Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to raise awareness of challenges faced by children of parents with alcohol problems in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Children affected by parental alcohol problems can experience adverse health, social, and economic outcomes, which can continue for generations without effective public health early interventions to break the cycle. The Government’s mission-based approach will ensure that every child has the best start in life and that we create the healthiest generation of children ever. This includes supporting the children of parents with alcohol problems and preventing intergenerational transmission.
The Government is funding Best Start Family Hubs in every local authority, which will be rolled out from April 2026. The hubs have been developed from the best of the Sure Start and Family Hubs and Start for Life approaches and will build on the £126 million funding boost for the Family Hubs and Start for Life Programme in 2025/26. Best Start Family Hubs will be open to all and based in disadvantaged communities. Services will prioritise supporting the whole family and intervening at the earliest opportunity to prevent challenges escalating, such as intergenerational transmission of problem alcohol use.
From this year, all drug and alcohol treatment and recovery funding will be channeled through the Public Health Grant, with over £13.45 billion allocated across three years, including £3.4 billion ringfenced for drug and alcohol treatment and recovery. Local authorities are responsible for commissioning drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services according to local need and can use this funding to ensure that parents/carers with alcohol problems, and their children, can access high quality help and support.
For 2026/27, Surrey County Council will receive £12,356,996 in protected drug and alcohol prevention, treatment and recovery funding. Furthermore, to inform local authorities’ assessment of need and support the children of parents with alcohol problems, the Department is producing a suite of resources, including local prevalence and treatment data on parents/carers with alcohol problems, and child safeguarding guidance for alcohol and drug treatment commissioners.
Finally, the Department, with the support of partners from the devolved administrations, has developed and published the first ever United Kingdom clinical guidelines on alcohol treatment, which is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/clinical-guidelines-for-alcohol-treatment
The guidelines promote and support good practice and improve quality of service provision. It includes a section on the specific support needs of parents with alcohol problems and makes recommendations on how to address them.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
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 prevent the intergenerational transmission of alcohol misuse in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Children affected by parental alcohol problems can experience adverse health, social, and economic outcomes, which can continue for generations without effective public health early interventions to break the cycle. The Government’s mission-based approach will ensure that every child has the best start in life and that we create the healthiest generation of children ever. This includes supporting the children of parents with alcohol problems and preventing intergenerational transmission.
The Government is funding Best Start Family Hubs in every local authority, which will be rolled out from April 2026. The hubs have been developed from the best of the Sure Start and Family Hubs and Start for Life approaches and will build on the £126 million funding boost for the Family Hubs and Start for Life Programme in 2025/26. Best Start Family Hubs will be open to all and based in disadvantaged communities. Services will prioritise supporting the whole family and intervening at the earliest opportunity to prevent challenges escalating, such as intergenerational transmission of problem alcohol use.
From this year, all drug and alcohol treatment and recovery funding will be channeled through the Public Health Grant, with over £13.45 billion allocated across three years, including £3.4 billion ringfenced for drug and alcohol treatment and recovery. Local authorities are responsible for commissioning drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services according to local need and can use this funding to ensure that parents/carers with alcohol problems, and their children, can access high quality help and support.
For 2026/27, Surrey County Council will receive £12,356,996 in protected drug and alcohol prevention, treatment and recovery funding. Furthermore, to inform local authorities’ assessment of need and support the children of parents with alcohol problems, the Department is producing a suite of resources, including local prevalence and treatment data on parents/carers with alcohol problems, and child safeguarding guidance for alcohol and drug treatment commissioners.
Finally, the Department, with the support of partners from the devolved administrations, has developed and published the first ever United Kingdom clinical guidelines on alcohol treatment, which is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/clinical-guidelines-for-alcohol-treatment
The guidelines promote and support good practice and improve quality of service provision. It includes a section on the specific support needs of parents with alcohol problems and makes recommendations on how to address them.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of (a) homelessness and (b) insecure accommodation on public health in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that homelessness and rough sleeping numbers continue to remain high. That is why the Government is providing £255.5 million for the Rough Sleeping Prevention and Recovery Grant so that local authorities can support people sleeping rough in their areas, including funding health‑led interventions, alongside a £69.9 million top‑up announced in October 2025 to tackle additional pressures.
Surrey County Council has undertaken a Joint Strategic Needs Assessment, focused on housing and related support, funded by the Department through the Public Health Grant and carried out by health and wellbeing boards. The assessment is available at the following link:
https://www.surreyi.gov.uk/jsna/
The assessment requires a thorough analysis of the health and social care needs of local populations, identifying inequalities and wider determinants of health, such as housing. The assessment highlights how determinants such as housing conditions, including insecure housing and homelessness, impact health and wellbeing. This informs planning across health, social care, and housing to improve outcomes and address inequalities.
The Department is working to action the commitments made in A National Plan to End Homelessness, including ensuring that no one eligible for homelessness assistance is discharged to the street after a hospital stay. The plan is available at the following link:
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to raise awareness of the health risks associated with (a) unlicensed or (b) illicit medicines among patients in (i) Surrey and (ii) Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), acting on behalf of my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, is responsible for the regulation of medicines intended for human use in the United Kingdom. This includes applying the legal controls on the retail sale, supply, and advertising of medicines, which are set out in the Human Medicines Regulations 2012.
Sourcing weight loss medicines from unregulated suppliers significantly increases the risk of receiving a product which is either falsified or not authorised for human use. Products purchased in this way will not meet the MHRA’s strict standards for quality, safety, and efficacy and can therefore expose patients to incorrect dosages or dangerous ingredients.
Public safety is the number one priority for the MHRA, and its Criminal Enforcement Unit works hard to prevent, detect, and investigate illegal activity involving medicines and medical devices and takes robust enforcement action where necessary. It works closely with other health regulators, customs authorities, law enforcement agencies, and private sector partners, including e-commerce and the internet industry to identify, remove and block online content promoting the illegal sale of medicines and medical devices.
The MHRA seeks to identify and, where appropriate, prosecute online sellers responsible for putting public health at risk. Between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025, the MHRA and its partners seized approximately 17 million doses of illegally traded medicines with a street value of more than £37 million.
During the same period, it disrupted approximately 190,000 website and social media links responsible for advertising medicinal products illegally. Additionally, collaboration with one well-known online marketplace led to the successful identification and blocking of more than 1.5 million unregulated prescription medicines, over-the-counter medicines, and medical devices before they could be offered for sale to the public.
The MHRA is continually developing new and innovative ways to combat the illegal trade in medicines and to raise public awareness. These measures include:
publication of a #Fakemeds campaign which explains how to access medicines through safe and legitimate online sources, with further information available at the following link:
https://fakemeds.campaign.gov.uk/;
public guidance on how to safely access and use GLP-1 medications, available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/glp-1-medicines-for-weight-loss-and-diabetes-what-you-need-to-know/glp-1-medicines-for-weight-loss-and-diabetes-what-you-need-to-know;
development of an online service which allows the public to check if a website has been deemed ‘Not Recommended’ by the MHRA;
development of a web-based reporting scheme allowing the public to report suspicious online sellers to the MHRA; and
extensive work with media outlets to raise awareness of the dangers of illegal medicines.
The MHRA’s continued efforts have led to more medicines being seized than ever before, significant custodial sentences for offenders, the forfeiture of criminal profits and considerable success in disrupting the illegal supply of medicines.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to tackle the sale and distribution of illicit or unlicensed medicines in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), acting on behalf of my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, is responsible for the regulation of medicines intended for human use in the United Kingdom. This includes applying the legal controls on the retail sale, supply, and advertising of medicines, which are set out in the Human Medicines Regulations 2012.
Sourcing weight loss medicines from unregulated suppliers significantly increases the risk of receiving a product which is either falsified or not authorised for human use. Products purchased in this way will not meet the MHRA’s strict standards for quality, safety, and efficacy and can therefore expose patients to incorrect dosages or dangerous ingredients.
Public safety is the number one priority for the MHRA, and its Criminal Enforcement Unit works hard to prevent, detect, and investigate illegal activity involving medicines and medical devices and takes robust enforcement action where necessary. It works closely with other health regulators, customs authorities, law enforcement agencies, and private sector partners, including e-commerce and the internet industry to identify, remove and block online content promoting the illegal sale of medicines and medical devices.
The MHRA seeks to identify and, where appropriate, prosecute online sellers responsible for putting public health at risk. Between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025, the MHRA and its partners seized approximately 17 million doses of illegally traded medicines with a street value of more than £37 million.
During the same period, it disrupted approximately 190,000 website and social media links responsible for advertising medicinal products illegally. Additionally, collaboration with one well-known online marketplace led to the successful identification and blocking of more than 1.5 million unregulated prescription medicines, over-the-counter medicines, and medical devices before they could be offered for sale to the public.
The MHRA is continually developing new and innovative ways to combat the illegal trade in medicines and to raise public awareness. These measures include:
publication of a #Fakemeds campaign which explains how to access medicines through safe and legitimate online sources, with further information available at the following link:
https://fakemeds.campaign.gov.uk/;
public guidance on how to safely access and use GLP-1 medications, available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/glp-1-medicines-for-weight-loss-and-diabetes-what-you-need-to-know/glp-1-medicines-for-weight-loss-and-diabetes-what-you-need-to-know;
development of an online service which allows the public to check if a website has been deemed ‘Not Recommended’ by the MHRA;
development of a web-based reporting scheme allowing the public to report suspicious online sellers to the MHRA; and
extensive work with media outlets to raise awareness of the dangers of illegal medicines.
The MHRA’s continued efforts have led to more medicines being seized than ever before, significant custodial sentences for offenders, the forfeiture of criminal profits and considerable success in disrupting the illegal supply of medicines.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to mitigate the health impacts of cold weather conditions on vulnerable people in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department works closely with the UK Health Security Agency, the Met Office, and local health and care parters to respond to Cold Health Alerts, which are issued when cold weather is forecast to pose a risk to health. Alerts are issued between 1 November and 31 March each year and are colour coded based on the likelihood and severity of health impacts. When alerts are issued, local areas, including Surrey and Surrey Health, are expected to take proportionate action to protect vulnerable people.
We started planning earlier and have taken more action than in previous years to prepare for winter pressures, and to mitigate cold-weather health impacts on vulnerable people nationally. This includes actions by health and care partners in Surrey and Surrey Heath. Our focus is on maintaining patient safety and timely access to urgent and emergency care throughout the colder months.
Flu remains a major seasonal challenge, particularly for older people, young children, pregnant women, and those with underlying conditions. Vaccination continues to be the most effective way to prevent severe illness and hospitalisation among vulnerable groups.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of variations in the availability of wider support services for children undergoing NHS treatment in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ensuring that all children, including those with serious health needs, receive appropriate care and support whenever and wherever they need it. We know that there is variation in the availability of support across the country which is why we are taking action.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the provision and commissioning of services to meet the varied needs of their local populations. Local areas will be expected to develop Neighbourhood Health Plans under the leadership of health and wellbeing boards, bringing care closer to babies, children, and young people, including those with serious health needs. We will be publishing further guidance to support local areas to develop Neighbourhood Health Plans in due course.
The Medium-Term Planning Framework also sets out targets to improve children’s experiences of the health system and states that National Health Service organisations should explicitly consider the needs of children and young people in integrated plans. This will improve the consistency of support to children with serious health needs and reduce variability. The framework is available at the following link:
After a procurement process focused on opportunities to reduce unwarranted variation and offer equitable access to community services for children across the Surrey footprint, HCRG Care Group, one of the UK’s largest providers of child and family health services, was commissioned by the Surrey ICB to manage children’s community health services in Surrey, including the Surrey Heath constituency, from 1 April 2025.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help improve consistency in NHS support for children with serious health needs in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ensuring that all children, including those with serious health needs, receive appropriate care and support whenever and wherever they need it. We know that there is variation in the availability of support across the country which is why we are taking action.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the provision and commissioning of services to meet the varied needs of their local populations. Local areas will be expected to develop Neighbourhood Health Plans under the leadership of health and wellbeing boards, bringing care closer to babies, children, and young people, including those with serious health needs. We will be publishing further guidance to support local areas to develop Neighbourhood Health Plans in due course.
The Medium-Term Planning Framework also sets out targets to improve children’s experiences of the health system and states that National Health Service organisations should explicitly consider the needs of children and young people in integrated plans. This will improve the consistency of support to children with serious health needs and reduce variability. The framework is available at the following link:
After a procurement process focused on opportunities to reduce unwarranted variation and offer equitable access to community services for children across the Surrey footprint, HCRG Care Group, one of the UK’s largest providers of child and family health services, was commissioned by the Surrey ICB to manage children’s community health services in Surrey, including the Surrey Heath constituency, from 1 April 2025.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure local health services are prepared to respond to incidents of mass carbon monoxide exposure in (a) Surrey and (b) Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
All National Health Service organisations, including in Surrey, are required to prepare for, and respond to, a wide range of incidents or emergencies that could adversely affect the health of the population.
In the event of an incident of mass carbon monoxide exposure, ambulance services can dispatch a Hazardous Area Response Team. This provides the initial NHS response with trained and equipped paramedics who can safely enter a contaminated area to support casualties and provide clinical care.
As an integrated care board, NHS Surrey Heartlands has policies for emergency preparedness, resilience, and response, in order to support local resilience partners and maintain critical services in the event of an incident.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of how loneliness among older people is considered within health and social care planning in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Whilst no specific assessment of the adequacy of how loneliness among older people has been considered in health and care planning in Surrey Heath, the Department aims to ensure that all demographics, including older people are considered in its policies.
One of the interventions that can work well for people who are experiencing loneliness is social prescribing. Referrals to social prescribing can be made through general practitioners, nurses, and other healthcare professionals, but also wider statutory services such as social care and the voluntary sector, as well as self-referral. Social Prescribing Link Workers connect people to community groups and statutory services for practical and emotional support.
Under the Care Act 2014 local authorities have a duty to promote wellbeing when carrying out care and support duties.