Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many additional urgent dentist appointments will be provided in (a) Greater Manchester and (b) Oldham this year.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have asked integrated care boards (ICBs) to commission extra urgent dental appointments to make sure that patients with urgent dental needs can get the treatment they require. ICBs have been making extra appointments available from April 2025.
Appointments are available across the country, with specific expectations for each region. These appointments are more heavily weighted towards those areas where they are needed the most. Data on delivery of urgent dental care, including additional delivery, will be published annually as part of the NHS Dental Statistics England Official Statistics series. These statistics are released each August and are the primary source of data on the delivery of NHS dental care.
Asked by: Pippa Heylings (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond substantively to Question 90841 tabled by the hon. Member for South Cambridgeshire on 13 November 2025.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 5 January 2025 to Question 90841.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure national accountability for equitable provision of palliative care across England.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning palliative care services to meet the reasonable needs of their population, which can include hospice services available within the ICB catchment. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and a service specification.
The Government is developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework (MSF) for England. The MSF will drive improvements in the services that patients and their families receive at the end of life and enable ICBs to address challenges in access, quality, and sustainability through the delivery of high-quality, personalised care. This will be aligned with the ambitions set out in the recently published 10-Year Health Plan. Through our MSF, we will closely monitor the shift towards the strategic commissioning of palliative care and end of life care services to ensure that services reduce variation in access and quality.
The recently published Strategic Commissioning Framework and Medium-Term Planning Guidance also make clear the expectations that ICBs should understand current and projected total service utilisation and costs for those at the end of life, creating an overall plan to more effectively meet these needs through neighbourhood health.
Hospices provide both core and specialist palliative care. Whilst acknowledging that not everyone will need specialist palliative care, we must ensure is that there is equitable and timely access to these services, whether they are provided by hospices or the National Health Service.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has considered fully funding specialist palliative care, advice and assessment provided by hospices.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning palliative care services to meet the reasonable needs of their population, which can include hospice services available within the ICB catchment. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and a service specification.
The Government is developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework (MSF) for England. The MSF will drive improvements in the services that patients and their families receive at the end of life and enable ICBs to address challenges in access, quality, and sustainability through the delivery of high-quality, personalised care. This will be aligned with the ambitions set out in the recently published 10-Year Health Plan. Through our MSF, we will closely monitor the shift towards the strategic commissioning of palliative care and end of life care services to ensure that services reduce variation in access and quality.
The recently published Strategic Commissioning Framework and Medium-Term Planning Guidance also make clear the expectations that ICBs should understand current and projected total service utilisation and costs for those at the end of life, creating an overall plan to more effectively meet these needs through neighbourhood health.
Hospices provide both core and specialist palliative care. Whilst acknowledging that not everyone will need specialist palliative care, we must ensure is that there is equitable and timely access to these services, whether they are provided by hospices or the National Health Service.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to produce a strategy or consultation on the potential of creating a sovereign supply of medical isotopes to ensure cancer patients receive the treatment they require.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Medical radioisotopes can be produced in different ways, and the United Kingdom has a comprehensive network of cyclotrons used for radioisotope manufacture. These tend to be placed close to the point of use due to the short half-life of these products. The radioisotopes manufactured in these cyclotrons are not suitable for all uses, and so hospitals and trusts in England use a significant number of isotopes manufactured in research reactors. There are currently no reactors in the UK that manufacture medical isotopes, all of these are therefore imported.
The Government does not have any current plans to produce a strategy or to consult on the potential for further domestic medical radioisotope manufacture. However, the Government prioritises the reliable supply of medicines, including the supply of medical radioisotopes for critical services. The Government therefore offers support for private investors and developers to increase manufacture capacity.
The Government has made up to £520 million available through the Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund to support UK manufacture of medicine and medical technology products. Applications looking to establish, expand, or improve the UK-based manufacture of medical radioisotopes for diagnostic or therapeutic applications can apply to this fund.
The Government also recently announced a £54 million funding package for eight innovative research and development projects, including £9.9 million earmarked for Project Alpha 10.6 to explore how to make medical treatments from legacy nuclear material, something that could unlock the UK’s potential to develop promising new cancer therapies.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential of developing a medical isotope production capability to ensure a sovereign domestic supply of medical isotopes.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Medical radioisotopes can be produced in different ways, and the United Kingdom has a comprehensive network of cyclotrons used for radioisotope manufacture. These tend to be placed close to the point of use due to the short half-life of these products. The radioisotopes manufactured in these cyclotrons are not suitable for all uses, and so hospitals and trusts in England use a significant number of isotopes manufactured in research reactors. There are currently no reactors in the UK that manufacture medical isotopes, all of these are therefore imported.
The Government does not have any current plans to produce a strategy or to consult on the potential for further domestic medical radioisotope manufacture. However, the Government prioritises the reliable supply of medicines, including the supply of medical radioisotopes for critical services. The Government therefore offers support for private investors and developers to increase manufacture capacity.
The Government has made up to £520 million available through the Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund to support UK manufacture of medicine and medical technology products. Applications looking to establish, expand, or improve the UK-based manufacture of medical radioisotopes for diagnostic or therapeutic applications can apply to this fund.
The Government also recently announced a £54 million funding package for eight innovative research and development projects, including £9.9 million earmarked for Project Alpha 10.6 to explore how to make medical treatments from legacy nuclear material, something that could unlock the UK’s potential to develop promising new cancer therapies.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to funding for non-clinical NHS departments on a) patient wait times, b) hospital running costs and c) hospital administration.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
National Health Service providers are funded under the NHS payment scheme. When providing funding for services, the clinical and non-clinical elements of service provision are not distinguished, as a single overall price is provided.
We have, however, been clear about the need for providers to reverse the growth in corporate costs, which since 2018/19 have risen by 40%, or £1.85 billion, excluding pay and pensions. Providers have been asked to reduce that growth in corporate costs by half.
Those savings can then be reinvested in patient care, including to improve patient wait times.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of trends in the level of the utilisation of hospice beds on NHS capacity and costs; and if he will make it his policy to allocate £100 million funding for hospices in 2025-26 and a further £100 million in April 2026.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
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.
Asked by: Caroline Johnson (Conservative - Sleaford and North Hykeham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he intends to answer WPQ 84255 tabled on 22 October 2025.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 12 January 2026 to Question 84255.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people have been discharged from hospitals into rough sleeping in each year since 2023.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department and NHS England do not hold this information.