Written questions by Prinsley.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure consistent application of retention policies across NHS trusts.

The Government is committed to making the National Health Service the best place to work, to ensure the retention of our hardworking and dedicated staff. NHS England is leading the National Retention Programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts.Retention efforts are aligned with the NHS People Promise, which was co-developed with staff to reflect what matters to them. This ensures that trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.

What steps he has taken to incentivise dental practitioners to work in areas with significant waiting lists.

Patients in England are not registered with a National Health Service dental practice and no national waiting list is in operation, although many NHS dental practices do tend to see patients regularly. Dental practices may operate local waiting list arrangements.We acknowledge that there are areas of the country that are experiencing recruitment and retention issues and that this can mean that patients may have difficulty accessing an NHS dentist.We are taking steps to address the workforce challenges across the country. Integrated care boards 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 February 2025, in England, 35 dentists have commenced in post and a further 33 dentists have been recruited but are yet to start in post. A further 249 posts are currently advertised.

What steps his Department is taking to tackle sexual misconduct in the NHS.

NHS England is taking a leading role in tackling sexual misconduct across the National Health Service. The NHS has a responsibility to protect staff, patients, and service users and offer safe spaces and routes for support.In 2024, NHS England launched a new national sexual misconduct people policy framework and sexual safety charter assurance framework for integrated care bards (ICBs) and trusts to adopt and adapt, so that any member of staff who has experienced inappropriate and/or harmful sexual behaviours at work is supported by their employer. The frameworks are available at the following links:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/national-people-sexual-misconduct-policy-framework/https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/sexual-safety-charter-assurance-framework/The new guidance was published following the launch in 2023 of the first-ever Sexual Safety Charter in collaboration with healthcare systems and people with lived experience of sexual misconduct. The Charter focuses on providing staff with clear reporting mechanisms, training and support, and ensuring that a zero-tolerance approach is taken by organisations.All ICBs and trusts have signed the Sexual Safety Charter and are taking steps to prevent sexual misconduct at work. They have also been asked to appoint a domestic abuse and sexual violence lead to implement the new sexual misconduct guidance, review policies and provide support to staff relating to domestic abuse and sexual violence. There are now more than 300 in place across England.NHS England, in collaboration with those with lived experience, has also developed NHS-wide training on sexual misconduct awareness, now available to the entire workforce.

Whether his Department plans to review the 7.5% cap on international student numbers at medical and dental schools in England.

There are currently no such plans. We have launched a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the National Health Service. The plan will set out a bold agenda to deliver on the three big shifts needed to move healthcare from the hospital to the community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention.A central 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 care for patients across our communities.This summer we will publish a refreshed Long Term Workforce Plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, to treat patients on time again.

What steps the Government is taking to increase the number of clinical academics in the UK.

We recognise that clinical academics are crucial to training future generations of healthcare professionals and leading research across the health and care system. In 2023, NHS England published an Educator Workforce Strategy, setting out the actions required to ensure the sufficient capacity and quality of clinical educators. This includes planning for career pathways, both in practice and in higher education institutions and across sectors and professions.Through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the Department is the largest funder of research training for clinical academics in the United Kingdom, supporting clinical academics at all career stages and from all professions and specialties. Since 2006, the NIHR has supported 16,000 career development awards and 13,000 awardees across 200 different professions and specialties. We are committed to working with the devolved administrations, other funders, and wider stakeholders to ensure there is a comprehensive, clear, and rewarding career pathway for clinical academics in research, addressing issues raised in the report, Clinical researchers in the UK: reversing the decline to improve population health and promote economic growth.

Whether his Department plans to engage with universities as part of the 10-year Health Plan.

Universities across England and the United Kingdom have been engaged throughout the 10-Year Health Plan’s engagement process to inform policy making. Everyone, including universities, continues to be able to share their views via the Change NHS portal in what is biggest conversation to fix the National Health Service since its creation.36 universities and university faculties in the UK have submitted organisational responses, which have now been analysed and used to inform the next stage of the Plan’s development. Universities UK are also represented at the Partner’s Council. The Council convenes over 150 leaders from organisations across the UK health and care sector, including charities and the Royal Colleges, to provide progress updates on the 10-Year Health Plan and a forum to discuss and comment on emerging themes from the engagement and policy development to date.

Whether his Department plans to provide more training places in (a) core anaesthetics and (b) across all medical specialties.

We are committed to training the staff we need, including anaesthetists and all other medical specialities, to ensure patients are cared for by the right professional, when and where they need it. We have launched the 10-Year Health Plan which will set out a bold agenda to reform and repair the National Health Service. Ensuring we have the right people, in the right places, with the right skills will be central to this vision. NHS England has invested in 70 additional training posts in anaesthesia in 2022, 2023, and 2024. Further expansion will be determined by the upcoming Spending Review and the planned refresh of the Long Term Workforce Plan.

If he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the number of people waiting for medical training between foundation level and speciality training.

We continue to work with NHS England to keep the selection process for all applicants to medical speciality training under review. We are committed to ensuring that the number of medical specialty training places meets the demands of the National Health Service in the future. NHS England will work with stakeholders to ensure that any growth is sustainable and focused in the service areas where need is greatest.

If he will hold discussions with NHS England on the potential merits of making 70 extra higher anaesthetic training places available every year.

We are committed to training the staff we need, including anaesthetists and all other medical specialities, to ensure patients are cared for by the right professional, when and where they need it. We have launched the 10-Year Health Plan which will set out a bold agenda to reform and repair the National Health Service. Ensuring we have the right people, in the right places, with the right skills will be central to this vision. NHS England has invested in 70 additional training posts in anaesthesia in 2022, 2023, and 2024. Further expansion will be determined by the upcoming Spending Review and the planned refresh of the Long Term Workforce Plan.

What estimate his Department has made of the cost to NHS England of treating complications arising from surgeries undertaken overseas by UK residents.

The Department does not have data on the overall costs to the National Health Service for treating complications from surgeries conducted overseas. We are exploring ways to improve our understanding of the scale of the cost to the NHS.

What steps his Department is taking to increase training facilities for surgeons in the East of England.

All local education providers, including in the East of England, are responsible for ensuring they have the appropriate capacity, including facilities, for training staff, including surgeons.The General Medical Council’s (GMC’s) Promoting excellence: standards for medical education and training sets out the standards that the GMC expects organisations responsible for educating and training medical students and doctors in the United Kingdom to meet. This includes having the capacity, resources, and facilities to deliver safe and relevant learning opportunities, clinical supervision, and practical experiences for learners.NHS England’s Education Quality Framework states that all staff, including learners and educators, should have access to the necessary resources, facilities, and equipment to ensure their safety within the workplace and to deliver safe clinical care. The framework is monitored locally in collaboration with medical schools. In addition, NHS England’s NHS Education Funding Agreement sets out in detail the expectations around the premises and facilities of placement providers.

What steps his Department is taking to help reduce elective surgery waiting lists in Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket constituency.

The Elective Reform Plan, launched as part of the Government’s Plan for Change, sets out how we will get back to the NHS Constitutional Standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from Referral to Treatment by the end of this Parliament, and will also ensure that patients have the best possible experience of care. We have set an ambition for 2025/26 that we reach 65% of patients waiting no longer than 18 weeks nationally, and for all trusts to deliver a minimum 5% improvement by March 2026. We will also publish minimum standards of care that patients can expect to experience, and will make digital improvements, including to the NHS App, to provide patients with greater choice, control, and flexibility.At the Autumn Budget, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced an additional £1.5 billion in funding to support National Health Service performance across secondary and emergency care, including for surgical hubs. We will set out details of the allocation of funding for surgical hubs at the earliest opportunity, including details and locations of surgical hubs. Trusts with no operational or planned surgical hubs will be prioritised for new hub funding, as well as trusts with the highest waiting lists.Across the country, dedicated and protected surgical hubs are transforming the way the NHS provides elective care, by focussing on high volume low complexity surgeries. The Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket constituency falls under the Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board. They have two recently opened surgical hubs, one in Ipswich, which opened in July 2024, and the second is the Essex and Suffolk Elective Orthopaedic Centre ESEOC, which opened in November 2024.

What steps his Department is taking to help inform people of the potential risks of of undertaking (a) cosmetic or (b) elective surgery overseas.

The Government has engaged, and continues to engage, with partners to develop, update and promote key messages on public facing guidance. We worked closely with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to develop guidance for its online travel advice page. We have engaged with NHS England to update guidance on the National Health Service website, and we have liaised with the General Medical Council, the Royal College of Surgeons, and the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons about providing information online to support consumers to make safe choices about any cosmetic procedure they may choose to undergo abroad.Government advice to anyone considering medical treatment abroad is to carefully research the treatment in question, the qualifications of the chosen clinician overseas, the regulations that apply in the country in question, and ensure appropriate aftercare both abroad and once back in the United Kingdom.We also encourage people to review the Government’s travel advice, the relevant guidance from the NHS, and other relevant professional bodies. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office travel advice has been updated to highlight the issue and steer British nationals towards appropriate advice. This also includes advice to consider appropriate insurance cover, as a specialist policy will be required if medical treatment is planned abroad.

What recent estimate his Department has made of the number of people waiting to undergo otolaryngology surgery.

Otolaryngology surgery is listed under Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) data for recording purposes. As of November 2024, the waiting list for ENT stood at 633,270. This marked a decrease of 4,380 compared to October 2024. As of November 2024, 49.2% of pathways were within 18 weeks. Not all the patients on the waiting list will have a “decision to treat”. Tackling waiting lists, including in ENT, is a key part of our Health Mission and we will deliver an additional two million operations, scans, and appointments during our first year in Government, equivalent to 40,000 per week, as a first step in our commitment to ensuring patients can expect to be treated within 18 weeks. The Elective Reform Plan, launched as part of the Government’s Plan for Change, sets out how we will get back to the NHS Constitutional Standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment by the end of this Parliament and ensure patients have the best possible experience of care. The Elective Reform Plan commits to the following actions to reform outpatient services, including increasing uptake of Advice and Guidance and triage to reduce unnecessary demand on elective services, reducing low value follow up appointments, minimising missed appointments to maximise clinical time, and reforming clinical pathways to improve efficiency in five priority specialties, one of which is ENT.

Food and Rural Affairs, what progress he has made on the implementation of the Genetic Technologies (Precision Breeding) Act 2023.

This is a devolved matter, and the information provided therefore relates to England only. The Secretary of State has recently announced that the secondary legislation necessary to implement the Precision Breeding Act for plants in England will be laid by the end of March. Defra is also considering the animal welfare framework outlined in the Precision Breeding Act.

What steps he is taking to ensure (a) expertise and (b) public confidence are retained in Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy services available on the NHS.

NHS England is currently reviewing the service provision and national service specification for Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Services, used to clearly define the standards of care expected from organisations funded by NHS England to provide specialised care, due to the current service contracts expiring during 2025. Revisions to service specification follow the published process, which supports appropriate stakeholder engagement and governance. More information on the process is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/methods-national-service-specifications/NHS England has considered the feedback received from the recent public consultation on the Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Services revised service specification, alongside other sources of evidence, to inform its plans for the service re-procurement. The outcome of this will be made available in due course.Further, NHS England is required to commission services, including Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Services, in line with the National Health Service’s triple aim of improving health outcomes, improving quality of care and ensuring value for the system.

If she will hold discussions with the Health and Safety Executive on the potential merits of taking steps encourage employers to (a) organise regular hearing tests, (b) distribute adequate personal hearing protectors and (c) implement other measures to help prevent occupational hearing loss.

Duties on employers are well established in the Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005, which require employers to: a) Carry out hearing tests regularly by a competent person (health surveillance) when there may be a risk to their employee’s hearing, and undertake protective measures based on the results, and b) Provide adequate personal hearing protection where noise exposure cannot be eliminated or controlled at source. Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provides guidance and tools to help employers understand their obligations through its website, and regularly engages stakeholders to promote noise controls and ensuring hearing protection is fit for purpose in terms of its condition and specific use. HSE enforces these regulations and is conducting a long-term programme of targeted inspections of higher risk workplaces, forming a key element of HSE’s Protecting People and Places strategy to reduce work-related ill-health in the workplace.

Communities and Local Government, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the presence of (a) United States visiting forces and (b) their dependents on local government finances in West Suffolk; and if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of direct compensation to affected councils.

The different relative strengths of the tax bases of councils in England are taken into account in the Local Government Finance Settlement through the Settlement Funding Assessment (SFA) formula, which is used to calculate the SFA allocation that each authority is given.When the Settlement Funding Assessment was last calculated in 2013/14, Class P exemptions (meaning that the property will be exempt where members and their dependants of visiting forces would be liable for council tax if property is occupied or unoccupied) were considered within the calculation.This led to West Suffolk receiving an increased share of grant and retained business rates to account for the loss in council tax income. From our assessment in 2013 to 2024, the number of Class P exempt dwellings in West Suffolk has increased by 171 to 4,872, an increase of 2%.The Government has committed to updating the approach to funding allocations within the Local Government Finance Settlement.

What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of compliance with the Accessible Information Standard in the NHS.

National Health Service organisations and publicly funded social care providers must comply with the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), to meet the communication needs of patients and carers with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss. The AIS conformance criteria, published in 2016, set out how organisations should comply with the AIS, with further information available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/about/equality/equality-hub/patient-equalities-programme/equality-frameworks-and-information-standards/accessibleinfo/resources/assess-conformance/The responsibility for monitoring compliance with the AIS sits with the commissioner of the service.NHS England is responsible for the AIS, and has completed 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. One of the aims of the review was to strengthen assurance of implementation of the AIS, and a self-assessment framework has been developed to support providers of NHS and social care services to measure their performance against the AIS, and develop improvement action plans to address gaps in implementation. The AIS self-assessment framework is designed to enable enhancements around assurance, and allows organisations, commissioners, and the Care Quality Commission to judge performance and compliance.A revised AIS is being reviewed with a view to publication, and in the meantime NHS England is continuing to work to support implementation with awareness raising, communication and engagement, and 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 these services.

When he plans to implement section 95 of the Health and Care Act 2022.

The Department plans to commence section 95 in 2025. This will be subject to Parliament’s approval of the regulations setting out the procedure for preparing and publishing mandatory information standards, which are a necessary part of the package of measures introduced by section 95.