Written questions by O'Brien.

How many people in England have a formal clinical diagnosis of mixed anxiety and depressive disorder recorded in NHS primary care records.

Awaiting answer.

According to data supplied to the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, how many patients in recent (<12 months) contact with mental health services were convicted of a homicide offence in 2023 and 2024.

Awaiting answer.

How many people worked for NHS England in every month since July 2024.

Information on the number of people working for NHS England is published monthly as part of the Department’s Workforce Management Information.These statistics are publicly available on the GOV.UK website and include data for NHS England and other arm’s length bodies. The information requested, covering each month since July 2024, can be accessed at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dhsc-workforce-management-information

How many and what proportion of Practitioner Performance Advice cases involving (a) behaviour, (b) misconduct and (c) other (i) clinical and (ii) health concerns have involved practitioners who qualified (A) in the UK, (B) outside the UK in the EEA and (C) outside the EEA in each of the last two years.

Awaiting answer.

How much was spent on forensic support services in the most recent year for which data is available; and how many people were dealt with by such services.

Awaiting answer.

How many and what proportion of Practitioner Performance Advice cases involving (a) behaviour, (b) misconduct and (c) other (i) clinical and (ii) health concerns have involved practitioners who qualified (A) in the UK, (B) outside the UK in the EEA and (C) outside the EEA in each of the last two years.

Awaiting answer.

What proportion of hospital appointment letters sent by post do not arrive before the appointment.

The monitoring of National Health Service patient correspondence, including appointment letters, is the responsibility of individual NHS providers. Data is not held centrally on the whether appointment letters are received prior to an appointment taking place. No assessment has been made of the adequacy of mail deliveries of NHS correspondence to patients.The Government’s focus on shifting from analogue to digital will streamline information and communication processes, including by improving the NHS App. This will make it easier and quicker for patients to access information about their appointments, to cancel and reschedule appointments, and to receive correspondence on NHS test results. 96% of acute trusts in England now allow patients to view appointment information via the NHS App if they wish, reducing reliance on physical letters. Usage has increased significantly, with the App now supporting approximately eight million patient–trust interactions per month, an increase of 82% compared to a year ago. It also saves staff time to focus on providing high quality, non-digital communication for those who want and need it.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of mail deliveries of NHS correspondence to patients.

The monitoring of National Health Service patient correspondence, including appointment letters, is the responsibility of individual NHS providers. Data is not held centrally on the whether appointment letters are received prior to an appointment taking place. No assessment has been made of the adequacy of mail deliveries of NHS correspondence to patients.The Government’s focus on shifting from analogue to digital will streamline information and communication processes, including by improving the NHS App. This will make it easier and quicker for patients to access information about their appointments, to cancel and reschedule appointments, and to receive correspondence on NHS test results. 96% of acute trusts in England now allow patients to view appointment information via the NHS App if they wish, reducing reliance on physical letters. Usage has increased significantly, with the App now supporting approximately eight million patient–trust interactions per month, an increase of 82% compared to a year ago. It also saves staff time to focus on providing high quality, non-digital communication for those who want and need it.

How much was spent on forensic support services in the most recent year for which data is available; and how many people were dealt with by such services

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

According to data supplied to the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, how many patients in recent (<12 months) contact with mental health services were convicted of a homicide offence in 2023 and 2024.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

What assessment he has made of the equity of the process for accessing the General Dental Council's Overseas Registration Examination; and whether he has assessed the potential merits of introducing a queuing system.

The General Dental Council (GDC) is aware that the booking process for its Overseas Registration Exam (ORE) can be challenging for candidates due to the very high demand for exam places. The GDC’s recently concluded procurement exercise has resulted in new contracts for ORE provision that will substantially increase capacity of the exam, with places for Part Two increasing from 720 to 944 in the first year of the contract, and to 1,500 by year three.The GDC currently offers priority booking to candidates approaching their five-year time limit to pass the ORE exam, as well as to candidates with refugee status, as they are particularly disadvantaged by their inability to return to their country of origin to practise as a dentist.The Department has asked the GDC to develop an improved booking system as part of the new ORE contract arrangements and to consider what measures could be taken to support candidates on the waiting list who are resident in the United Kingdom.

With reference to the press release entitled Patients to benefit from improved access to dental appointments, published on 21 February 2026, how many (a) urgent and (b) additional dental appointments have been provided by the NHS in (i) total and (ii) each month since the General Election; and how many additional urgent dental appointments he expects the NHS to provide by the end of 2026-27 above the baseline he is using to monitor progress against his target.

The following table shows the available data for the number of National Health Service urgent dental treatments and total courses of dental treatments delivered each month from July 2024 to October 2025:Treatment month (July 2024 to October 2025)The number of urgent dental treatments deliveredThe number of NHS dental treatments deliveredJuly 2024323,1623,107,924August 2024290,1782,954,258September 2024303,2682,878,678October 2024324,9903,340,505November 2024305,2652,963,893December 2024307,6112,499,861January 2025326,3743,106,909February 2025280,9593,066,611March 2025285,4742,781,951April 2025310,7413,251,218May 2025305,9983,008,029June 2025308,1102,958,788July 2025327,0683,249,401August 2025293,7082,926,398September 2025338,3303,148,312October 2025346,0993,461,661Source: Monthly National Dental Activity data – England July 2023 to October 2025, available at the following link: https://opendata.nhsbsa.net/dataset/dental-activity-data-england-july-2023-to-october-2025Data for April 2025 to October 2025 should be treated as provisional. Final data for 2025/26 will be published in August 2026. Data for dentistry is measured in courses of treatment, not appointments. One course of treatment can be more than one appointment.1.8 million additional courses of NHS dental treatment have been delivered in the seven months between April and October 2025, compared to the same period before the general election, nearly half of which were delivered to children.We are broadening the scope of the commitment to deliver additional appointments so that they can be used for more patients, not just those who meet the clinical criteria for “urgent” care.We will ensure a continued urgent care safety net by requiring, from April 2026, high street dentists to deliver 8.2% of their total contract value as urgent or unscheduled care.

How much is being spent each year on primary care, and how much is being spent on the core GP contract.

In 2024/25, the latest year for which data is available, the total value of expenditure on all primary care was £19.8 billion. This includes expenditure on commissioning optometry, pharmacy, and dental services and excludes prescribing and secondary dental care. At this time, the total value of the GP Contract was £12.3 billion. We are investing £485 million in general practice in 2026/27, bringing the total spend on the GP Contract to over £13.8 billion. This uplift represents a 3.6% cash increase from 2025/26, or 1.4% real terms increase, and includes an assumed pay increase of 2.5%. It follows a record £1.1 billion of investment in 2025/26. As with previous years, we have asked the independent pay review body for Doctors' and Dentists' Remuneration, for a pay recommendation for 2026/27 for the Government to consider.

What information his Department holds on the number of homicide incidents in each of the last 12 months which involved a suspect who had been a patient of an NHS mental health trust within the preceding six months.

NHS England commissions the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicides and Homicides (NCISH) which has two functions in relation to homicides. First, it reports a count of homicides by people in the care of mental health services. Second, it does research into suicides and homicides, with the aim of helping to identify opportunities for improvements to clinical care in order to improve safety.The ‘count’ of patient homicides by people under the care of mental health services, is not real-time, and there is a delay between the incident occurring and the incident being included in this national data. This is because an incident can only be confirmed as a mental health homicide when a judicial process has determined whether a homicide has been committed and by whom, as well as the nature of the crime.In line with the national Patient Safety Incident Response Framework, in addition to local provider led safety reviews, any reported homicides/suspected homicides involving mental health patients are shared for review by regional NHS England teams, to establish whether an independent investigation is also required. Those requiring independent investigation are commissioned by regional teams.

In the past twelve months, how many disciplinary cases were concluded against civil servants in (a) the Department and (b) its agencies broken down by (i) outcome and (ii) whether the primary allegation related to (A) performance and (B) conduct.

In the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), poor performance is handled under DHSC's Supporting Performance Improvement Policy, so all disciplinary cases relate only to alleged misconduct.In DHSC there were 23 formal disciplinary cases concluded between 1 December 2024 and 30 November 2025.Where the number of case outcomes is under five, the number of cases in the category has been suppressed to avoid individuals becoming identifiable.The outcomes for these formal cases are categorised as follows:No Action;Withdrawn;Alternative Role;Informal Action;First Written Warnings;six Final Written Warnings;Dismissals; andNo Outcome Provided.The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) manages poor performance and discipline under separate policies, so all disciplinary cases relate to alleged misconduct.In MHRA during the same requested period there were six formal disciplinary cases concluded in total. The outcomes of these six cases are categorised as follows:No formal sanction;First formal warning; andDismissal.As the total number of individual case outcomes under each category is under five, the number of case outcomes in each category has been suppressed to avoid individuals becoming identifiable.In line with DHSC and MHRA, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) manages poor performance and discipline under separate policies, so all case outcomes relate to alleged misconduct. In UKHSA during the same requested period there were 58 formal disciplinary cases concluded. UKHSA is a larger organisation than DHSC and MHRA combined, with a higher volume of HR cases. The number of outcomes in each category is listed below, given there are at least five outcomes in each category:seven No case to answer;18 Cases where a case to answer was found but no penalty awarded;nine First Written Warnings;five Final Written Warnings;eight Dismissals; and11 Cases that were unable to be concluded.

How many and what proportion of departmental staff were promoted (a) in-grade and (b) to a higher grade in the last year broken down by (i) performance marking in the previous year and (ii) grade.

As of 28 November 2025, the Department had 112 employees, or 3%, on a temporary promotion to a higher grade from their substantive grade. The following table shows the percentage of employees on temporary promotion, broken down by grade: GradePercentage on temporary promotionHigher Executive Officer4%Senior Executive Officer3%Grade 72%Grade 66%Senior Civil Service 15%Overall3%We have only recently started to capture performance markings on the system and so cannot provide a breakdown for last year. Due to the way our data is held, we are not able to provide a breakdown of the number or proportion of staff who were promoted to a higher grade whilst on temporary promotion.

What the average number of working days lost to sickness absence per full-time equivalent member of staff was in (a) the Department and (b) its executive agencies in the last year; and how many formal performance warnings were issued to staff whose absence exceeded departmental triggers.

The average number of working days lost per full-time equivalent member of staff in the Department in the period between October 2024 and September 2025, the most recent period for which records are available, was 5.12.The average number of working days lost per full-time equivalent member of staff in the executive agencies over the same period was 8.22 in the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and 5.71 in the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).There were no formal performance warnings issued against civil servants in the Department or the UKHSA between 1 December 2024 and 30 November 2025 where the civil servant was also issued a formal attendance warning for exceeding sickness trigger points.There were four formal performance warnings issues to staff in the MHRA whose absence exceeded departmental triggers.

What the total cost was of (a) settlement agreements and (b) special severance payments made to departing departmental staff in the last year.

During the period 1 December 2024 to 30 November 2025, the total cost of settlement agreements to the Department was £15,000. Under HM Treasury’s rules, payments made under settlement agreements are classed as Special Severance Payments.

How many and what proportion of departmental staff in each grade were rated in the top performance category in the last year.

Senior civil servants (SCS) and delegated grades follow different performance management frameworks. SCS’ operate within the framework for SCS performance management prescribed by Cabinet Office. For delegated performance there is a flexible framework that requires departments to reflect a number of core elements in their approach, including differentiating performance, addressing under and poor performance, and addressing diversity and inclusion. The following table shows the top ratings within the different performance management frameworks by grade and proportion, as of April 2025:GradeNumber rated in the top performance categoryProportionExecutive Officer3014%Higher Executive Officer5511%Senior Executive Officer8012%Grade 717017%Grade 69023%SCS3014%Notes:the numbers rated in the top performance category are rounded to the nearest five; andthe proportion is calculated based on employees who received a performance rating.

What the annual budget was for the (a) National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and (b) Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in each year since 2005.

The table attached shows the annual budget and the number of full time equivalent (FTE) employees for the UK Health Security Agency, the Food Standards Agency, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the Care Quality Commission, and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, each year from 2005/06 to 2024/25. The number of people employed by each arm's-length body has been recorded as FTE (payroll). The annual budget comprises both the Resource Departmental Expenditure Limit and the Capital Departmental Expenditure Limit to give the total Departmental Expenditure Limit budget.