Written questions by Simons.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of support for people who experience migraines; and whether he plans to provide additional support.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guideline, Headaches: Diagnosis and management of headaches in young people and adults, updated in December 2021, sets out best practice for healthcare professionals in the care, treatment, and support of people who suffer from headaches, including migraines. It aims to improve the recognition and management of headaches and migraines. At the national level, there are a number of initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with migraines, including the Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) Programme for Neurology and the RightCare Headache and Migraine Toolkit. The GIRFT Programme published a National Speciality Report, which makes several recommendations in relation to improving recognition and diagnosis of migraines by general practitioners. Additionally, the RightCare Headache and Migraine Toolkit sets out key priorities for improving care for patients with migraines, which includes correct identification and diagnosis of headache disorders. The Royal College of General Practitioners has developed two e-learning modules about migraines and cluster headaches, which aim to raise awareness amongst primary care clinicians about the different types of migraine and their associated symptoms, and how to differentiate.Over the last four years, a new class of drugs, calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) inhibitors, has been made available on the National Health Service for the prevention and treatment of episodic and chronic migraines. On 15 May 2024, Atogepant became the latest CGRP inhibitor for which the NICE has published guidance. The NICE recommended Atogepant for use as a preventive medication for the treatment of migraines on the NHS in England.

Whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the report by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Hormone Pregnancy Tests, published in March 2024.

We are hugely sympathetic to the families who believe that they or their children have suffered because of using hormone pregnancy tests (HPTs). The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, together with the wider Government, have committed to review any new scientific evidence which comes to light since the conclusions of the 2017 independent Expert Working Group (EWG), convened by the Commission on Human Medicines. In line with this commitment, we will be seeking independent expert advice on Professor Danielsson’s publication from the Commission on Human Medicines in due course.On the other recommendation in the HPT All Party Parliamentary Group February 2024 report, we currently have no plans to set up an independent review to examine the findings of the EWG. In the interests of transparency, all evidence collected, and papers considered by the EWG, were published in 2018, along with full minutes of its discussions. Details of conflicts of interests and how these were managed were also published.