Written questions by Fenton-Glynn.

What assessment the Department has made of the potential impact of the high ratio of legal costs to damages in low value clinical negligence claims, as highlighted by the NAO, and what steps it is taking to reduce these costs.

The rising costs of clinical negligence claims against the National Health Service in England are of great concern to the Government. Costs have more than doubled in the last ten years and are forecast to continue rising, putting further pressure on NHS finances.Although forecasts remain uncertain, it is likely that the costs of clinical negligence will continue to grow substantially. As the question describes, the Government Actuary’s Department forecasts that annual payments for compensation and legal costs will increase from £3.1 billion in 2024/25 to £4.1 billion by 2029/30.As announced in the 10-Year Health Plan for England, David Lock KC is providing expert policy advice on the rising costs of clinical negligence and how we can improve patients’ experience of claims. That work is ongoing, following initial advice to ministers and the recent National Audit Office and Public Accounts Committee reports.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the system led by the General Medical Council and the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service.

The General Medical Council (GMC) is independent of Government, directly accountable to Parliament and responsible for operational matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties. The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service is a statutory committee of the GMC. The United Kingdom's model of healthcare professional regulation is founded on the principle of regulators operating independently from the Government.The Department of Health and Social Care monitors how regulators perform their duties and there are a range of mechanisms to ensure accountability. The GMC is accountable to the devolved governments. The Health and Social Care Committee and the Health and Care Select Committee of the Scottish Parliament can hold hearings with the GMC and scrutinise its activity. The GMC has a duty to publish an annual report alongside a statistical report and a strategic plan which are laid before each house of Parliament, thereby enabling scrutiny by peers and MPs.The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA) also oversees all health and care regulators, including the GMC, and carries out regular performance reviews to evaluate their performance. The PSA may also escalate serious or intractable concerns to others, including the Government and/or Parliament. The GMC met all 18 Standards of Good Regulation in the PSA’s 2025 Performance Review.The Privy Council has default powers which can be used if it considers that the GMC has failed to carry out its functions in relation to the professions it currently regulates.

Whether his Department plans to conduct a review of the threshold for erasure in cases where doctors are accused of rape or sexual assault.

The Government is committed to modernising the regulatory frameworks for all healthcare professionals in the United Kingdom.As a first step, we aim to consult on secondary legislation to modernise the General Medical Council’s (GMC) regulatory framework shortly and to lay this legislation before Parliament this year.As part of the consultation, we will be consulting on the criminal offences, which if convicted of, will lead to the automatic removal of a registrant from the GMC’s register.

What information his Department holds on the reason for the 45% increase in GP negligence claims between financial years 2023/24 and 2024/25; and whether his Department is taking steps to help reduce this increase.

NHS Resolution manages clinical negligence and other claims against the National Health Service in England.NHS Resolution’s Annual Reports and Accounts data states that claims relating to general practice services under the Clinical Negligence Scheme for General Practice increased from 2,382 in 2023/24 to 2,575 in 2024/25, which is an 8% increase. This is in line with NHS Resolution’s expectations of a maturing scheme that covers clinical negligence liabilities in relation to incidents that occurred on or after 1 April 2019. Claims under the Existing Liabilities Scheme for General Practice (ELSGP), covering incidents before April 2019, fell by 32% over the same period, from 502 to 341.The continued reduction in ELSGP claims is in line with NHS Resolution’s expectations. The scheme provides indemnity cover in respect of liabilities incurred before 1 April 2019 and so NHS Resolution expects numbers to reduce over time as fewer new claims for incidents before that date are reported. Reported numbers in 2021/22 were particularly high due to the bulk migration of claims into the scheme from medical defence organisations.

What steps his Department is taking to help (a) improve patient safety in the NHS and (b) reduce clinical negligence claims.

The rising costs of clinical negligence claims against the National Health Service in England are of great concern to the Government. Costs have more than doubled in the last ten years and are forecast to continue rising, putting further pressure on NHS finances.As announced in the 10-Year Health Plan for England, David Lock KC is providing expert policy advice on the rising costs of clinical negligence and how we can improve patients’ experience of claims. That work is ongoing, following initial advice to ministers and the recent National Audit Office and Public Accounts Committee reports.Over recent years, the NHS and the Department of Health and Social Care have taken significant steps forward to address the rising costs of clinical negligence and to improve patient safety, including by implementing significant programmes under the NHS Patient Safety Strategy, published 2019. The strategy is now achieving its aim of saving an extra 1,000 lives per year and £100 million in care costs per year.

What assessment his Department has made of the long‑term outcomes of children who receive CAMHS mental health support; and how many of these recipients subsequently use adult mental health services.

The Department recognises the importance of understanding both the outcomes of children and young people who receive support from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, and their transition into adult services where ongoing care is required. NHS England publishes outcomes data for children and young people receiving National Health Service funded mental health support, based on routine outcome measures collected at the start and end of treatment. However, coverage of paired outcome measures remains incomplete, and the published statistics are not fully representative of all those in receipt of care. We are working with NHS England to improve the completeness and quality of outcomes data to strengthen our understanding of the impact of services. We remain committed to improving transitions between children and adult mental health services so that young people continue to receive appropriate support as they move into adulthood.

Whether his Department is taking steps to establish a national framework for collecting and sharing data on the causes of clinical negligence.

NHS Resolution manages clinical negligence and other claims against the National Health Service in England.NHS Resolution recognises the importance of sharing its data to provide a full picture of potential harm. NHS Resolution’s Safety and Learning Team works with its members to interpret and triangulate claims data with other insights to inform local patient safety plans. It also publishes reports to highlight causes of harm to improve safety including from maternity claims.

What assessment the Department has made of the potential causes of recent trends in levels of crisis‑level mental health referrals among children.

To understand the rises in prevalence and demand on mental health services, the Government has launched an independent review into mental health conditions, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and autism. The review will examine the evidence around what is driving rising demand, including determining which trends reflect real increases in disorder, which reflect changes in awareness or access, and which are artefacts of measurement or definition.The review will look at prevalence, early intervention, and treatment, and the current challenges facing clinical services. It will also explore the extent to which diagnosis, medicalisation, and treatment improve outcomes. In addition, the review will look beyond the National Health Service to examine data across education, employment, housing, and digital culture to understand how they interact and where intervention can make the greatest difference.

What steps he is taking to improve whistleblowing protections for NHS staff who (a) experience and (b) witness sexual misconduct by colleagues.

The Employment Rights Act 1996 aims to protect all workers, including National Health Service staff, against unfair dismissal and detriment on the basis that they have made a ‘protected disclosure’. Where detriment occurs, workers can seek remedy through an employment tribunal. In relation to sexual misconduct, the Employment Rights Act 2025 amends the Employment Rights Act 1996 to make clear that workers who ‘blow the whistle’ on sexual harassment can benefit from whistleblowing protections against detriment and unfair dismissal. This will provide welcome clarity for workers and employers. It may also encourage more workers to speak up about sexual harassment in the public interest by using whistleblowing routes. The measure will commence on 6 April 2026.In addition to legal protections, there is a range of support in place for NHS workers who wish to report concerns. This includes a network of over 1,300 local Freedom to Speak Up Guardians, who provide an alternative route to support workers to speak up about something in their organisation, a National Freedom to Speak Up policy, providing minimum standards for local NHS speaking up policies, and support from independent organisations such as Speak Up Direct, which provides NHS and social care workers with impartial advice and support.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of a) the COVID-19 Pandemic and b) social media on the mental wellbeing of children; and what steps his Department is taking to help mitigate these impacts.

The Government welcomes the COVID-19 Inquiry’s investigations and is committed to learning lessons from the pandemic, including those relating to the potential impact on children’s mental health and wellbeing. We continue to respond openly and transparently to the inquiry’s requests and reports, and will be paying close attention to the Module 8 report, Children and Young People, and the Module 10 report, Impact on Society, which will cover mental health and wellbeing. Whilst we wait for these reports, the Department is already embedding mental health considerations into pandemic preparedness planning.In 2019, the UK Chief Medical Officers published a commentary on the findings of a systematic review on screen-based activities and children’s mental health. They found an association between screen-based activities and mental health but could not establish causality. The commentary can be accessed at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5c5b1510e5274a316cee5be8/UK_CMO_commentary_on_screentime_and_social_media_map_of_reviews.pdfOn 2 March 2026, the Government published a consultation on how to ensure children have a healthy relationship with devices, introduce rapid trials on measures to reduce screentime and limit access at night, and produce evidence-informed screentime guidance for parents of children aged five to 16 years old. The consultation can be accessed at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/growing-up-in-the-online-world-a-national-consultation

Innovation and Technology, what steps is the Government taking to protect adults from harmful pornographic content online.

The Online Safety Act’s illegal content safety duties cover illegal extreme pornographic content; ensuring companies put in place safety measures which mitigate and manage risks. Providers must implement safety by design measures to mitigate illegal activity, reduce the risk of users carrying out illegal activity, and take down illegal content when it appears.

Whether his Department plans to require the (a) General Medical Council and (b) Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service to publish annual data on sexual misconduct allegations and outcomes.

The General Medical Council (GMC) is independent of the Government, is directly accountable to Parliament, and is responsible for operational matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties. The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) is a statutory committee of the GMC. The United Kingdom’s model of healthcare professional regulation is founded on the principle of regulators operating independently from the Government.At the recent Health and Social Care Committee in January, questions were raised about the GMC’s fitness to practise procedures, particularly in relation to sexual misconduct cases. The GMC stated that sexual misconduct is unacceptable and that it had done a lot of work recently to tighten its guidance and expectations of registrants, setting out a new duty for them and adding a new duty for those who witness such behaviour. The GMC produces annual reports on its Fitness to Practise statistics. The GMC noted that the next report was due in July and committed to thinking about what it can publish in future with the aim to be as transparent as it can.The Department takes cases concerning sexual assault and rape by healthcare professionals very seriously.In line with the Ministerial Code, details of all ministerial meetings, including those with the GMC, are published quarterly on GOV.UK at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministerial-gifts-hospitality-overseas-travel-and-meetings

Whether he has held discussions with the (a) General Medical Council and (b) Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service on the erasure and suspension rates in cases involving allegations of sexual assault and rape.

The General Medical Council (GMC) is independent of the Government, is directly accountable to Parliament, and is responsible for operational matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties. The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) is a statutory committee of the GMC. The United Kingdom’s model of healthcare professional regulation is founded on the principle of regulators operating independently from the Government.At the recent Health and Social Care Committee in January, questions were raised about the GMC’s fitness to practise procedures, particularly in relation to sexual misconduct cases. The GMC stated that sexual misconduct is unacceptable and that it had done a lot of work recently to tighten its guidance and expectations of registrants, setting out a new duty for them and adding a new duty for those who witness such behaviour. The GMC produces annual reports on its Fitness to Practise statistics. The GMC noted that the next report was due in July and committed to thinking about what it can publish in future with the aim to be as transparent as it can.The Department takes cases concerning sexual assault and rape by healthcare professionals very seriously.In line with the Ministerial Code, details of all ministerial meetings, including those with the GMC, are published quarterly on GOV.UK at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministerial-gifts-hospitality-overseas-travel-and-meetings

What assessment his Department has made of barriers to reporting sexual misconduct by doctors, including for patients and NHS staff.

We acknowledge that the confidence to report sexual misconduct in the National Health Service remains a systemic challenge that is influenced by a range of factors.For example, NHS staff often do not wish to subject themselves to a formal employment process or are concerned about reprisals from other members of staff or believe they may not be taken seriously by their manager and organisation.All trusts and integrated care boards (ICBs) have signed up to the NHS Sexual Safety Charter, which is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/sexual-safety-in-healthcare-organisational-charter/The principles underpinning the charter contribute to improving workplace sexual safety culture, which should empower more staff to speak up.In 2024, NHS England produced a national policy framework for sexual misconduct. The framework recommends routes through which reports can be made including Freedom to Speak Up Guardians, line managers, human resources, or via an anonymous reporting form. Every trust and ICB now has a policy in place or is in the process of adopting one, and 76% have implemented anonymous reporting for staff.The Patient Advice and Liaison service and complaints system provide routes for patients and the public to report incidents of sexual misconduct.In December 2025, NHS England wrote to NHS trusts and ICBs setting out further actions to take to ensure the sexual safety of both patients and staff. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/an-update-on-actions-to-prevent-sexual-misconduct-in-the-nhs/

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of staffing levels and burnout on incidents of avoidable harm in NHS Trusts.

The responsibility for determining and reviewing staffing levels remains with National Health Service clinical and other leaders at a local level, responding to local needs, supported by guidelines by national and professional bodies and overseen and regulated by the Care Quality Commission.The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan which will have a focus on supporting our hardworking and dedicated healthcare professionals. This includes the development of a new set of staff standards for modern employment. We will also roll out Staff Treatment Hubs to ensure staff have access to high quality support for occupational health.NHS organisations have a responsibility to create supportive working environments for staff, ensuring they have the conditions they need to thrive, including access to high quality health and wellbeing support.On staff burnout, relevant questions have been incorporated into the annual NHS National Staff Survey. The Copenhagen Burnout index has been included in the annual survey since 2021, providing a national, regional, and organisational view of burnout over five years. Organisations can use this information to triangulate with other data sets, including on patient safety incidents.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment has his Department made of the potential merits of moderating online porn companies which promote harmful content.

The Online Safety Act’s illegal content safety duties cover illegal extreme pornographic content, ensuring companies put in place safety measures which mitigate and manage risks. Providers must implement safety by design measures to mitigate illegal activity, reduce the risk of users carrying out illegal activity, and take down illegal content when it appears.

When he plans to publish the findings of the statutory review of the Pubs Code.

The third statutory review covering the period 1 April 2022 – 31 March 2025 is in progress and the government’s report will be published as soon as practicable. My officials are currently analysing the evidence collected from last year’s call for evidence and from other publicly available sources. Stakeholder responses to the call for evidence have greatly assisted my officials in identifying emerging themes and are further informing the review’s content. I am grateful for the helpful input provided by stakeholders and will continue to engage with them in taking forward the conclusions to the review.

What recent assessment has he made of the adequacy of Government support for tied pubs.

Pubs are central to local life, which is why we’ve delivered permanent business‑rates cuts for hospitality, retail and leisure businesses and are providing £4.3bn to shield ratepayers from bill increases following the revaluation. On top of this support, the Chancellor announced a 15% reduction in pubs’ new business‑rates bills from April, and their bills will be frozen for two years. Pubs will pay 8% less in business rates in 2029 than they do right now. We are also pressing ahead with further licensing and planning reforms to help pubs, whilst providing £10 million over the next three years that could support over 1000 pubs diversify. For tied pubs, the Government is conducting a statutory review into the operation of the Pubs Code and the Performance of the Pubs Code Adjudicator.

What steps his Department is taking to protect natural carbon sinks.

Nature-based solutions are fundamental to achieving net zero and biodiversity recovery. We are investing £7 billion in nature’s recovery, including £816 million for tree planting and £85 million on improving and restoring our peat, in order to protect and enhance natural carbon sinks.

Innovation and Technology, whether she plans to extend Ofcom’s Automatic Compensation Scheme to cover prolonged mobile network outages.

Telecoms consumers should rightly expect to have access to reliable and affordable connectivity no matter where they live, work or travel.We have engaged with providers to ensure customers are eligible for compensation and are assessing options to proactively engage affected customers. While we have no current plans to extend regulatory requirements to include service outages, we and Ofcom keep the regulatory framework under review.Ofcom is responsible for the Automatic Compensation Scheme and so any decision to extend the scheme would be for them. Ofcom also monitors trends in complaints. Operators are required to report significant incidents to Ofcom, who have powers to investigate, rectify and penalise communications providers for any infringement of their duties to ensure their network and services remain available.