Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what payments have been made to the National Institute for Health and Care Research Brain Tumour Research Consortium; on what dates those payments were made; and what was the purpose of those payments.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Research is crucial in tackling cancer, which is why the Department invests over £1.7 billion per year in research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
In December 2025, the NIHR announced an initial £13.7 million investment in the Brain Tumour Research Consortium. In January 2026, the NIHR announced further investment of a minimum of £11.7 million in the consortium through funding of work packages. This brings the total investment to over £25 million.
The exact amount paid as of March 2026 is £50,000, which was paid to the contractor on 31 December 2025. This payment was made to support start up activities for the consortium. The NIHR does not currently hold up-to-date expenditure, or a detailed breakdown of how this funding has been spent. This information is currently held by the research team of the NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium and will be provided to the NIHR in the future as part of the project’s annual financial returns.
For all awards, contracting and further payments are contingent upon teams submitting and reviewing detailed costs and, if applicable, agreeing to the suggested amendments and requests for clarification which are currently in progress.
Future payments will be issued over the period of the award contracts which range from five to 10 years, as per the schedule of payments agreed between the NIHR and the consortium.
Information on all awards will be made publicly available in due course. The NIHR is working to ensure that new investments can get up and running as soon as possible. Oversight of the Brain Tumour Research Consortium is the responsibility of the NIHR.
In addition, the NIHR continues to strongly encourages brain cancer research applications through its regular funding opportunities.
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether oversight of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Brain Tumour Research Consortium is in the responsible of an executive director of the NIHR.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Research is crucial in tackling cancer, which is why the Department invests over £1.7 billion per year in research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
In December 2025, the NIHR announced an initial £13.7 million investment in the Brain Tumour Research Consortium. In January 2026, the NIHR announced further investment of a minimum of £11.7 million in the consortium through funding of work packages. This brings the total investment to over £25 million.
The exact amount paid as of March 2026 is £50,000, which was paid to the contractor on 31 December 2025. This payment was made to support start up activities for the consortium. The NIHR does not currently hold up-to-date expenditure, or a detailed breakdown of how this funding has been spent. This information is currently held by the research team of the NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium and will be provided to the NIHR in the future as part of the project’s annual financial returns.
For all awards, contracting and further payments are contingent upon teams submitting and reviewing detailed costs and, if applicable, agreeing to the suggested amendments and requests for clarification which are currently in progress.
Future payments will be issued over the period of the award contracts which range from five to 10 years, as per the schedule of payments agreed between the NIHR and the consortium.
Information on all awards will be made publicly available in due course. The NIHR is working to ensure that new investments can get up and running as soon as possible. Oversight of the Brain Tumour Research Consortium is the responsibility of the NIHR.
In addition, the NIHR continues to strongly encourages brain cancer research applications through its regular funding opportunities.
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what future payments they expect to make to the National Institute for Health and Care Research Brain Tumour Research Consortium.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Research is crucial in tackling cancer, which is why the Department invests over £1.7 billion per year in research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
In December 2025, the NIHR announced an initial £13.7 million investment in the Brain Tumour Research Consortium. In January 2026, the NIHR announced further investment of a minimum of £11.7 million in the consortium through funding of work packages. This brings the total investment to over £25 million.
The exact amount paid as of March 2026 is £50,000, which was paid to the contractor on 31 December 2025. This payment was made to support start up activities for the consortium. The NIHR does not currently hold up-to-date expenditure, or a detailed breakdown of how this funding has been spent. This information is currently held by the research team of the NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium and will be provided to the NIHR in the future as part of the project’s annual financial returns.
For all awards, contracting and further payments are contingent upon teams submitting and reviewing detailed costs and, if applicable, agreeing to the suggested amendments and requests for clarification which are currently in progress.
Future payments will be issued over the period of the award contracts which range from five to 10 years, as per the schedule of payments agreed between the NIHR and the consortium.
Information on all awards will be made publicly available in due course. The NIHR is working to ensure that new investments can get up and running as soon as possible. Oversight of the Brain Tumour Research Consortium is the responsibility of the NIHR.
In addition, the NIHR continues to strongly encourages brain cancer research applications through its regular funding opportunities.
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, given that NHS England’s 2023 guidance Liothyronine – advice for prescribers sets out a complete national prescribing pathway without including any requirement for local prior approval processes, what steps are they taking to ensure that Integrated Care Boards act consistently with this guidance.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England’s policy guidance and prescribing advice on liothyronine reflects the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s recommendations and the evidence on liothyronine. That guidance recommends that liothyronine should not be routinely prescribed, because it is not clinically or cost-effective, but sets out the exceptions where it may be an appropriate consideration for prescribers.
NHS England expects commissioners and prescribers to have due regard to its guidance. While integrated care boards may determine their own implementation arrangements, as part of the new operating model, regions will oversee commissioner and provider performance, including access to high quality care and the reduction of health inequalities.
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, given that NHS England’s 2023 guidance Liothyronine – advice for prescribers sets out a complete national prescribing pathway without including any requirement for local prior approval processes, if local prior approval was not included because it is not required.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England’s policy guidance and prescribing advice on liothyronine reflects the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s recommendations and the evidence on liothyronine. That guidance recommends that liothyronine should not be routinely prescribed, because it is not clinically or cost-effective, but sets out the exceptions where it may be an appropriate consideration for prescribers.
NHS England expects commissioners and prescribers to have due regard to its guidance. While integrated care boards may determine their own implementation arrangements, as part of the new operating model, regions will oversee commissioner and provider performance, including access to high quality care and the reduction of health inequalities.
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the recent report by NHS Providers Beyond Councils of Governors: rethinking public accountability, published 20 March, for future governance arrangements for NHS Foundation Trusts.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The report will be considered as part of the wider work underway on future engagement models.
The removal of councils of governors from National Health Service foundation trusts forms part of the wider 10-Year Health Plan’s aim to ensure hospitals put patient experiences and outcomes at the heart of their decision-making.
While governors have provided helpful advice and oversight for some foundation trusts, we now need to move to a more dynamic model, drawing on patient, staff, and stakeholder insight.
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps have been taken by NHS North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board to address shortages in access to NHS dentistry, and to increase the number of NHS dental practices in the region.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning primary care services, including National Health Service dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population. The North East and North Cumbria ICB has implemented measures to improve access to dental services as part of the ICB’s Oral Health and Dental Strategy for 2025/27. Further information can be found on the NHS.UK website, in an online format.
The Government is committed to ensuring that people can access urgent dental care when they need it. Over the past year, ICBs have been commissioning additional urgent dental appointments and there is now an urgent care safety net available in all areas of the country. 1.8 million additional courses of NHS dental treatment have been delivered in the seven months between April to October 2025 compared to the corresponding months prior to the general election.
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many NHS dental contracts have been handed back to NHS North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board since 2022; how many units of dental activity (UDAs) were associated with those contracts; and what the UDA value was for each contract handed back.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the total number of general dental practice contracts, including the number of units of dental activity (UDA) and the total value, that were handed back in the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board since it took over the delegated commissioning responsibility in April 2023:
Year | Number of General Dental Services contract hand-backs | Total Number of UDAs | UDA value for contract handbacks |
2023/24 | 13 | 108,684 | £23.85 to £32.59 |
2024/25 | 15 | 237,987 | £28.00 to £43.25 |
2025/26 | 7 | 105,308 | £32.50 to £40.08 |
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the proposal for a system for equitable distribution of general medical practitioners in England, submitted to the Permanent Secretary at the Department of Health and Social Care on 22 February by John G Gooderham.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it. This workforce plan will set out how we will deliver that change by making sure that staff are better treated, have better training, more fulfilling roles, and hope for the future.
We are investing £485 million in general practices (GPs) in 2026/27, bringing the total spend on the GP Contract to over £13.8 billion. This builds on the £1.1 billion boost in investment in 2025/26. As part of the 26/27 GP Contract, we are increasing flexibility of the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) by removing the restriction that ARRS funding can only be used for recently qualified GPs, increasing the maximum reimbursement amount for GP roles to reflect experience, and enabling primary care networks to recruit a broader range of ARRS roles, where agreed with the commissioner.
Following feedback from the 2026/27 GP Contract consultation, we are introducing a practice-level GP reimbursement scheme which ring-fences and repurposes £292 million of funding from the current Capacity and Access Payment. This funding will be available to practices to hire additional GPs or fund additional sessions with existing GPs to improve access in practices. This aims to strengthen capacity, access, and improve patient satisfaction, whilst also addressing GP unemployment and underemployment.
We know that the way core GP funding is allocated across England is considered outdated and we recognise the importance of ensuring funding for core services is distributed equitably between practices across the country. This is why we are currently reviewing the GP funding formula, the Carr-Hill formula, to ensure that resources are targeted where they are most needed.
The first phase of the review is expected to conclude in March 2026. Subject to ministerial decision, further work would be undertaken to technically develop and model any proposed changes to the formula. Findings from the review will be published in due course by the National Institute for Health and Care Research.
The proposal has been received and Government officials will assess it in the normal manner.
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government why the NHS North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board did not increase the units of dental activity (UDA) value of contracts awarded through its March 2024 procurement by the same percentage their regional UDA values increased by, following two separate increases to the minimum UDA value for existing contract holders; and what assessment they have made of the potential impact of this decision on the financial viability of those newly tendered contracts, particularly given their requirement to treat new patients with higher treatment needs.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning primary care services, including National Health Service dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population. Therefore, responses to these questions should be requested directly from the North East and North Cumbria ICB.