Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the role the independent sector can play in supporting the development of NHS Online.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS Online, launching in 2027, will be a publicly owned National Health Service organisation, giving patients on certain pathways the choice of getting the specialist care they need from their home. It will offer the latest innovations in digital healthcare, nationally scaled for the benefit of patients in every part of the country, helping to reduce patient waiting times through delivering the equivalent of up to 8.5 million appointments and assessments in its first three years.
The Government recognises the role independent sector providers have in supporting the NHS as trusted partners to recover elective services by using additional capacity to tackle the backlog whilst delivering value for money.
The NHS Online programme is actively engaging with both NHS organisations and the independent sector, including through representative bodies such as the Independent Healthcare Providers Network, to support the development of NHS Online.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government how the Keep Britain Working Review will help to incentivise businesses of all sizes to support the health and wellbeing of their employees.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Through the next phase of Keep Britain Working we will work with businesses of all sizes to design solutions which support the health and wellbeing of employees across the UK. Through employer-led sprints, we are developing a Healthy Working Lifecycle Standard, tailored workplace health support, and stronger evidence on the business benefits of investing in employee wellbeing.
Our Vanguard group includes over 120 employers of varying sizes to ensure the approaches developed reflect the needs and realities of both large employers and SMEs. We are also working closely with regional authorities and leadership to connect the programme to smaller employers across the country.
During the Keep Britain Working review, we heard that employers are already bearing the cost of sickness absence and employees leaving the workforce and are therefore highly incentivised to support the health and wellbeing of their employees. Through the next phase of Keep Britain Working we will grow the evidence for what works and where additional incentives could have the greatest impact, ensuring that support is targeted in ways that encourage employers to take-up effective workplace health measures.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to include provisions to encourage the adoption of point-of-care testing to support early detection of cardiovascular disease in the Modern Service Framework for Cardiovascular Disease.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, to accelerate progress on the ambition to reduce premature deaths from heart disease and stroke by 25% within a decade, we will publish a new cardiovascular disease Modern Service Framework (CVD MSF) later this year.
The Department and NHS England are engaging widely throughout the development of the CVD MSF to support consistent, high quality and equitable care whilst fostering innovation across the CVD pathway, including considering the adoption of point-of-care testing.
Beyond action in the CVD MSF, the Government and NHS England have invested heavily in point of care testing; including through the hypertension case-finding service for those over 40 in community pharmacies and the NHS Blood Pressure @Home initiative.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of how the community pharmacy sector's funding gap has changed since the publication of Economic analysis of NHS pharmaceutical services in England on 31 March 2025.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In 2025/26, the funding for the core community pharmacy contractual framework was increased to £3.1 billion. This represented the largest uplift in funding of any part of the National Health Service at the time, over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. Additional funding was also made available, for example, for pharmacies delivering Pharmacy First consultations, and flu and COVID-19 vaccinations.
On 25 February, the Department began the 2026/27 Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework consultation with Community Pharmacy England, to consider any proposed changes to the reimbursement and remuneration of pharmacy contractors in 2026/27.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what interim targets they have set to meet the commitment in the Life Sciences Sector Plan for the UK to become one of the three fastest countries in Europe for patient access to medicines by 2030.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Life Sciences Sector Plan includes a broad range of commitments to support our ambitions to be one of the top three fastest places in Europe for patient access to medicines by 2030. This includes improving capacity and efficiency in delivering commercial clinical trials, investing in innovation, and supporting access and uptake across the system.
The target itself will be measured by the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations Waiting to Access Innovative Therapies indicator. The latest data shows that the median time between regulatory approval and patient availability for medicines launched between 2020 and 2023 was 310 days for England and 303 days for Scotland, compared to a European Union median of 518 days.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to expand new-born screening in line with its ambition in the 10 Year Health Plan to roll out whole genome sequencing by 2030; and what interim targets they have established to measure progress towards this ambition.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan set out an ambition to “implement universal genomic testing” within the next decade. Delivering against this ambition will be subject to evidence gathered through the Generation Study. This research programme is evaluating the effectiveness of using whole genome sequencing to test 100,000 newborns for genetic mutations associated with more than 200 rare genetic conditions. The sequencing of 100,000 newborns through the Generation Study will be completed by summer 2027. The evaluation part of the study will then be completed and presented to the UK National Screening Committee who will make a recommendation to Government ministers on whether newborn genomic screening should be offered in the National Health Service or whether more research is required. Subject to this, and appropriate funding being available, genomic testing could be available for all newborns by 2035.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of the support provided to clinicians for post-deployment monitoring of new artificial intelligence tools introduced to local services.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that effective post‑deployment monitoring of artificial intelligence (AI) tools is essential to maintaining patient safety and supporting clinicians in their day‑to‑day practice.
The Government has not conducted a single, centralised assessment of post‑deployment support for all AI tools used in local services. Instead, responsibility for ensuring appropriate monitoring and clinical support sits with local National Health Service organisations, working within national regulatory and governance frameworks.
Nationally, NHS England and the Department have published guidance and regulatory support to help organisations safely deploy and oversee AI technologies. This guidance is currently provided through a combination of regulatory frameworks, clinical safety standards, and product specific national guidance, rather than a single consolidated framework. As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan and the developing AI Strategic Roadmap, the Government is working towards a more coherent, end to end approach to supporting the safe adoption, monitoring, and governance of AI across health and care. This is being done in conjunction with regulators such as the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulation Agency, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Health Research Authority, and the Care Quality Commission.
Local adopters are expected to ensure that clinicians are supported through appropriate training, access to clinical safety expertise, and clearly defined monitoring arrangements proportionate to the risk and intended use of the AI tool. This includes maintaining oversight of real‑world performance and taking action where tools do not perform as intended.
The Government continues to work closely with NHS England, clinicians, and regulators to keep guidance under review and to identify where further support may be required, as the use of AI in health and care continues to evolve.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that AI tool vendors inform the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, NHS trusts and clinicians when significant changes are made to their AI models.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 26 September 2025, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) announced the National Commission into the Regulation of AI in Healthcare (the National Commission).
The National Commission is an independent, non-statutory advisory group, responsible for advising the MHRA on the creation of a new regulatory framework for artificial intelligence (AI) products in healthcare, supporting our goal to make Great Britain the fastest and safest place to regulate AI and software as a medical device in the world. The Commission is looking into a range of topics relating to the regulation of AI in healthcare, including but not limited to Post-Market Surveillance, the role of different actors, developers, providers, and professionals throughout the adoption cycle of AI as a medical device, and the liability implications of AI technology.
The Commission will publish its recommendations for the new regulatory framework for AI in healthcare in Summer 2026.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the new regulatory framework for AI and software as a medical device will define where medical liability will lie in cases where AI tools fail to perform as expected in the NHS.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 26 September 2025, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) announced the National Commission into the Regulation of AI in Healthcare (the National Commission).
The National Commission is an independent, non-statutory advisory group, responsible for advising the MHRA on the creation of a new regulatory framework for artificial intelligence (AI) products in healthcare, supporting our goal to make Great Britain the fastest and safest place to regulate AI and software as a medical device in the world. The Commission is looking into a range of topics relating to the regulation of AI in healthcare, including but not limited to Post-Market Surveillance, the role of different actors, developers, providers, and professionals throughout the adoption cycle of AI as a medical device, and the liability implications of AI technology.
The Commission will publish its recommendations for the new regulatory framework for AI in healthcare in Summer 2026.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to reduce the daily average of 13,823 medically fit patients who remained in hospital in January, in particular in regard to social care capacity.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is taking a range of steps to reduce the number of medically fit patients who remain in hospital and recognises that timely discharge is essential for improving patient outcomes and freeing up capacity. Through the Better Care Fund (BCF), £9 billion is available in 2025/26 and a further £9 billion has been committed in 2026/27, which is being pooled to strengthen social care capacity, deliver more joined‑up support, and reduce delays to discharge.
A central aim of the BCF is to support services that help people regain independence, prevent avoidable admissions, and enable timely discharge, with greater emphasis on intermediate care services that can meet both step‑up and step‑down needs.
The BCF also requires systems to set goals to reduce non‑elective admissions for people aged 65 years old and over and discharge delays, ensuring BCF‑funded activity directly supports improved hospital flow.