken for diagnosis of endometriosis.

The Government is committed to prioritising women’s health, including long waits for endometriosis diagnoses. We are committed to returning to the National Health Service constitutional standard that 92% of patients are treated within 18 weeks of referral to consultant-led care by March 2029. The Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), has commissioned studies focused on endometriosis diagnosis, treatment and patient experience.We are taking action to increase capacity and transform diagnostic services to improve waiting times for endometriosis diagnoses. This includes expanding existing community diagnostic centres (CDCs) and building up to five new ones in 2025/26. Our Elective Reform Plan also committed to CDCs opening 12 hours per day, seven days a week, delivering more same-day tests and consultations. Surgical hubs are helping endometriosis patients get quicker treatment and deliver high-volume, low-complexity elective surgeries, including gynaecological procedures.Currently, over half of the 125 operational elective surgical hubs in England provide gynaecology services. Laparoscopies remain the definitive diagnostic and treatment method and are a key part of this offering. The Elective Reform Plan commits to expand the number of hubs to increase surgical capacity and reduce waiting times.From 2027, a new “online hospital” will also offer patients the choice to access specialist care including for menstrual problems potentially indicating endometriosis or fibroids from home, providing additional appointments to cut waiting times.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of endometriosis a) education and b) training within i) undergraduate medical degrees and ii) GP training.

The Government will soon publish a renewed Women’s Health Strategy that will set out how the Government is taking further steps to improve women’s health, including reproductive health, as we deliver the 10-Year Health Plan.The standard of undergraduate medical training is the responsibility of the General Medical Council (GMC), the independent regulator of the medical profession, which set the outcomes and standards expected at undergraduate level. Medical schools are responsible for their curricula. The delivery of these undergraduate curricula must meet the standards set by the GMC, who then monitor and check to make sure that these standards are maintained.The curriculum for specialty training is set by individual Royal Colleges and faculties. The GMC approves curricula and assessment systems for each training programme. Curricula emphasise the skills and approaches that a doctor must develop to ensure accurate and timely diagnoses and treatment plans for their patients.The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is responsible for publishing the postgraduate curriculum for general practitioners (GPs) and ensuring it remains up to date. The RCGP curriculum covers endometriosis as part of its gynaecology and breast health module.GPs are responsible for ensuring their own clinical knowledge remains up-to-date and for identifying learning needs as part of their continuing professional development. The RCGP has worked with partners, including Endometriosis UK, to develop educational resources relating to endometriosis to support GPs and other healthcare professionals to deliver the best possible care for women, based on the latest evidence.

What information his Department holds on the number of people who have become ill as a result of water pollution in each year since 2020.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) undertakes surveillance of illnesses that could be a result of water pollution including infectious diseases, chemical and toxicological hazards. Attribution to a specific cause is not available for individual cases unless they are epidemiologically linked to an outbreak, due to multiple possible sources or factors that could contribute to an illness.There was one outbreak of Cryptosporidium parvum with 143 laboratory confirmed cases in 2024. This was due to the contamination of mains drinking water, the cause is still under investigation. There were no other gastrointestinal infection outbreaks reported to or investigated by UKHSA through the period 2020-24 that are likely due to water pollution. Data on gastrointestinal outbreaks and likely causes are reported annually with the 2025 report due to be published in Summer 2026. Data is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gastrointestinal-infections-in-englandSince 2020, UKHSA has received no reports of ill health related to chemicals from users of recreational or other waters.

What proportion of staff in his Department have (a) office-based, (b) hybrid and (c) remote-working contracts.

As of January 2026, 97% staff are on office‑based contracts, no staff are on hybrid contracts, and 3% staff are on remote‑working contracts.

Whether he plans to provide funding for the primary care network estate in areas with low GP-to-patient ratios.

The Government recognises the importance of strategic, value for money investments in capital projects, such as new facilities, significant upgrades, or other targeted capital investments.In May 2025, the Government announced the schemes which integrated care boards (ICBs) nominated as eligible to benefit from the £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund to deliver upgrades to more than a thousand general practice (GP) surgeries across England this financial year. These schemes will create additional clinical space within existing building footprints to enable practices to see more patients, boost productivity, and improve patient care.Building on this, the Government has committed £426 million of Utilisation and Modernisation funding over the next four years to continue upgrading the GP estate. This funding will also support refurbishing the existing estate to deliver Neighbourhood Health Centres over this Parliament as part of the 10-Year Health Plan commitment.Operational capital funding allocations have been confirmed for the 2026/27 to 2029/30 period, enabling multi-year planning for ICBs and in turn supporting the delivery of the 10-Year Health Plan’s radical vision for care.The Government has also allocated £750 million per year for estates safety from 2026/27 to 2029/30, with planning certainty for a further five years, totalling £6.75 billion.ICBs are responsible for commissioning, which includes planning, securing, and monitoring, GP services within their health systems through delegated responsibility from NHS England. The National Health Service has a statutory duty to ensure there are sufficient medical services, including GPs, in each local area.As part of inspection activity at GP surgeries, the Care Quality Commission will look at the quality of premises under Regulation 15, covering premises and equipment, although there is no overall rating for this aspect. The intention of this regulation is to make sure that the premises where care and treatment are delivered are clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained and, where required, appropriately located, and that the equipment that is used to deliver care and treatment is clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained, stored securely, and used properly.

What steps is he taking to help address the maintenance backlog in primary care estates.

The Government recognises the importance of strategic, value for money investments in capital projects, such as new facilities, significant upgrades, or other targeted capital investments.In May 2025, the Government announced the schemes which integrated care boards (ICBs) nominated as eligible to benefit from the £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund to deliver upgrades to more than a thousand general practice (GP) surgeries across England this financial year. These schemes will create additional clinical space within existing building footprints to enable practices to see more patients, boost productivity, and improve patient care.Building on this, the Government has committed £426 million of Utilisation and Modernisation funding over the next four years to continue upgrading the GP estate. This funding will also support refurbishing the existing estate to deliver Neighbourhood Health Centres over this Parliament as part of the 10-Year Health Plan commitment.Operational capital funding allocations have been confirmed for the 2026/27 to 2029/30 period, enabling multi-year planning for ICBs and in turn supporting the delivery of the 10-Year Health Plan’s radical vision for care.The Government has also allocated £750 million per year for estates safety from 2026/27 to 2029/30, with planning certainty for a further five years, totalling £6.75 billion.ICBs are responsible for commissioning, which includes planning, securing, and monitoring, GP services within their health systems through delegated responsibility from NHS England. The National Health Service has a statutory duty to ensure there are sufficient medical services, including GPs, in each local area.As part of inspection activity at GP surgeries, the Care Quality Commission will look at the quality of premises under Regulation 15, covering premises and equipment, although there is no overall rating for this aspect. The intention of this regulation is to make sure that the premises where care and treatment are delivered are clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained and, where required, appropriately located, and that the equipment that is used to deliver care and treatment is clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained, stored securely, and used properly.

What proportion of GP premises are rated as not fit for purpose or requiring significant investment.

The Government recognises the importance of strategic, value for money investments in capital projects, such as new facilities, significant upgrades, or other targeted capital investments.In May 2025, the Government announced the schemes which integrated care boards (ICBs) nominated as eligible to benefit from the £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund to deliver upgrades to more than a thousand general practice (GP) surgeries across England this financial year. These schemes will create additional clinical space within existing building footprints to enable practices to see more patients, boost productivity, and improve patient care.Building on this, the Government has committed £426 million of Utilisation and Modernisation funding over the next four years to continue upgrading the GP estate. This funding will also support refurbishing the existing estate to deliver Neighbourhood Health Centres over this Parliament as part of the 10-Year Health Plan commitment.Operational capital funding allocations have been confirmed for the 2026/27 to 2029/30 period, enabling multi-year planning for ICBs and in turn supporting the delivery of the 10-Year Health Plan’s radical vision for care.The Government has also allocated £750 million per year for estates safety from 2026/27 to 2029/30, with planning certainty for a further five years, totalling £6.75 billion.ICBs are responsible for commissioning, which includes planning, securing, and monitoring, GP services within their health systems through delegated responsibility from NHS England. The National Health Service has a statutory duty to ensure there are sufficient medical services, including GPs, in each local area.As part of inspection activity at GP surgeries, the Care Quality Commission will look at the quality of premises under Regulation 15, covering premises and equipment, although there is no overall rating for this aspect. The intention of this regulation is to make sure that the premises where care and treatment are delivered are clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained and, where required, appropriately located, and that the equipment that is used to deliver care and treatment is clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained, stored securely, and used properly.

What assessment he has made of regional variation in primary care estate in relation to their (a) condition and (b) capacity; and what steps is he taking to help improve this.

The Government recognises the importance of strategic, value for money investments in capital projects, such as new facilities, significant upgrades, or other targeted capital investments.In May 2025, the Government announced the schemes which integrated care boards (ICBs) nominated as eligible to benefit from the £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund to deliver upgrades to more than a thousand general practice (GP) surgeries across England this financial year. These schemes will create additional clinical space within existing building footprints to enable practices to see more patients, boost productivity, and improve patient care.Building on this, the Government has committed £426 million of Utilisation and Modernisation funding over the next four years to continue upgrading the GP estate. This funding will also support refurbishing the existing estate to deliver Neighbourhood Health Centres over this Parliament as part of the 10-Year Health Plan commitment.Operational capital funding allocations have been confirmed for the 2026/27 to 2029/30 period, enabling multi-year planning for ICBs and in turn supporting the delivery of the 10-Year Health Plan’s radical vision for care.The Government has also allocated £750 million per year for estates safety from 2026/27 to 2029/30, with planning certainty for a further five years, totalling £6.75 billion.ICBs are responsible for commissioning, which includes planning, securing, and monitoring, GP services within their health systems through delegated responsibility from NHS England. The National Health Service has a statutory duty to ensure there are sufficient medical services, including GPs, in each local area.As part of inspection activity at GP surgeries, the Care Quality Commission will look at the quality of premises under Regulation 15, covering premises and equipment, although there is no overall rating for this aspect. The intention of this regulation is to make sure that the premises where care and treatment are delivered are clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained and, where required, appropriately located, and that the equipment that is used to deliver care and treatment is clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained, stored securely, and used properly.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of delayed discharges on emergency department congestion at Basildon Hospital.

The Government has not made a specific central assessment of the impact of delayed discharges on emergency department congestion at Basildon Hospital.Local analysis by the Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust suggests substantial progress in reducing delayed discharges. This improvement follows the introduction of the integrated care transfer hub and wider system measures to strengthen patient flow, helping to ease pressure on emergency departments.Our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan for 2025/26 sets out actions to improve performance and strengthen services by reducing avoidable attendances and admissions, and through improving patient flow through hospitals. The plan commits to reducing the number of patients waiting over 12 hours for admission or discharge to less than 10% of the time, supported by almost £450 million of capital investment to avoid unnecessary admissions and support faster treatment and discharge for patients. It also includes commitments to tackle long delayed patients and reduce internal hospital delays over 48 hours.The Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust’s One Team Improvement Plan also includes actions to improve urgent and emergency care outcomes, including increased weekend consultant cover to support more weekend discharges and maintain patient flow.

What steps is he taking to help support underperforming trusts improve compliance with the cancer treatment standard from referral to treatment.

Improving performance against the cancer treatment standards is a key priority for the Government. As set out in the National Cancer Plan, National Health Service regions and Cancer Alliances will jointly identify underperforming trusts and provide intensive, hands‑on support, including leadership intervention, peer‑to‑peer mentoring, and the secondment of senior managers from stronger performing trusts to help drive improvement. This will be backed by £200 million of ring‑fenced cancer funding in 2026/27 to strengthen local cancer pathways and reduce delays.The plan also commits to ensuring that all cancer waiting time standards are met by the end of this Parliament, with improved diagnostic capacity, digital pathways, and innovation, supporting faster movement from referral to treatment. These actions will ensure trusts facing the greatest pressures receive the targeted support required to recover performance and deliver timely, high‑quality cancer care.

What assessment he has made of trends in the level of variations in cancer treatment waiting times between NHS trusts.

The Department recognises that treatment waiting times vary significantly across the country, and we are determined to change this. We will tackle this variation head on by streamlining access to cutting-edge treatments and increasing the cancer workforce in trusts that most need it, including in rural and coastal areas.The recently published National Cancer Plan sets out how we will end the postcode lottery for cancer care and improve outcomes for thousands of patients. It will shift healthcare from hospitals to the community and ensure that all cancer patients, regardless of where they live, have timely access to high-quality, specialist cancer services.National Health Service regions and Cancer Alliances will jointly identify underperforming trusts and provide intensive support including leadership intervention, peer-to-peer mentoring, seconding senior managers from stronger trusts, and access to £200 million of ringfenced cancer funding in 2026/27 to improve cancer pathway performance and reduce delays.

What steps he is taking to support NHS trusts to help tackle the root causes of recurring complaints.

The National Health Service should listen to, learn from, and act on issues that are raised in complaints to ensure services continually improve and that when things go wrong, problems are addressed and not repeated.To support good complaint handling, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s NHS Complaint Standards and accompanying guidance set out how organisations providing services in the NHS should approach complaint handling, including the promotion of a learning culture that identifies and addresses recurring themes and issues.We recognise that more needs to be done and through implementation of the 10-Year Health Plan, we will reform the NHS complaints process and strengthen the patient voice by setting clear standards for the quality of responses to complaints and to ensure the NHS listens carefully and compassionately, taking forward learnings to ensure high quality care. We will also increase the use of artificial intelligence tools to ensure complaints data is collected, and responded to, far more quickly.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of NHS trusts in responding to Patient Advice and Liaison Service enquiries within required timeframes.

We have not made an assessment of the adequacy of National Health Service trusts in responding to Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) enquiries. Generally, there are no required national timeframes for responding to enquiries made to PALS. However, if they are responding to complaints raised under the formal NHS complaints process, they must follow the requirements in The Local Authority Social Services and National Health Service Complaints (England) Regulations 2009. The regulations require NHS organisations to notify complainants about the timeframe in which the investigation of their complaint is likely to be completed and investigate and resolve formal NHS complaints speedily and efficiently.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of staffing levels on the volume of complaints received by NHS trusts.

No assessment has been made. The responsibility for staffing levels is with clinical and other leaders at a local level, responding to local needs, supported by guidelines by national and professional bodies and overseen and regulated in England by the Care Quality Commission.Providers of National Health Services should have a systematic approach to determine and review the number of staff and range of skills needed to meet the needs of people using their services and keep them safe at all times. This includes taking into account feedback and complaints data to inform staffing decisions and improve services.