Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Written Statement of 23 February 2026 on Clinical trials, whether (a) he, (b) Ministers and (c) officials had discussions with MHRA on the Pathways clinical trial prior to February 2026.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Given that there are live legal proceedings, we are unable to comment on the details of the PATHWAYS trial.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Written Statement of 23 February 2026 on Clinical Trials, what information his Department holds on when the letter from MHRA to King's College London was (a) sent and (b) received; and on what date his Department became aware of (i) the letter and (ii) the concerns raised in the letter.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Given that there are live legal proceedings, we are unable to comment on the details of the PATHWAYS trial.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether any children were recruited for any arm of the Pathways clinical trials prior to it being paused.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

As announced on 20 February 2026, the PATHWAYS clinical trial has been paused, following new queries raised by the medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. No participants have been recruited to the trial and while it is paused recruitment will not start; therefore no children or young people will receive puberty suppression during this period.

As the intensive element of PATHWAYS HORIZON is designed to provide a matched control group for the trial, and as PATHWAYS CONNECT is designed to compare children and young people receiving puberty suppression with a group in the intensive element of PATHWAYS HORIZON, it is not possible for these aspects to progress without the TRIAL element. The other PATHWAYS study projects are not affected by this pause.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether (a) he, (b) Ministers and (c) officials had discussions with (i) NHS England, (ii) University of York and (iii) other researchers on the Data Linkage study in (A) November 2025, (B) December 2025 and (C) January 2026.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The data linkage study remains an important commitment and forms part of a wider national research programme underpinning the design and delivery of the new model of National Health Service care in place in England for children and young people with gender incongruence/dysphoria. No discussions were had with the University of York in November 2025, December 2025 and January 2026 about the data linkage study. The Department has, however, continued to regularly engage with and support NHS England, which has taken on responsibility for study delivery.

Important final steps are currently being taken to enable the study to begin. On 26 February, an updated order was laid in both Houses of Parliament to facilitate delivery of the data linkage study. The order will provide appropriate legal protections for those individuals and organisations who will be sharing or processing data potentially subject to the specific protections of the Gender Recognition Act 2004, for the purpose of the study. The order is expected to come in to force on 20 March 2026. Final Health Research Authority study approval will also need to be in place before the study can begin.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Written Statement of 23 February 2026 on Clinical trials, HCWS1347, in which the letter from MHRA refers to correspondence from 7 November 2025, if he will publish that correspondence.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is not releasing the 7 November letter at this point as the decision is the subject of litigation, and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency does not comment on ongoing litigation proceedings.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on what date he plans to bring into force the provisions of the Medical Training (Prioritisation) Bill.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 5 March 2026. The Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act 2026 (Commencement) Regulations 2026 were made on 5 March 2026, which brought into force all provisions of the Act on 6 March 2026.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the written statement on 26 February 2026 titled Data Linkage Study, whether he plans to complete the data linkage study before the Pathways puberty blockers trial commences.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The data linkage study is an important commitment within a wider national gender research programme, which is being jointly delivered by NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Research.

The data linkage study is observational in nature, linking and analysing existing, routinely collected healthcare data for adults who, as children, were referred into the former Gender Identity Development Service, previously operated by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. It is important to highlight that as the study is not designed as a comparative clinical trial, it will not provide direct evidence on the cause or effect of any individual treatment approach, nor provide evidence relating to any treatment’s safety or efficacy. Its findings will relate to a former, decommissioned model of NHS care and to a previous cohort of children and young people with gender incongruence.

The PATHWAYS suite of studies, including the currently paused clinical trial, and the data linkage study, have very different designs and will generate different types of new evidence. They remain separate elements of the wider national gender research programme, and their delivery timelines are not co-dependent.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the written statement on 26 February 2026 titled Data Linkage Study, whether he expects the data linkage study to be completed before the abolition of NHS England.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department currently expects the data linkage study analysis to have been completed, or be close to completion, by April 2027, dependent on the timing of research approvals being secured. However, should any remaining actions be required to complete, and publish the findings of, the study at the point NHS England is abolished, these will transfer as legacy delivery commitments for completion by the Department.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the written statement on 26 February 2026 titled Data Linkage Study, what is his expected timeframe for research and ethics approval.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Important final steps are currently being taken to enable the data linkage study to begin, including the laying of an updated statutory instrument, or Order, to provide appropriate legal protections for those individuals and organisations who will be sharing or processing data for the specific purpose of the study, that are potentially subject to the specific protections of the Gender Recognition Act 2004. In parallel, refreshed research approvals are currently being sought from the Health Research Authority (HRA). The HRA provides independent scrutiny and approval of research studies, with the outcome of the data linkage study’s application expected in the next few weeks. Both the new order and HRA study approvals will need to be in place before the study, including data sharing, can begin.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether all arms of the Pathways clinical trials have been paused.

Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The PATHWAYS TRIAL focuses on the effects of puberty suppressing hormones on young people’s physical, social, and emotional well-being specifically when offered alongside the new model of National Health Service gender care based on comprehensive assessment and tailored psychosocial support. Therefore, the PATHWAYS study includes three non-interventional research projects:

• PATHWAYS Voices involves speaking to young people, parents and staff about their experiences of living with gender incongruence and their care in NHS Gender Services;
• PATHWAYS Horizon tracks the physical, social and emotional wellbeing of all young people attending United Kingdom NHS Gender Services who want to take part in the Horizon study, along with their parents; and
• PATHWAYS Connect studies whether puberty suppressing hormones affect young people's thinking and brain development through cognitive tests and brain scans. It would include some young people in the PATHWAYS trial and also some of the young people from the Horizon study.

As announced on 20 February, the PATHWAYS clinical trial has been paused, following new queries raised by the medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. While it is paused, recruitment of children and young people into the trial will not start, and therefore no children or young people will receive puberty suppression. As the intensive element of PATHWAYS Horizon is designed to provide a matched control group for the trial, and as PATHWAYS Connect is designed to compare children and young people receiving puberty suppression with a group in the intensive element of PATHWAYS Horizon, it is not possible for these aspects to progress without the trial element. The other PATHWAYS study projects are not affected by this pause.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the written statement on 26 February 2026 titled Data Linkage Study, what the small but important improvements in study design are to which he refers in his statement.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Small but important proposed improvements include refining the data sharing requirement of adult gender clinics, so that data is only requested that directly relates to the study cohort. Careful consideration has also been given to how best to run the study-specific data opt out so that it is simpler and more accessible to individuals in the study cohort, and can remain open longer. This will provide the parallel benefit of reducing the administrative burden on individual gender clinics.

Excise

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Helen Hayes (Chair); Sureena Brackenridge; Dr Caroline Johnson; Darren

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Helen Hayes (Chair); Sureena Brackenridge; Dr Caroline Johnson; Darren

Submit Evidence (by 10 Apr 2026)

The Education Committee is looking to examine how artificial intelligence (AI) and EdTech are reshaping education across England, from early years settings to schools, colleges and universities. The Committee will explore the opportunities these technologies present for improving learning and teaching, as well as the risks they pose - including their potential impact on children’s digital rights, safeguarding, inequalities and assessment.