Written questions by Wilkinson.

What steps his Department is taking to reduce the time spent by pharmacists trying to source medications during shortages.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of staff being unable to secure indefinite leave to remain due to salary thresholds on the workforce in the NHS.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment his Department has made of the amount of time spent by pharmacists trying to source medications during shortages.

Awaiting answer.

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of closures of community pharmacies on the level of medication supplies.

Awaiting answer.

What estimate his Department has made of the number of NHS staff whose current salaries fall below the threshold required for indefinite leave to remain.

Awaiting answer.

What discussions his Department has had with NHS Employers on pay adjustments to support visa holders in meeting indefinite leave to remain salary thresholds.

Awaiting answer.

What steps is the Government taking to ensure that pharmacies are sustainably funded for the increasing costs and staff time involved in sourcing medicines during supply shortages.

Awaiting answer.

What steps his Department is taking to prevent the closure of community pharmacies facing sustained financial pressures and medication supply issues.

Awaiting answer.

How many NHS workers have salaries within £500 of the salary threshold required for indefinite leave to remain.

Awaiting answer.

How many NHS employees with Skilled Worker visas will not meet the salary threshold for indefinite leave to remain at their current pay levels at the point of eligibility.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of social care support available to those diagnosed with Functional Neurological Disorder.

In October 2025, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published guidance on rehabilitation for chronic neurological disorders, including acquired brain injury, with the reference code NG252. This guidance includes functional neurological disorder (FND) within its scope.NHS England’s updated Specialised Neurology Service Specification, published in August 2025, includes specific reference to FND. It states that all specialised neurology centres must include access to treatment services for FND. Service specifications are important in clearly defining the standards of care expected from organisations funded by NHS England to provide specialised care.There are a number of other national-level initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with neurological conditions, including FND, such as the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and the recently completed Neurology Transformation Programme, which aim to improve care for people by reducing variation and delivering care more equitably across England.Local authorities are best placed to understand and plan for the needs of their population, which is why, under the Care Act 2014, they are tasked with the duty to shape their care markets to meet the diverse needs of all local people. In doing so, they should use local population and market data to inform commissioning decisions and encourage a wide range of service provision to ensure that people have a choice of appropriate and high-quality care services in their local area, including for conditions such as FND.

What steps his Department is taking to raise awareness of Functional Neurological Disorder.

In October 2025, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published guidance on rehabilitation for chronic neurological disorders, including acquired brain injury, with the reference code NG252. This guidance includes functional neurological disorder (FND) within its scope.NHS England’s updated Specialised Neurology Service Specification, published in August 2025, includes specific reference to FND. It states that all specialised neurology centres must include access to treatment services for FND. Service specifications are important in clearly defining the standards of care expected from organisations funded by NHS England to provide specialised care.There are a number of other national-level initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with neurological conditions, including FND, such as the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology and the recently completed Neurology Transformation Programme, which aim to improve care for people by reducing variation and delivering care more equitably across England.Local authorities are best placed to understand and plan for the needs of their population, which is why, under the Care Act 2014, they are tasked with the duty to shape their care markets to meet the diverse needs of all local people. In doing so, they should use local population and market data to inform commissioning decisions and encourage a wide range of service provision to ensure that people have a choice of appropriate and high-quality care services in their local area, including for conditions such as FND.

What data his Department holds on the (i) number and (ii) adequacy of provision of paediatric post-mortem specialists in (a) Gloucestershire, (b) the South West and (c) England.

The Department does not hold information on the number of paediatric post mortem specialists either across England or in the South West or Gloucestershire regions.NHS England does publish monthly information on the number of staff employed in the National Health Service in England, including information on the grade and specialty of NHS doctors. This includes information on the number of doctors working in the specialty of pathology as well as the sub-specialty of paediatric and perinatal pathology. This is not though the same as those able to provide paediatric post mortems. The relevant information can be found in the file ‘NHS HCHS Workforce Statistics, Trusts and core organisations – data tables’ in each monthly publication, at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-workforce-statisticsNHS England established a national programme in late 2022 to address paediatric and perinatal pathologist workforce challenges and has undertaken significant work in relation to workforce funding, training, and incentives. This has included making additional funding available to support training posts in areas where there have been interested candidates but no training post available and changes to the national training course and examination structure. The number of training posts has increased across several recruitment rounds and the perinatal and paediatric training pathway will be at a full complement of 16 training posts from February 2026.

What recent assessment has been made on the relationship between ADHD and Substance Use Disorders.

Studies have shown that people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at increased risk of alcohol use disorder. One study found that impulsive decision making was causal, and that ADHD was present in up to 20% of people seeking treatment for alcohol use disorder. The recently published Clinical Guidelines for Alcohol Treatment set out several steps that treatment providers should take to assist those with ADHD to access alcohol treatment and tailor treatment interventions, including discussing and making reasonable adjustments based on each person's individual needs, offering flexibility, providing information in the most appropriate way, and collaborative personalised care plans.It is the responsibility of integrated care boards in England to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including providing access to ADHD assessment and support, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.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. The final report was published on 6 November 2025. The work of the independent ADHD Taskforce highlighted the need for coordinated action across health, education, and public services to reform ADHD services and support.My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced on 4 December 2025 the launch of an Independent Review into Prevalence and Support for Mental Health Conditions, ADHD and Autism.The independent review will build directly on the evidence and recommendations of the ADHD Taskforce. The taskforce’s report provides a strong, evidence‑based foundation, and the review will consider its findings in full to ensure conclusions are aligned and complementary. In the meantime, we are working with NHS England to deliver some of the taskforce’s recommendations such as on data improvement, enhancing Mental Health Support Teams in Schools, improved commissioning, and better collaboration between mental health and primary care services.

Whether it is his policy that integrated care board boundaries should match mayoral combined authority boundaries.

It remains the Government’s ambition for integrated care boards (ICBs) to be coterminous with one or more strategic authorities wherever feasible, a commitment made in the English devolution white paper and reaffirmed in our 10-Year Health Plan.This summer as local government reform progresses, the Department of Health and Social Care will work closely with NHS England and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to decide any further ICB mergers and boundary changes.

What plans his Department has made to address the health needs of those classified with severe ME/CFS while exploring the specialised very severe ME/CFS service.

The decision will be announced in due course. At this stage, officials from the Department and NHS England have been working carefully through the steps needed to make a decision on the prescription of a specialised service for very severe myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, is responsible for a decision on the prescribing of specialised services, which requires consultation with NHS England.The Department is also developing a template service specification for mild and moderate ME/CFS, which also contains references to severe ME/CFS. Further work will need to be undertaken to strengthen support for people with severe ME/CFS, reflecting that people may move between moderate and severe. Future iterations of this document will build on these ongoing considerations and emerging insights.To support healthcare professionals in the diagnosis and management of ME/CFS, the Department has worked with NHS England to develop an e-learning programme on ME/CFS for healthcare professionals, with the aim of supporting staff to be able to provide better care and improve patient outcomes. The final module of this e-learning programme is focussed on improving understanding of severe ME/CFS in particular. All three sessions of the e-learning programme are now available at the following link:https://learninghub.nhs.uk/catalogue/mecfselearning?nodeId=7288

When his Department's proposed timeline is for announcing its decision on the prescription of a specialised service for Very Severe ME/CFS.

The decision will be announced in due course. At this stage, officials from the Department and NHS England have been working carefully through the steps needed to make a decision on the prescription of a specialised service for very severe myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, is responsible for a decision on the prescribing of specialised services, which requires consultation with NHS England.The Department is also developing a template service specification for mild and moderate ME/CFS, which also contains references to severe ME/CFS. Further work will need to be undertaken to strengthen support for people with severe ME/CFS, reflecting that people may move between moderate and severe. Future iterations of this document will build on these ongoing considerations and emerging insights.To support healthcare professionals in the diagnosis and management of ME/CFS, the Department has worked with NHS England to develop an e-learning programme on ME/CFS for healthcare professionals, with the aim of supporting staff to be able to provide better care and improve patient outcomes. The final module of this e-learning programme is focussed on improving understanding of severe ME/CFS in particular. All three sessions of the e-learning programme are now available at the following link:https://learninghub.nhs.uk/catalogue/mecfselearning?nodeId=7288

What progress the MRS has made in delivering mechanistic research into ME/CFS.

We do not know what ‘MRS’ refers to in this context. The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). A limited amount of mechanistic research is funded through the NIHR, but the majority of mechanistic research is funded through the Medical Research Council (MRC), a UK Research and Innovation Council sponsored by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. Mechanistic research into myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome, is within the remit of the MRC.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of including medication for the treatment of Parkinson's disease in the medical exemption scheme.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Broxtowe on 20 January 2026 to Question 106198.

Whether he plans to review the adequacy of the GP Contract at reflecting (a) increases in demand, (b) inflation and (c) additional responsibilities.

General practices (GPs) are valued independent contractors who provide over £13 billion worth of National Health Services. Every year we consult with the profession about what services GPs provide, and the money providers are entitled to in return under their contract, taking into account demand and the cost of delivering services. We have started the 2026/27 GP Contract consultation, and we look forward to listening to a range of stakeholders to help strengthen policy making, ensuring that GPs work for staff and patients.