Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government how they intend to ensure that the health and care needs of people with learning disabilities are addressed through a dedicated strategic framework; and what mechanisms for national accountability will be included in such a framework.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The 10-Year Health Plan recognises the need to reduce health inequalities for people with a learning disability and sets out our aims to support a shift to empowering patients and preventing sickness, rather than just treating it, and offering more holistic, on-going support in the community.

The Government is committed to improving care for people with a learning disability. Whilst there are no plans to develop a dedicated strategic framework, there is significant work already underway and clear expectations in place for health and care services to take actions which should improve health outcomes for this group. This includes the roll out of mandatory training on learning disability and autism for health and care staff, implementation of a Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag, continued uptake of annual health checks and health action plans, and the Mental Health Act reforms. Progress continues to be made on these initiatives.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are expected to drive service improvements and governance through existing frameworks. ICBs have an Executive Lead on learning disability and autism and an Executive Lead on learning from lives and deaths, or LeDeR. Each ICB is required to consider and demonstrate how they will reduce the health inequalities faced by people with a learning disability and autistic people within their local populations within the five-year strategic plans mandated as part of the Medium-Term Planning Framework, which is available on the NHS.UK website.

The Government recognises that more could be done to ensure consistent delivery and will continue to work with NHS England to strengthen oversight and support where needed.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government, in light of research by Dr George Julian showing that the Care Quality Commission has secured only one prosecution for a death involving a person with a learning disability in over a decade, what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the CQC's enforcement strategy in this area.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is an independent regulator, and decisions on enforcement action are a matter for the CQC, exercised in line with its statutory remit and published enforcement policy.

Prosecution is one of a range of regulatory tools available to the CQC and is used where breaches are serious, there is sufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction, and prosecution is in the public interest, particularly where other regulatory action would not be proportionate or sufficient.

In making these decisions, the CQC is guided by The Code for Crown Prosecutors, and all criminal investigations are conducted in accordance with the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and its codes of practice.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Merron on 30 March (HL15723), whether the interim leadership cover for the South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board carries out the same statutory duties as the redundant Chief Executive role; and if so, what assessment they have made of the compliance of this redundancy with the HM Treasury guidance on Public Sector Exit Payments and value for money protocols.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Merron on 30 March (HL15724), whether the post of the previous chief executive of the South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board was identified for the redundancy pool as a direct result of a legal merger or abolition of that ICB as part of the reduction of ICBs from 42 to 26; and if no such merger or abolition was formally proposed for South Yorkshire ICB, on what basis that post was identified for redundancy under that framework.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether (1) NHS England, or (2) the Department of Health and Social Care, were contacted by the South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board regarding the redundancy of its previous Chief Executive prior to the redundancy payment being issued in October 2025; if so, on what date that contact occurred; and for what purpose that contact was made.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.