Written questions by Whittome.

What steps his Department is taking to reduce waiting times for heart health pathways.

The latest data, from July 2025, shows that 61.6% of waits for cardiology services are within 18 weeks, which is a 1.7% improvement on the same month from the previous year. While this shows progress, we know there is more to do to reduce waiting times for heart health pathways. That is why, along with our commitment to returning to the 92% referral-to-treatment standard for elective care by March 2029, the Elective Reform Plan commits to significant elective reform in cardiology.Cardiology is one of five priority specialties identified for significant elective reform in the Elective Reform Plan. Reforms will include increasing specialist cardiology input earlier in patient care pathways and developing standard and efficient care pathways for common cardiology symptoms. It also includes improving access to cardiac diagnostic tests through implementing more ‘straight-to-test’ pathways, where a general practitioner can refer a patient directly to secondary care for a test. This can reduce unnecessary outpatient appointments and improve waiting times even further for patients across England.These improvements to common cardiology pathways help standardise patient care, reduce inequalities, and improve access to care, especially in the early stages of heart health pathways for patients across England.

What steps he is taking to ensure the safe disposal of needles in the context of the growing use of GLP-1 medicines; whether his Department has had discussions with pharmaceutical companies about meeting the costs of this disposal.

It is important for sharps to be disposed of safely, to avoid risk of accidental needle-stick injuries to pharmacy or general practice staff, waste management operatives, and other members of the public. All sharps should be disposed in sharps bins, which can be obtained on prescription or purchased. Local authorities are obliged to collect clinical waste, including sharps bins, from householders upon request. Under section 45(3)(b) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 they may make a reasonable charge for this service.The Department has had no discussions with the pharmaceutical industry about meeting the cost of this disposal.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure adequate mental health support is provided to Physician Associates following the publication of the Leng Review.

The health and wellbeing of all National Health Service staff is hugely important. Following the publication of the Leng Review, NHS England has written to NHS trusts, integrated care boards, and primary care networks reiterating their responsibilities to their staff as employers, including treating them with compassion and providing pastoral support where required. Importantly, it has also written directly to the staff most affected by the recommendations, setting out where they can find support if required. Employers across the NHS have their own arrangements in place in line with their duty of care for supporting their staff, including occupational health provision, employee support programmes, and board level scrutiny through health and wellbeing guardians.

What steps he is taking to (a) improve awareness and understanding of Progressive Supranuclear Palsy among healthcare professionals across all regions of England, and (b) ensure earlier and more accurate diagnosis of the condition.

Under the UK Rare Diseases Framework, the Government is committed to improving the lives of those living with rare diseases, such as progressive supranuclear palsy. This includes helping patients get a final diagnosis faster and increasing awareness of rare diseases among healthcare professionals.With over 7,000 rare diseases, it is not possible for healthcare professionals to receive comprehensive training on every condition. It is therefore important that they are aware of rare diseases more broadly and are alert to considering them. The 2025 England Rare Diseases Action Plan updates on progress to increase awareness of rare diseases among healthcare professionals, including:- Launching new resources on the innovative digital educational resource, GeNotes;- Developing a communication skills resource to aid healthcare professionals in having sensitive conversations to ensure the patient feels supported in their diagnosis of a rare condition; and- Developing a range of training and educational resources on rare diseases to include rare diseases in UK health professional education and training frameworks.Another priority of the Framework is to help patients get a final diagnosis faster. Progress has been made over the last year, including research commissioned to better understand what causes delays in diagnosis, the Generation Study to pilot whole genome sequencing of newborns in the NHS being launched, and the work of the NHS Genomic Medicine Service.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing free homecare.

Local authorities (LAs) have the power to charge for care, and it is for them to decide whether to do so. Two LAs in England currently offer free home care to their residents.Where LAs do choose to charge for care, they must do so in accordance with the Care Act 2014 and the Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014, and they must act under the Care and Support Statutory guidance.We have launched an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service.The commission, which began work in April 2025, will be comprehensive and will build on the expert proposals of other reviews, including that of Sir Andrew Dilnot into care funding and support. It will be broader and wider than ever before, asking essential questions about the shape and future of the social care sector, including what long-term and sustainable funding solutions should look like.

What progress his Department has made in implementing the NHS Accessible Information Standard.

Since 2016, all National Health Service organisations and publicly funded social care providers are expected to meet the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), which details the recommended approach to supporting the information and communication support needs of patients and carers with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss, including deaf people.NHS England has been undertaking a review of the AIS to help ensure that the communication needs of people with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss are met in health and care provision. A self-assessment framework has been developed to support providers of NHS and social care services to measure their performance against the AIS, and to develop improvement action plans to address gaps in implementation.A revised AIS will be published in due course. In the meantime, the current AIS remains in force, and therefore there should be no gap in provision for people using services. NHS England is working to support implementation of the AIS with awareness raising, communication, and engagement, and with a review of the current e-learning modules on the AIS. The intention is to ensure that staff and organisations in the NHS are aware of the AIS and the importance of meeting the information and communication needs of disabled people using services.

What assessment he has made of the merits of continuing opt-out testing of Hepatitis (a) B and (b) C in Nottingham University Hospitals’ Emergency Department.

The emergency department opt-out testing programme will continue to test individuals for bloodborne viruses, including HIV and viral hepatitis, in line with committed funding plans. The Government is committed to reducing the incidence of viral hepatitis, including by reducing the number of people living with the condition without a diagnosis. NHS England is currently reviewing its budgetary position, with a view to determining whether funding can be made available to extend the provision of opt out testing for viral hepatitis, particularly for those sites whose committed funding will end during 2025. This includes the Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, and therefore NHS England is engaged in discussions with the trust on this important programme.

With reference to the Written Statement of 5 December 2024 on Plan for Change: Milestones for mission-led government, HCWS285 and the Chapter on An NHs Fit for the Future, if he will publish plans to reduce waiting times for mental health services.

Our 10-Year Health Plan will inform the future vision and delivery plan for mental health services in England. Earlier intervention remains a key focus of the plan, with the aim of reducing pressure on mental health services.The Government is delivering new and innovative models of care in the community. We have launched six neighbourhood adult mental health centres that are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to bring together community, crisis, and inpatient care.NHS England’s Planning Guidance for 2025/26 makes clear that for this year, to support reform and improvements, we expect all providers to reduce the variation in children and young people accessing services and improve productivity.We are also improving data quality so we can support providers in understanding demand across their areas. Since July 2023, NHS England has included waiting time metrics for referrals to urgent and community-based mental health services in its monthly mental health statistics publication, to help services target the longest waits.

What steps he is taking to ensure that people living in Nottingham East constituency have access to NHS dentistry when they need it.

The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Nottingham East constituency, this is the NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire ICB. ICBs have been asked to start making extra urgent dental appointments available from April 2025. The Nottingham and Nottinghamshire ICB is expected to deliver 24,360 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.ICBs have started to advertise posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see up to 240 dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years. As of 10 April 2025, in England, there are 53 dentists in post with a further 44 dentists who have been recruited but are yet to start in post. Another 256 posts are currently advertised.

What steps he is taking to ensure that patients referred for a potential diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease are seen by a neurologist within 18 weeks.

The Government is committed to delivering the National Health Service constitutional standard for 92% of patients to wait no longer than 18 weeks from Referral to Treatment by March 2029, a standard which has not been met consistently since September 2015. This includes patients waiting for elective treatment on neurological pathways.We have taken our first step towards delivering this commitment goal by exceeding our pledge to deliver an extra two million operations, scans, and appointments in our first year in office, having now delivered over three million more appointments.The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the specific productivity and reform efforts needed to return to the constitutional standard.The Getting It Right First Time programme, which provides tailored regional and national support to providers, also has a neurology specific Further Faster workstream. This is a clinically led initiative supporting peer to peer learning and improvement. A neurology 'handbook' and checklist with benchmarked data and case studies has been published and there are regular neurology online sessions for clinical and operational leads.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that people diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease have access to (a) appropriate information, (b) treatment options and (c) a multidisciplinary care team.

There are 27 specialised neurological treatment centres across the National Health Service in England, which provide access to neurological multidisciplinary teams to ensure that patients with Parkinson’s disease can receive specialised treatment and support, according to their needs.Most services for long-term conditions are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs), including for Parkinson’s. It is the responsibility of ICBs, working with clinicians, service users, and patient groups, to develop local services and care pathways that are convenient and that meet patients’ needs.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) publishes guidance on the diagnosis and treatment of long-term conditions for use by healthcare professionals and commissioners. The NICE published Parkinson’s disease in adults guidance in July 2017, which is available at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng71/chapter/recommendationsThe NICE guidance includes that communication with people with Parkinson's disease should aim towards empowering them to participate in judgements and choices about their own care, and individually tailored and consistent communication from the professionals involved.We have launched a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the NHS and improve care for people with long-term conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease. A central and core part of the 10-Year Health Plan will be our workforce and how we ensure we train and provide the staff, technology, and infrastructure the NHS needs to make it more accessible, proactive, and tailored for patients.

What steps his Department is taking to increase the (a) recruitment of nurses and (b) availability of jobs for newly qualified nurses.

Decisions about the employment of newly qualified nurses are a matter for individual National Health Service trusts. NHS trusts manage their recruitment at a local level ensuring they have the right number of staff in place, with the right skill mix, to deliver safe and effective care.We will publish a refreshed Long Term Workforce Plan to ensure the NHS has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to deliver the care patients need.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of cutting ICB running costs by 50% on (a) Nottingham, (b) Nottinghamshire and (c) other areas with higher levels of deprivation.

NHS England has asked integrated care boards (ICBs) to act primarily as strategic commissioners of health and care services and to reduce the duplication of responsibilities within their structure, to achieve a 50% cost reduction in their running cost allowance. NHS England provided additional guidance to ICBs, National Health Service trusts, and NHS foundation trusts on 1 April 2025, with ICBs being tasked to develop plans by the end of May 2025 setting out how they will manage their resources to deliver across their priorities.NHS England will be working closely with ICBs to support the development of these plans, ensuring that their implementation reduces duplication and supports patient care. Further details are available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/working-together-in-2025-26-to-lay-the-foundations-for-reform/In his letter to ICBs, Sir Jim Mackay committed to greater transparency and moving back to a fair shares allocation policy over time. The Nottingham and Nottinghamshire ICB is within range of its fair shares allocation targets.

What steps he is taking to reduce waiting times for radiotherapy.

The Department is committed to improving cancer care and reducing waiting times for treatment. To ensure the most advanced radiotherapy treatment is available to patients, we are investing £70 million in 28 new radiotherapy machines. The Department is committed to improving waiting times for cancer treatment across England and aims to ensure that no one is waiting longer than they should for lifesaving treatment. As a first step to achieving this, we will deliver an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week, helping to ensure earlier diagnoses and faster treatment for those who need it most.The National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, as well as reducing waiting times for diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology.

What assessment he has made of the impact of AI-based auto contouring on radiotherapy waiting times.

No assessment has been made. However, the Department supports the National Health Service in reviewing opportunities to utilise artificial intelligence to transform performance, bring down waiting times, and support staff with their workload. We expect that radiotherapy treatment centres will use all appropriate technology for treating patients, to ensure that they receive the best possible care. This includes the use of artificial intelligence where available.The National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, as well as reducing waiting times for diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of a cross-government mental health strategy for children and young people.

The Government is committed to taking a cross-government strategic approach to children and young people’s mental health.We are currently co-developing the NHS 10 Year Health Plan with the public, staff and patients. We continue to listen to emerging insights on children and young people’s mental health and are taking the concerns of participants seriously. The consultation process has provided invaluable feedback, and we are in the process of exploring how we best take this forward.Whilst the National Health Service is responsible for evidence-based treatment of mental ill health, we recognise the levers to prevent mental ill health sit largely outside of the health system. That’s why we are using the cross-government missions as a strategic tool to tackle the socioeconomic determinants of mental ill health amongst children and young people.We continue to work with the Department for Education to deliver our commitment of providing access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England. We are also working across government and with NHS England to set up a network of community Young Futures hubs.

What discussions he has had with independent pharmacy owners on the contracts offered to community pharmacies.

The Government recognises that pharmacies are an integral part of the fabric of our communities. They provide an easily accessible ‘front door’ to the National Health Service, staffed by highly trained and skilled healthcare professionals.We have now concluded the consultation on funding for 2024/25 and 2025/26, and have agreed with Community Pharmacy England to increase the community pharmacy contractual framework to £3.073 billion. Community Pharmacy England represent all pharmacy contractors in England, including independent community pharmacies. This deal represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, at over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. This shows the Government’s commitment to rebuilding the sector.

If he will (a) take steps to help reduce financial pressures on pharmacy students and (b) make an assessment of the potential merits of including pharmacy students in the Learning Support Fund scheme.

The Government is committed to financially supporting healthcare students in England, including pharmacy students, throughout their studies. Support is predominantly provided through the Department for Education and the student loans system.For the 2025/26 academic year, the Government has announced that the maximum loans and grants for living and other costs from Student Finance England will increase by 3.1% to meet forecast inflation.There are no immediate plans to make changes to the NHS Learning Support Fund scheme design. The Government keeps the funding arrangements for all healthcare students under close review. At all times the Government must strike a balance between the level of support students receive and the need to make the best use of public funds to deliver value for money.

What steps he is taking to ensure the adequacy of the level of funding for independent pharmacies.

The Government recognises that pharmacies are an integral part of the fabric of our communities. They provide an easily accessible ‘front door’ to the National Health Service, staffed by highly trained and skilled healthcare professionals.We have now concluded the consultation on funding for 2024/25 and 2025/26, and have agreed with Community Pharmacy England to increase the community pharmacy contractual framework to £3.073 billion. Community Pharmacy England represent all pharmacy contractors in England, including independent community pharmacies. This deal represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, at over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. This shows the Government’s commitment to rebuilding the sector.

How many families are receiving Healthy Start support in Nottingham East constituency.

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. Monthly figures for the number of people on the digital Healthy Start scheme are published on the NHS Healthy Start website, which is available at the following link:https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/healthcare-professionals/The NHSBSA does not hold data on local constituencies. The following table shows the number of people on the digital Healthy Start scheme for all ward areas in Nottingham, as of February 2025:Local authorityWardWard numberPeople on Digital SchemeNottinghamAspleyE05012270314NottinghamBasfordE05012271184NottinghamBerridgeE05012272166NottinghamBestwoodE05012273285NottinghamBilboroughE05012274229NottinghamBulwellE05012275313NottinghamBulwell ForestE05012276128NottinghamCastleE0501227729NottinghamClifton EastE05012278148NottinghamClifton WestE0501227946NottinghamDalesE05012280168NottinghamHyson Green and ArboretumE05012281282NottinghamLeen ValleyE0501228248NottinghamLenton and Wollaton EastE05012283103NottinghamMapperleyE05012284126NottinghamMeadowsE05012285107NottinghamRadfordE05012286133NottinghamSherwoodE0501228890NottinghamSt. Ann'sE05012287208NottinghamWollaton WestE0501228951