Written questions by Shannon.

What steps his Department is taking to tackle health inequalities through the implementation of the 10 Year Health Plan.

The 10-Year Health Plan has set out a long-term vision to reform the National Health Service and make it fit for the future. Addressing healthcare inequity is a core focus of the 10-Year Health Plan, to ensure the NHS is there for anyone who needs it whenever they need it.We know everyday life poses greater health risks to the most disadvantaged in society, and that the current model of care works least well for those who already experience disadvantage and are far more likely to have complex needs.To help tackle this, we will distribute NHS funding more equally locally, so it is better aligned with health need. And we will establish a neighbourhood health centre in every community, beginning with places where healthy life expectancy is lowest. Neighbourhood health centres will co-locate NHS, local authority and voluntary sector services, to help create an offer that meets population need.Neighbourhood health will redesign and join up existing health and care services. General practice leaders will be pivotal in shaping and delivering these new services that require working across several different neighbourhoods, supported by two optional contracts to be introduced from 2026.

What steps his Department is taking to build (a) robust and (b) sustainable partnerships with (i) cancer charities, (ii) community organisations and (iii) people with lived experience of cancer.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 3 September 2025 to Question 69805.

What steps his Department is taking to seek payment from foreign nationals for NHS treatment.

In England, the National Health Service is a residency-based system. Only people who are ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom or otherwise exempt from charges under the NHS (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015, are eligible for NHS healthcare without charge. Overseas visitors who use the NHS in England are charged upfront at 150% of the cost of treatment. Health is a devolved matter and there may be other arrangements in Northern Ireland.The Department sets the policy, guidance and legislation through the NHS (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 2015, and the NHS recovers treatment costs from charge liable patients.Costs for NHS treatment provided to overseas visitors and other people who are not ordinarily resident in the UK are recovered through NHS direct charging, the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) and reciprocal healthcare arrangements. Individuals coming to the UK for six months or more are expected to pay the IHS as part of their visa application. Once their application is granted, they are entitled to receive treatment on broadly the same basis as someone who is ordinarily resident in the UK. People coming to the UK for six months or less are expected to have adequate funds or insurance to cover any healthcare needs whilst in England. The UK is also party to several reciprocal healthcare agreements. Patients who are from countries covered by a reciprocal healthcare agreement may be entitled to some NHS services without charge.

Whether his Department is taking steps to encourage the installation of defibrillators in all shopping centre entrances.

To improve patients' survival rates following out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, the Government committed to improving access to automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in public spaces and reducing inequalities in access to these life-saving devices. Following the depletion of the existing AED fund, launched in in September 2023, the Government approved a further £500,000 in August 2024 to fulfil existing applications to the fund.Funding was allocated where there was the greatest need, for example: remote communities with extended ambulance response times; places with high footfall and high population densities; hotspots for cardiac arrest including sporting venues and venues with vulnerable people; and deprived areas.There are no plans to undertake further work on improving access or provide additional support for AEDs, in light of the rapid expansion of AEDs across the United Kingdom. According to the British Heart Foundation (BHF), there are now over 110,000 defibrillators in the UK registered on The Circuit, the independently operated national AED database.We recognise the important work the BHF has undertaken in identifying communities with limited access to a defibrillator. The BHF undertook this work as part of its 2025 community defibrillator fund programme.The BHF is urgently encouraging areas eligible to apply to its 2025 scheme to do so. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.bhf.org.uk/how-you-can-help/how-to-save-a-life/defibrillators/apply-for-a-free-defibrillator-for-your-communityLike the BHF, several other UK charities provide and support access to AEDs, and in some cases provide support for their maintenance and running costs. London Hearts, AED Donate, and Community Heartbeat Trust are prominent examples working to increase the availability of AEDs.

What steps he is taking to improve fracture screening.

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NICE) has published a clinical knowledge summary on osteoporosis and the prevention of fragility fractures, which is available at the following link:https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/osteoporosis-prevention-of-fragility-fractures/management/assessment/If a doctor suspects that a patient has osteoporosis, they can calculate the probability of that individual having a fracture using the Fracture Risk Assessment Tool or the Q-Fracture risk calculator. Further tests, including bone density scans, otherwise known as DEXA scans, can be performed to diagnose or assess risk of osteoporosis.Fracture liaison services are commissioned by integrated care boards, which are well-placed to make decisions according to local needs. Our 10-Year Health Plan is committed to rolling out fracture liaison services across every part of the country by 2030.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of obesity on cancer.

There is evidence that adults living with obesity have a higher risk of developing several types of cancer, according to research from Cancer Research UK, which is available at the following link:https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/obesity-weight-and-cancer/how-does-obesity-cause-cancerAdults living with obesity are at a higher risk of many cancer types. This increased risk arises from excess weight causing mechanical changes to our bodies and complex changes to our hormones and metabolism. More information is available at the following links:https://www.nature.com/articles/s41416-018-0029-6https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMsr1606602?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%3dwww.ncbi.nlm.nih.govData suggests that 6% of cancer cases in the United Kingdom are attributable to obesity and overweight, including: 34% of uterine cancer cases, or 3,000 out of 9,000; 24% of kidney cancer cases, or 2,900 out of 12,400; 17% of upper gastrointestinal cancer cases, or 5,600 out of 32,400; 11% of colorectal cancer cases​, or 4,800 out of 41,800; and 8% of breast cancer cases, or 4,600 out of 55,100. More information is available at the following link:https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/health-professional/cancer-statistics/risk/overweight-and-obesity#heading-Zero

With reference to his Department's publication entitled 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future, published on 3 July 2025, what progress his Department has made on the digital-only delivery of weight loss (a) services and (b) treatments; and if his Department will publish further details on how it plans to test innovative models for those services and treatments.

We are committed to expanding access to weight management services through digital innovation and personalised pathways that support people in a way that best meets their needs.The NHS Digital Weight Management Programme is the only nationally commissioned weight management service delivered entirely through digital means. As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, there is a clear commitment to expand access to this programme, including doubling referral volumes. The service went live in 2021, and active planning is now underway to deliver this expansion, which is expected to begin in 2026/27.For pharmacological treatments such as tirzepatide, otherwise know as Mounjaro, for the management of obesity, NHS England is working with the Office for Life Sciences and other partners to develop digitally enabled care pathways supported by behavioural interventions and which place patient safety and clinical oversight at their core. This is part of the newly launched £85 million health innovation programme, in collaboration with Eli Lilly, to test novel delivery models for weight management. These include digital platforms, pharmacy-led services, and community-based access routes. The programme is designed to improve accessibility and reduce pressure on specialist services, whilst ensuring care is safe and aligned with national clinical standards. These innovative pathways are being designed to bring together remote prescribing, personalised behavioural support, and ongoing clinical supervision, allowing patients to access high-quality care in a way that is convenient and tailored to their individual needs.

What information his Department holds on the childhood cancer survival rate in each of the last five years.

The following table shows age and gender standardised overall one-year and five-year survival rates for children between the ages of zero and 14 years old in England, with the latest data being from 2020:One-year overall survival dataYear20162017201820192020 Patients1,4151,4281,3071,3811,319 Overall Survival (%)94.392.993.093.693.3 Source: Department of Health and Social Care Five-year overall survival dataYear20162017201820192020 Patients1,4151,4221,3831,3831,370 Overall Survival (%)85.886.386.186.286.2 Source: Department of Health and Social Care

What information his Department holds on the number of people who have been diagnosed with Tinnitus in the last 12 months.

The information requested is not held centrally.

What proportion of Mounjaro (a) prescribing and (b) medication management services his Department plans to carry out digitally.

There are not currently any specific targets for the proportions of prescribing and medication management activity of tirzepatide, also known as Mounjaro, including monitoring, follow-up, and review for tirzepatide that will be carried out digitally.The National Health Service is in the process of making tirzepatide available for weight management in primary care, including developing and testing new models of care, like community-based services and digital technologies. NHS England is working with the Office for Life Sciences and other partners to develop digitally enabled care pathways, supported by behavioural interventions, with patient safety and clinical oversight at their core. These innovative pathways are being designed to bring together remote prescribing, personalised behavioural support, and ongoing clinical supervision, allowing patients to access high-quality care in a way that is convenient and tailored to their individual needs.

Whether his Department funds research on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and obesity.

The Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, has awarded £133 million into obesity research grants over the last five years. It has awarded £78 million into research grants exploring chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in the last five years.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of using Functional Electrical Stimulation devices to support people with Parkinson's disease.

The Department delivers research into Parkinson’s disease via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). While no specific assessment has been made, the NIHR is funding the STEPS II trial, which aims to determine whether Functional Electrical Stimulation improves walking speed for people with Parkinson’s disease, and which is due to complete in September 2026. Further information is available at the following link: https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/NIHR131791The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including Parkinson’s disease. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.Welcoming applications on Parkinson’s disease to all NIHR programmes enables the maximum flexibility both in terms of amount of research funding a particular area can be awarded, and the type of research which can be funded.

How many women aged between (a) 50-60 and (b) 60-70 years olds have been diagnosed with bowel cancer in the last 12 months.

Using the Rapid Cancer Registration Data between June 2024 and May 2025, the most recent 12-month period available:a total of 2,221 female patients aged 50 to 59 years old were diagnosed with bowel cancer in England; anda total of 3,380 female patients aged 60 to 69 years old were diagnosed with bowel cancer in England.Further information is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/ndrs/data/data-sets/rcrd

How many deaths there have been due to sepsis in the last 24 months.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes annual data on the number of death registrations where sepsis was mentioned anywhere on the death certificate, and on the number of death registrations where sepsis was specified as the underlying cause of death, in England and Wales. The number of death registrations where sepsis was specified as the underlying cause of death is a proportion of the total number of death registrations where sepsis was mentioned anywhere on the death certificate.According to ONS, in 2023, the number of deaths registered where sepsis was mentioned anywhere on the death certificate in England and Wales was 26,203. Of this total number, there were 4,260 deaths registered where sepsis was the underlying cause of death.ONS has not yet published the number of deaths registered where sepsis was mentioned anywhere on the death certificate for 2024. However, ONS has published data on the number of death registrations where sepsis was the underlying cause of death in England and Wales for 2024, which was 4,372.

How many women under the age of 18 have been diagnosed with ADHD in the last 12 months.

There is no single established dataset that can be used to monitor the numbers of people diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or to monitor waiting times for the assessment and diagnosis for ADHD by gender in England.For the first time, NHS England published management information on ADHD waits at a national level on 29 May 2025 as part of its ADHD data improvement plan. NHS England has also released technical guidance to integrated care boards (ICBs) to improve the recording of ADHD data, with a view to improving the quality of ADHD waits and diagnosis data as well as publishing more localised data in future. NHS England has also captured examples from ICBs who are trialling innovative ways of delivering ADHD services and is using this information to support systems to tackle ADHD waiting lists and provide support to address people’s needs.NHS England established an ADHD taskforce which brought together those with lived experience with experts from the National Health Service, education, charity, and justice sectors to get a better understanding of 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 this year, and we will carefully consider its recommendations.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of excessive alcohol consumption on levels of prevalence of cancer.

The Department is aware of the impact of excessive alcohol consumption on the prevalence of cancer and the preventable pressure it places on the National Health Service. In 2024, there were 103,000 hospital admissions due to alcohol-related cancers.Alcohol has been identified as a causal factor in more than 200 medical conditions, including mouth, throat, stomach, liver, and breast cancers. The Government is committed to reversing the trend on alcohol-specific deaths and to shortening the amount of time people spend in ill-health due to alcohol-related harm.

What steps he is taking to improve levels of early diagnoses of dementia.

We are committed to recovering the dementia diagnosis rate (DDR) to the national ambition of 66.7%. The estimated DDR for patients aged 65 years old and over at the end of July 2025 was 66.1%. The rate is an increase of 0.3% compared to the 65.8% in June 2025. This is an overall increase from March 2020 due to sustained recovery efforts.The Government’s Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Goals programme has already invested £13 million into a range of biomarker innovation projects which include a broad range of biomarker technologies, ranging from an artificial intelligence tool designed to improve the accuracy of blood tests for dementia, to using retinal scans to detect early-onset dementia decades before symptoms. Some of these innovations could support improved diagnosis in the future, if validated for clinical use.We will also deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia, in order to deliver rapid and significant improvements in the quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.The Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia will seek to reduce unwarranted variation and narrow inequality for those living with dementia and will also set national standards for dementia care and redirect National Health Service priorities to provide the best possible care and support.

If he will take steps to ensure that patient data is seamlessly shared between the NHS in (a) England and (b) the devolved Administrations.

The UK Government is committed to ensuring that people across the United Kingdom live more independent, healthier lives for longer, and will continue to work closely with the Devolved Administrations as needed to achieve this. That is why we will be engaging in the future with the Devolved Administrations on the implications of the forthcoming Health Bill, and the single patient record, to support appropriate cross-border referrals, and appropriate information sharing to inform good decision-making, support healthcare, and minimise risk to patients.

How many confirmed cases of cholera there have been in the UK in the last 10 years.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) holds data on cholera cases diagnosed in the United Kingdom by the Gastrointestinal Bacteria Reference Unit.The number of people with cholera in the UK is published as part of the UKHSA’s Travel-associated infection report. The latest report, published in August 2025, and previous reports, can be found at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/travel-associated-infectionsThere have been 132 diagnosed cases of cholera in the UK between 2015 and June 2025. All cases have been linked with travel outside the UK. The following table shows the number of confirmed cases of cholera per year:YearTotal number of confirmed cases20151520161620171520181620191520202202122022202023142024920258Note: data is available to 30 June 2025.

What steps he is taking to (a) improve early diagnosis of glaucoma and (b) monitoring of deterioration of the condition in patients.

Regular sight tests play a crucial role in the early detection of glaucoma, which is often symptomless in the early stages. Free National Health Service sight tests are available for many, including individuals diagnosed with glaucoma or aged 40 years old and over with a close family history of glaucoma. Over 13 million free NHS sight tests were provided to eligible groups in 2024/25.Patients with suspected glaucoma will be referred for further investigation and any clinically necessary treatment. We also recognise the importance of glaucoma monitoring which can delay its progression. Integrated care boards can commission enhanced eye care services from high street optical practices, including glaucoma monitoring.NHS England has been testing how IT connectivity between primary and secondary eye care services and the development of a single point of access, could improve the referral and triage of patients, reduce unnecessary referrals and support more patients being managed in the community to help create capacity within hospital eye services.