Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department has taken to prepare for the risk of increasing flu cases amid NHS strikes.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service in England has been preparing for winter with the development and better testing of winter plans with surge capacity and escalation plans in place across all NHS and urgent care services. In September NHS England ran seven regionally-led exercises to enable integrated care boards and trusts to stress test whether their plans are sufficient and robust to mitigate winter pressures from baseline, moderate, and extreme levels of respiratory illness and/or flu surge.
As set out in the 2025/26 Urgent and Emergency Care Plan, the NHS is focussing on improvements that will see the biggest impact on urgent and emergency care performance this winter. This includes expanding community access to urgent care, for example for patients to be treated in virtual wards, and improving vaccination uptake among frontline staff.
The priority is to keep patients as safe as possible during any industrial action. The NHS makes every effort through rigorous contingency planning to minimise disruption as a result of industrial action and its impact on patients and the public. Assessments are made by local trusts about the level of resourcing, and they can escalate via regions and nationally, where appropriate.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many domestic abortions using (a) mifepristone and (b) misoprostol have occurred in England in each year since 2020.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department cannot separate out which of mifepristone or misoprostol were administered at home, only whether one or both abortion medications were administered at home.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many instances of (a) suicide and (b) suicide attempts on NHS property have been reported in (i) England and (ii) Romford constituency in every year since 2010.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The information requested is not held centrally.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to reduce instances of (a) suicide and (b) self-harm.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to boost mental health support across the country. This includes transforming mental health services into 24/7 neighbourhood mental health centres, improving assertive outreach, expanding talking therapies, and giving patients better access to 24/7 support directly through the NHS App.
The Suicide Prevention Strategy for England, published in 2023, identifies eight priority groups for targeted and tailored support at a national level, including people who have self-harmed. The strategy also identifies key risk factors for suicide, providing an opportunity for effective early intervention.
NHS England published Staying safe from suicide: Best practice guidance for safety assessment, formulation and management to support the Government’s work to reduce suicide and improve mental health services. The guidance requires all mental health practitioners to align their practice to the latest evidence in suicide prevention, and can be found at the following link:
www.england.nhs.uk/publication/staying-safe-from-suicide
The NHS England Medium Term Planning Framework states that in 2026/27, all integrated care boards must ensure mental health practitioners across all providers undertake training and deliver care in line with the Staying safe from suicide guidance.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to provide doctors with a plan to improve (a) pay for NHS doctors and (b) job security for NHS doctors.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government accepted the headline pay recommendations for National Health Service doctors made by the Review Body on Doctors’ and Dentists’ Renumeration (DDRB) for 2025/26. Consultant and Specialist and Specialty doctors received pay uplifts above forecast inflation of 4% and resident doctors received 4% plus £750. Resident doctors have received the highest pay uplift in the public sector over the past two years, with pay uplifts amounting to 28.9% over three years. While the Government has been clear that it cannot go further on pay this year, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has met with the British Medical Association (BMA) to discuss their priorities and is committed to improving the working lives of all NHS staff.
The Government has taken steps to accelerate the pay setting process for this year to ensure that uplifts are made in a timely manner. To achieve this, we remitted the DDRB on 22 July and submitted written evidence to them on 30 October. Written evidence was submitted a month earlier than last year, which means we are still on track for pay uplifts to go into pay packets earlier than in previous years.
In acknowledgement of doctors’ concerns about jobs and access to training places, the Government made an offer to BMA’s Resident Doctors Committee to double the previously announced increase in specialty training places in the 10-Year Health Plan to 2,000, bringing 1,000 of these forward to next year, to create an alternative training pathway and take steps to prioritise United Kingdom medical graduates and doctors with significant NHS experience for specialty posts. On top of this commitment, NHS England has already made changes to the specialty training application process this year to reduce competition and support UK graduates.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to reduce prescription drug-related deaths in (a) England and (b) Romford constituency.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has taken decisive action to reduce prescription drug-related deaths in England by tackling overprescribing and improving patient safety. In September 2021, the Department published the National Overprescribing Review, which set out measures to ensure that patients receive the most appropriate treatment. These measures include better use of technology, more effective prescription reviews, and alternatives to medicines where clinically appropriate.
In March 2023, NHS England issued a framework entitled Optimising personalised care for adults prescribed medicines associated with dependence or withdrawal symptoms. This framework sets out five actions for integrated care boards, focusing on the early identification of risk, personalised care planning, and shared decision-making to support safe tapering of medication and alternative treatments. These steps aim to improve patient outcomes by reducing harm from dependency-forming medicines such as opioids and benzodiazepines.
Integrated care boards are the National Health Service organisations responsible for arranging the provision of health services within their area in line with local population need and taking account of relevant guidance.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to work with relevant authorities to tackle the illegal sale of prescription drugs in (a) England and (b) Romford constituency.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for the regulation of medicines for human use, medical devices, and blood products for transfusion 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.
Prescription-only medicines should only be obtained following a consultation with a doctor or qualified healthcare professional so that an assessment is made of the patient's suitability for the treatment and to consider any potential risks. Usually, such products should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy against a valid prescription.
Sourcing medicines from unregulated suppliers significantly increases the risk of getting a product which is either falsified or not authorised for use. Products purchased in this way will not meet the MHRA’s strict quality and safety standards and could 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, local 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 sellers responsible for putting public health at risk. Last year, the MHRA and its partners seized more than 17 million doses of illegally traded medicines, including those usually issued on prescription. Further information on our recent enforcement activity is available at the following link:
Additionally, the MHRA has also disrupted thousands of links to websites and social media pages selling medical products to the public illegally.
The MHRA’s FakeMeds campaign provides advice to people in the United Kingdom who are considering buying medication online, outlining how products can be accessed from a safe and legitimate source. Further information on the FakeMeds campaign is available at the following link:
https://fakemeds.campaign.gov.uk/
Anyone who believes they’ve had a side effect from a medicine, or think they’ve received falsified stock, can report it to the MHRA’s Yellow Card scheme. Further information on the Yellow Card scheme is available at the following link:
https://yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk/
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to help improve dyslexia screening of adults.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Adults who wish to be assessed for dyslexia are advised to contact a local or national dyslexia association for advice. Further information on dyslexia assessments can be found on the NHS.UK website, at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/dyslexia/diagnosis/
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken with local authorities to help improve food hygiene ratings of catering businesses.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) is a consumer information scheme operated by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in partnership with local authorities across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of businesses to comply with food hygiene law at all times. However, the FSA provides Safer Food Better Business guidance to help small businesses manage food hygiene, and there is an information pack specifically for caterers at the following link:
https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/safer-food-better-business-for-caterers
The FSA also publishes guidance on inspections, the FHRS, and how to achieve the top rating. This guidance is available at the following link:
https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/preparing-for-your-first-food-hygiene-inspection
Businesses with low ratings will continue to receive follow up action or visits by local authorities to ensure that non-compliances are addressed. If the local authority officer finds that a business’s hygiene standards are very poor and food may be unsafe to eat, they must act to protect consumers. This could result in stopping part of the business or closing it down completely until it is safe to reopen it.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his Department’s policy to introduce a ban on mercury dental fillings in England.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Dental amalgam is a well-established, safe, and effective dental filling material. Current Department policy is to restrict and phase down the use of dental amalgam to reduce any environmental impacts. This includes regulations to ban the use of amalgam in baby teeth, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and children under 15 years old, except when deemed strictly necessary for specific medical needs. This has been in place since 2018.
The United Kingdom is party to the Minamata Convention on Mercury, a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from the adverse effects of mercury. The Minamata Convention has recommended that those party to the convention phase down the use of dental amalgam, which the UK does, for example, by restricting its use in under 15-year-olds.
The sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention is taking place from 3 November to 7 November 2025, where a ban on mercury dental amalgam will be discussed.