Department of Health and Social Care

In Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, the Government committed to strengthening and expanding existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Department officials are currently working at pace to develop the policy. We are reviewing all available evidence and engaging with stakeholders to assess the potential content of the mandatory labels.

The Government currently provides drinking moderation tools like the new NHS Healthy Choices Quiz which is designed to help people to improve their health and wellbeing. It asks a range of lifestyle questions, including those about alcohol consumption, provides an overall score out of ten, and directs people to relevant National Health Service support services such as the Drink Free Days app.

In Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England, the Government committed to strengthening and expanding existing voluntary guidelines for alcohol labelling by introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.

Clear and consistent labelling is expected to increase awareness of the health risks and to empower consumers to make more informed choices, complementing local public health strategies and community-level interventions.

The Government also committed to supporting community level innovations where they have shown promise in reducing alcohol harm. Officials are working at pace to take forward these commitments.

The Department does not hold data on the number of recorded incidents in these settings, which are each independent contractors to the National Health Service.

We know how challenging disgraceful incidences of abuse and violence can be for staff. The Government is clear that there is never a justification for this unacceptable behaviour towards healthcare staff, who have the right to work free from fear of abuse or assault.

There is a range of NHS commissioned services available to support the mental health and wellbeing of staff across settings.

Incidents of criminal behaviour should be reported to the police. In May 2025, the Crown Prosecution Service updated guidance to prosecutors which will bring swifter justice against those that assault our frontline workers.

General practice surgeries are independent contractors, and as private businesses it is within their own remit to consider the value for money of management and service charges paid to related parties in England.

Since October 2024 we have funded primary care networks with an additional £160 million to recruit recently qualified general practitioners (GPs) through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS). In the Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board (ICB) 44 GPs have been recruited via the scheme since October 2024.

Within the 2025/26 GP Contract, a number of changes have been confirmed to increase the flexibility of ARRS and allow primary care networks to respond better to local workforce needs. This includes GPs and practice nurses included in the main ARRS funding pot, an uplift of the maximum reimbursable rate for GPs in the scheme, and no caps on the number of GPs that can be employed through the scheme.

We are investing an additional £1.1 billion into GPs to reinforce the front door of the National Health Service, bringing total spend on the GP Contract to £13.4 billion in 2025/26. This is the biggest cash increase in over a decade and will facilitate the recruitment of GPs. The 8.9% boost to the GP Contract in 2025/26 is greater than the 5.8% growth to the NHS budget as a whole.

The Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB also has a successful GP and Nurse fellowship scheme to support retention of staff.

The Department is committed to improving integration between health and social care services nationally and locally. Our vision for neighbourhood health will see local government and the National Health Service working more closely together, with a revitalised role of Health and Wellbeing Boards and reform of the Better Care Fund (BCF).

Through the BCF, approximately £9 billion is being invested in 2025/26 to enable NHS bodies and local authorities to pool budgets and deliver joined-up care. This includes setting shared goals to reduce delayed discharges, avoid unnecessary hospital admissions, and support people to live independently at home.

In Lincolnshire, local Health and Wellbeing Boards are required to agree plans under the BCF framework to provide timely and coordinated support for people with complex needs. These plans prioritise effective discharge from hospital and recovery in the community.

Local authorities must ensure they perform official controls on all food businesses regularly, on a risk basis and with appropriate frequency. The Food Law Code of Practice provides these food hygiene intervention frequencies with a higher risk and/or non-compliant will receive an intervention more frequently than those compliant or lower risk.

Data pertaining to the average time between food hygiene visits undertaken for hot food takeaway venues in England is not held by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) as we do not categorise food establishment in that way. This data could be gathered individually from local authorities.

Data reported to the FSA on the number of authorised food hygiene officers in England by local authorities via their returns data is as follows:

- 1,178 authorised officers were in post at the end of 2021/22;

- 1,605 authorised officers were in post at the end of 2022/23;

- 1,797 authorised officers were in post at the end of 2023/24; and

- 1,828 authorised officers were in post at the end of 2024/25.

This information does not include regulatory support officers or trainees working towards suitable qualifications. Prior to 2021/22 only questions relating to full time equivalent posts were requested from local authorities in relation to their resources.

Local authorities must ensure they perform official controls on all food businesses regularly, on a risk basis and with appropriate frequency. The Food Law Code of Practice provides these food hygiene intervention frequencies with a higher risk and/or non-compliant will receive an intervention more frequently than those compliant or lower risk.

Data pertaining to the average time between food hygiene visits undertaken for hot food takeaway venues in England is not held by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) as we do not categorise food establishment in that way. This data could be gathered individually from local authorities.

Data reported to the FSA on the number of authorised food hygiene officers in England by local authorities via their returns data is as follows:

- 1,178 authorised officers were in post at the end of 2021/22;

- 1,605 authorised officers were in post at the end of 2022/23;

- 1,797 authorised officers were in post at the end of 2023/24; and

- 1,828 authorised officers were in post at the end of 2024/25.

This information does not include regulatory support officers or trainees working towards suitable qualifications. Prior to 2021/22 only questions relating to full time equivalent posts were requested from local authorities in relation to their resources.

The latest data for England from Cancer Waiting Times shows that for the month of September 2025 the number of people that started first or subsequent treatment for Mesothelioma after a decision to treat was 168, and the number of people that started their first treatment for Mesothelioma following referral was 107.

We have now launched our first Men’s Health Strategy which includes targeted support to address health inequalities in ex-mining and industrial communities, who often face persistent respiratory and cardiovascular disease burdens. We will expand the existing Respiratory Pathways Transformation Fund initiative by investing an additional £1 million to develop targeted case-finding initiatives in former coalfield areas to help us to identify the individuals who need support to access appropriate local services.

In 2023, 31% of those who died prematurely from cardiovascular disease (CVD) were women. We are committed to reducing premature mortality from heart disease and stroke by 25% in the next 10 years through improvements in prevention and treatment.

To accelerate progress towards this ambition, we will publish a new cardiovascular disease Modern Service Framework (CVD MSF) in 2026. The CVD MSF will support consistent, high quality and equitable care whilst fostering innovation across the CVD pathway.

National Health Service bodies and upper tier and unitary local authorities in England are responsible for making effective, appropriate use of the resources allocated to them, including funding for public health. Local authorities receive a Public Health Grant from the Department, totalling £3.884 billion in 2025/26. This grant, other than funding allocated to Greater Manchester authorities via their retained business rate arrangement, is ring-fenced for use on public health functions, and the local authority Director of Public Health must certify annually that the funding has been used for appropriate purposes. NHS England commissions national NHS public health services, including national immunisation programmes. It does so to evidence-based standards and is accountable for performance to the Department.

The Government is focused on combating vaccine misinformation as part of its 10-Year Health Plan, working with local authorities and community groups to support vaccine trust.

The National Health Service is currently rolling out the National Lung Cancer Screening Programme to people with a history of smoking. The following table shows the number of participants who attended an appointment through the NHS Lung Cancer Screening Programme each month, between April 2022 and September 2025:

Source: the NHS England Lung Cancer Screening Programme.

The Government has underlined its commitment to taking a preventive approach to address health inequalities.  We are determined to improve people’s physical and mental health to support them to live longer and healthier lives and we recognise the role that social prescribing can play in this.

The Department funds social prescribing link workers in primary care through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme.  In March 2025, the Department agreed a further year of grant funding for the National Academy for Social Prescribing, securing £1.5 million to advance and expand social prescribing.  Future funding allocations have yet to be confirmed.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs leads on green social prescribing and, together with Natural England, has recently invested £300,000 to track the uptake and impact of green social prescribing using primary care data. The evidence will inform future policy for the spread and scale of nature-based health interventions.

The information requested is available from the National Diabetes Audit which provides a count of the number of people with a general practice record of diabetes. The latest published data from the audit for April 2024 to March 2025 is available at the following link:

https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/national-diabetes-audit/core-q4-24-25/national-diabetes-audit-nda-2024-25-quarterly-report-for-england-integrated-care-board-icb-primary-care-network-pcn-and-gp-practice

I attended the UK Acquired Brain Injury Forum’s (UKABIF’s) annual summit in Manchester on 3 November 2025, where I discussed our forthcoming acquired brain injury (ABI) plan with a number of stakeholders, patients with lived experience and healthcare professionals with a specialist interest in ABI.

The Government’s ABI action plan will be published in the first half of 2026. It will be a landmark step in delivering the joined-up approach that people with ABI deserve.

I attended the UK Acquired Brain Injury Forum’s (UKABIF’s) annual summit in Manchester on 3 November 2025, where I discussed our forthcoming acquired brain injury (ABI) plan with a number of stakeholders, patients with lived experience and healthcare professionals with a specialist interest in ABI.

The Government’s ABI action plan will be published in the first half of 2026. It will be a landmark step in delivering the joined-up approach that people with ABI deserve.

The Department invests £1.6 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).

In the financial year 2024/25, the NIHR committed £279,000 for new research projects and programmes into Crohn's and Colitis. The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including Crohn's and Colitis research.

No assessment of the impact of the disapplication of the EU Falsified Medicines Directive (EU FMD) on the United Kingdom’s medicine supply chain has been made by the Department. However, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is not aware of any falsified medicines reaching patients through the legal supply chain in at least the last five years.

The MHRA leads work to combat falsified medicines and protect patient safety, including through the application of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 to online and retail sales. The MHRA uses several different approaches to support its work to combat falsified medicines entering the UK supply chain, including by leveraging emerging technology, for instance:

• Its FakeMeds campaign guides the public on how to buy medicines online from safe and legitimate sources;
• suspected side effects or falsified medicines can be reported through the MHRA’s Yellow Card scheme;
• it is exploring the use of artificial intelligence to proactively identify illicit internet domains for enforcement action;
• it is working with Ofcom to use the new preventative powers provided by the Online Safety Act for regulating online platforms;
• it is developing an online service enabling users to check whether a website has been classified as ‘Not Recommended’; and
• it is developing a new web-based reporting tool to allow users to report suspicious online sellers directly to its Criminal Enforcement Unit.

Any additional initiatives to use emerging technologies, such as smartphone verification scanning, would require careful consideration of the evidence of the reduction of the risk to patients, as well as investment needed for infrastructure, and further regulatory changes for manufacturers and wholesalers. There are provisions in the Medicines and Medical Devices Act 2021 providing powers to enable the introduction of a similar system to the EU FMD with ‘safety features’ and verification in the UK. However, the powers allow us to go beyond the EU FMD and use derived data from any system for other health related purposes. For example, to support the recall of medicines, to support patient care, research, policy development, medicine supply, preventing diversion, supporting patient access to medicines, and countering fraud in primary care. However, regulations would be needed to set out the detail of any scheme, which would require consultation. Consideration is being given as to whether to consult on options for a potential UK system.

No assessment of the impact of the disapplication of the EU Falsified Medicines Directive (EU FMD) on the United Kingdom’s medicine supply chain has been made by the Department. However, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is not aware of any falsified medicines reaching patients through the legal supply chain in at least the last five years.

The MHRA leads work to combat falsified medicines and protect patient safety, including through the application of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 to online and retail sales. The MHRA uses several different approaches to support its work to combat falsified medicines entering the UK supply chain, including by leveraging emerging technology, for instance:

• Its FakeMeds campaign guides the public on how to buy medicines online from safe and legitimate sources;
• suspected side effects or falsified medicines can be reported through the MHRA’s Yellow Card scheme;
• it is exploring the use of artificial intelligence to proactively identify illicit internet domains for enforcement action;
• it is working with Ofcom to use the new preventative powers provided by the Online Safety Act for regulating online platforms;
• it is developing an online service enabling users to check whether a website has been classified as ‘Not Recommended’; and
• it is developing a new web-based reporting tool to allow users to report suspicious online sellers directly to its Criminal Enforcement Unit.

Any additional initiatives to use emerging technologies, such as smartphone verification scanning, would require careful consideration of the evidence of the reduction of the risk to patients, as well as investment needed for infrastructure, and further regulatory changes for manufacturers and wholesalers. There are provisions in the Medicines and Medical Devices Act 2021 providing powers to enable the introduction of a similar system to the EU FMD with ‘safety features’ and verification in the UK. However, the powers allow us to go beyond the EU FMD and use derived data from any system for other health related purposes. For example, to support the recall of medicines, to support patient care, research, policy development, medicine supply, preventing diversion, supporting patient access to medicines, and countering fraud in primary care. However, regulations would be needed to set out the detail of any scheme, which would require consultation. Consideration is being given as to whether to consult on options for a potential UK system.

No assessment of the impact of the disapplication of the EU Falsified Medicines Directive (EU FMD) on the United Kingdom’s medicine supply chain has been made by the Department. However, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is not aware of any falsified medicines reaching patients through the legal supply chain in at least the last five years.

The MHRA leads work to combat falsified medicines and protect patient safety, including through the application of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 to online and retail sales. The MHRA uses several different approaches to support its work to combat falsified medicines entering the UK supply chain, including by leveraging emerging technology, for instance:

• Its FakeMeds campaign guides the public on how to buy medicines online from safe and legitimate sources;
• suspected side effects or falsified medicines can be reported through the MHRA’s Yellow Card scheme;
• it is exploring the use of artificial intelligence to proactively identify illicit internet domains for enforcement action;
• it is working with Ofcom to use the new preventative powers provided by the Online Safety Act for regulating online platforms;
• it is developing an online service enabling users to check whether a website has been classified as ‘Not Recommended’; and
• it is developing a new web-based reporting tool to allow users to report suspicious online sellers directly to its Criminal Enforcement Unit.

Any additional initiatives to use emerging technologies, such as smartphone verification scanning, would require careful consideration of the evidence of the reduction of the risk to patients, as well as investment needed for infrastructure, and further regulatory changes for manufacturers and wholesalers. There are provisions in the Medicines and Medical Devices Act 2021 providing powers to enable the introduction of a similar system to the EU FMD with ‘safety features’ and verification in the UK. However, the powers allow us to go beyond the EU FMD and use derived data from any system for other health related purposes. For example, to support the recall of medicines, to support patient care, research, policy development, medicine supply, preventing diversion, supporting patient access to medicines, and countering fraud in primary care. However, regulations would be needed to set out the detail of any scheme, which would require consultation. Consideration is being given as to whether to consult on options for a potential UK system.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has criminal enforcement powers to fine a health or social care provider where they identify a breach of regulations. The CQC can directly serve a fixed penalty notice to a provider, or a fine may be issued by the court following prosecution brought by the CQC.

The size of the fine following prosecutions brought by the CQC is a decision made by the court and is informed by sentencing guidelines. The CQC does not have influence over this decision. The money raised by court fines is paid to HM Treasury. The following table shows the fines served by the court following prosecution brought by the CQC against National Health Service trusts since 2020:

Note: where an NHS trust is fined more than once in a given fiscal year, the fines relate to individual cases.

Any fixed penalty paid to the CQC is passed on by the CQC to My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. The CQC transfers the penalties received to the Department on a quarterly basis. The following table shows the fixed penalty notices served by the CQC to NHS trusts since 2020:

Note: where an NHS Trust is served a fixed penalty notice more than once in a given fiscal year, this could be due to multiple breaches of regulations.

Over 110,000 defibrillators are registered in the United Kingdom on The Circuit, the independent automated external defibrillator (AED) database. The Department’s Community AED Fund delivered 3080 new AEDs to local communities between September 2023 and February 2025. The Department has no current plans to fund the purchase of additional AEDs, as local communities are best placed to make decisions about procuring, locating and maintaining AEDs.

The Nursery Milk Scheme is operated by the Department of Health and Social Care and provides reimbursement to early years childcare settings to cover the cost of providing one-third of a pint of milk per day to all children under the age of five years old who attend the setting for more than two hours per day. The School Milk Subsidy Scheme is the responsibility of the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs and partly finances the cost of similar milk provision to children in primary and secondary schools in England and Wales. There are no current plans to change these schemes.

The Department, NHS England, and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) work together to ensure a new vaccine is rolled out in a timely manner after a policy decision has been made, ensuring that all the components are in place to provide an accessible and safe programme. Supplies of centrally procured vaccines for the routine immunisation programme are available to order from UKHSA by all registered general practices, hospitals, maternity services, and other sites commissioned to deliver the programme. Sites have deliveries at least once a week, regardless of where in England they are located, and the coverage is across the country, including rural areas.

To improve public access to vaccinations, including in rural areas, we are expanding the use of community pharmacies giving vaccinations, including through delivering flu vaccines for two and three-year-olds this autumn. An evaluation will assess whether the use of community pharmacies improves coverage and helps tackle regional health inequalities, in line with the National Health Service vaccination strategy.

To ensure pharmacy access in rural areas, local authorities are required to undertake a pharmaceutical needs assessment every three years to assess whether their population is adequately served by local pharmacies and must keep these assessments under review.

We are also exploring ways of delivering our commitment to administer vaccinations as part of health visits. Local pathfinders for health visitor delivery will begin from January 2026, across a mix of urban and rural geographies.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The pandemic scenario designed in Exercise PEGASUS and given to participants was based on the emergence and spread of a novel pathogen and provided a realistic representation of its impact on the United Kingdom’s population, including those with existing conditions. The exercise included the circulation of existing pathogens such as COVID-19. Focus groups and surveys were carried out after each core exercise day to test the public reaction to the decisions taken by officials and ministers, and respondents were drawn from a broad cross-section of society, including those who were immunocompromised.

Exercise PEGASUS rigorously tested communications capabilities, which included testing communications from Government and public health bodies to clinically vulnerable populations. Officials used behavioural science insights to segment audiences based on a variety of factors, and developed tailored, accessible messaging for these groups. This will be considered in the evaluation of the exercise.

Organisations who advocate for clinically vulnerable patient groups were also engaged through focus groups, which sought perspectives on the outcomes of the exercise. These insights will contribute towards the exercise report.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Government holds contracts with polling companies to conduct research on public opinion. Savanta is a member of the British Polling Council and as such is required to abide by its rules. The results of polling by Savanta of resident doctors are published online and can be found on their website.

The Government holds contracts with polling companies to conduct research on public opinion. Savanta is a member of the British Polling Council and as such is required to abide by its rules. The results of polling by Savanta of resident doctors are published online and can be found on their website.

Modern service frameworks will define an aspirational, long-term outcome goal for a major condition and then identify the best evidenced interventions and the support for delivery. Early priorities will include cardiovascular disease, severe mental illness, and the first ever service framework for frailty and dementia.

The Government will consider other long-term conditions for future waves of modern service frameworks, including respiratory conditions. The criteria for determining other conditions for future modern service frameworks will be based on where there is potential for rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Local authorities are responsible for making sure a health assessment of physical, emotional and mental health needs is carried out for every child they look after, regardless of where that child lives. Integrated care boards (ICBs) commission a health provider to undertake initial health assessments (IHAs). The service specification for this service is aligned to the current Children Act 1989 regulations.

The regulations for health assessments are set out in the Care Planning, Placement and Case Review (England) Regulations 2010, the Children Act 1989 guidance and regulations colume 2: care planning, placement and case review and supported within the statutory guidance Promoting the health and wellbeing of looked-after children.

Regulation 7(3) of the Care Planning, Placement and Case Review (England) Regulations 2010 states that IHAs are required to be undertaken within twenty days of a child coming into the care of the local authority. The current regulations for the Children Act 1989 state that the IHA should be undertaken by a registered medical practitioner.

This is different to a review health assessment, which may be carried out by a registered medical practitioner, or by a registered nurse or registered midwife, under the supervision of a registered medical practitioner, as stated in regulation 7(3).

No assessment has been made on the potential merits of allowing additional appropriately skilled professionals using a competency-based framework to undertake IHAs.

If IHAs are not happening on time, ICBs are the first line of statutory safeguarding assurance, which includes identifying early warning signs and responding to risks at local levels. NHS England, through ICBs, also undertake annual checks on how safeguarding, and other statutory commitments, are working in practice and across the system. NHS England is working with ICBs to improve the timeliness of IHAs and review health assessments.

The Department is committed to improving integration between health and social care services nationally and locally. Our vision for Neighbourhood Health will see local government and the National Health Service working more closely together, with a revitalised role for Health and Wellbeing Boards and reform of the Better Care Fund (BCF).

Through the BCF, approximately £9 billion is being invested in 2025/26 to enable NHS bodies and local authorities to pool budgets and deliver joined-up care. This includes setting shared goals to reduce delayed discharges, avoid unnecessary hospital admissions, and support people to live independently at home. Dorset has also received additional support from expert advisors working on behalf of NHS England and the Department.

Whilst no specific assessment has been made of the impact of closer NHS-social care integration on reducing hospital discharge delays in West Dorset, local Health and Wellbeing Boards are required to agree plans under the BCF framework to provide timely and coordinated support for people with complex needs. These plans prioritise effective discharge from hospital and recovery in the community.