Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of eligibility criteria for the Respiratory Syncytial Virus vaccination programme for adults with serious underlying respiratory conditions, including pulmonary fibrosis; and whether his Department plans to review those criteria to allow access based on clinical risk.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
In line with independent expert advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), year-round respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccination programmes were introduced in England in September 2024 to protect infants, via maternal vaccination, and older adults aged 75 to 79 years old and those subsequently turning 75 years old.
When advising on the introduction of the RSV programmes, the JCVI said that an extension to the initial programmes would be considered when there was more certainty about protection for patients at higher risk of severe illness from RSV. Following further JCVI advice in June 2025, the older adult programme was expanded to also include those aged 80 years old and over and all residents in a care home for older adults from 1 April 2026.
At its main committee meeting of 2 February 2026, the JCVI reviewed the latest data on RSV vaccination in those with underlying health conditions. The committee advised that adults aged 65 to 74 years old with chronic respiratory disease or immunosuppression due to disease or treatment should also be offered RSV vaccination. A link to the full JCVI statement of 18 March 2026 is available at the following link:
On 1 July 2026, the Department accepted the latest JCVI advice and confirmed that these groups will be eligible for RSV vaccination in England from 1 September 2026. This includes people aged 65 to 74 years old with pulmonary fibrosis, which falls under the chronic respiratory disease group. The Written Ministerial Statement announcing this change is available at the following link:
https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2026-07-01/hcws170
This is a fast-moving area with new data emerging on a frequent basis, and so the JCVI will continue to keep evidence under review. The Department will consider any further JCVI advice on who should be offered an RSV immunisation in due course.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his Department's planned timetable is for publishing a response to the Law Commission’s 2023 report on surrogacy; and what steps it is taking to address concerns about the impact of potential uncertainty over (a) legal parenthood and (b) parental responsibility in the current surrogacy framework on (i) surrogates and (ii) intended parents.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The Government will respond to the Law Commission’s legislative proposals on surrogacy as time allows.
The commission’s report and recommendations cover issues around legal parenthood and parental responsibility in surrogacy. These will be considered carefully as part of the Government response.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
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 support patients affected by the discontinuation of hydrocortisone sodium phosphate 100mg/1ml solution in the UK, including ensuring continued access to appropriate emergency treatment for adrenal crisis.
Answered by Preet Kaur Gill
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Wokingham on 22 May 2026 to Question 2576.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of current prescription charging policy on people diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease under the age of 60.
Answered by Preet Kaur Gill
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Mid Dorset and North Poole on 1 June 2026 to Question 2931.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
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 that patients with endometriosis are able to access timely NHS surgical treatment, and to reduce the need for patients to seek private care.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are committed to returning to the National Health Service constitutional standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment by March 2029, including for gynaecology which covers endometriosis treatment. As of April 2026, 60.2% of patient pathways were waiting within 18 weeks for gynaecology, an improvement of 5.1 percentage points over the past year. The gynaecology waiting list stands at 571,944, down by 24,021 since the government came to office.
Our Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out reforms we are making to improve gynaecology waiting times across England. This includes utilising dedicated and protected surgical hubs which transform the way the NHS provides elective care by focusing on providing high volume low complexity surgery, as recommended by the Royal College of Surgeons of England.
Surgical hubs are helping endometriosis patients get quicker access to surgical treatment. There are currently 125 operational elective surgical hubs in England, around half of which provide gynaecology services, with laparoscopies, which are used to diagnose and treat endometriosis, a key part of this offering. The Department is committed to ramping up the number of hubs over the next 2 years, so more operations can be carried out.
Whilst progress has been made, we know there is more to do in improving access to treatment for endometriosis. That is why the renewed Women’s Health Strategy, published in April this year, identifies endometriosis as a priority condition and commits to ensuring that women get the care they need sooner.
We are introducing an “online hospital”, NHS Online. From 2027, people on certain pathways, including menstrual problems that may be a sign of endometriosis, will have the choice of getting the specialist care they need from their home. NHS Online will help to reduce patient waiting times, delivering the equivalent of up to 8.5 million appointments and assessments in its first three years across all specialities, supporting patients to get access to the care they need quickly, including access to surgical treatment.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
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 that self employed locum pharmacists are paid in a timely manner for services delivered within NHS contracted pharmacies; and whether he plans to introduce additional protections to prevent non payment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Secretary of State for Wales
Responsibility for agreeing contractual terms and for ensuring payment to self-employed locum pharmacists rests with the retail pharmacy businesses that deliver National Health Service pharmaceutical services.
Where locum pharmacists have trouble recovering unpaid fees, support is available through the Advisory, Conciliation, and Arbitration Service and Citizens Advice, including guidance on pursuing payment through the courts and on seeking unpaid wages or other sums owed by an insolvent business.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
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 consistency and effectiveness of (a) antenatal screening in detecting fetal cardiac conditions and (b) the efficacy of the Fetal anomaly screening programme handbook guidance in supporting early identification and treatment pathways for foetuses with cardiac abnormalities.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The Government recognises how worrying heart health can be for the families of babies and children. The NHS Fetal Anomaly Screening Programme (FASP) recommends the offer of an ultrasound scan which is performed between 18+0 to 20+6 weeks to screen for 11 physical conditions, including serious cardiac anomalies.
Coverage of the foetal anomaly ultrasound for the 2024/25 screening year was high, at 98%. As of 2020/21, the proportion of women who had an unexpected finding suspected or confirmed in the baby at the 20-week screening scan and who were then referred within the timeline was 76.8% for local referrals, those seen within three days of screening scan, and 85.2% for tertiary referrals, those seen with five days of screening scan. This ensures women with a suspected or confirmed unexpected finding are referred in a timely manner and receive timely intervention where appropriate. Minimum screening standards data is collected against the 20-week scan, with further information available at the following link:
NHS England is aware that there is geographical variation in antenatal cardiac detections and it is working with The National Congenital Anomaly and Rare Diseases Registration Services and the Screening Quality Assurance Service to address the variation, with further information about both services available at the following two links:
https://digital.nhs.uk/ndrs/about/ncardrs
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/nhs-population-screening-quality-assurance
NHS England also has a task and finish group looking at quality improvement in this area.
The NHS FASP handbook is a recommended guidance document for providers offering NHS FASP screening with the main aim of supporting healthcare professionals in delivering NHS FASP screening. This includes early identification of screened for conditions. NHS England FASP do not cover treatment pathways.
Additionally, NHS FASP provides an e-learning package with recommended timescales for completion for relevant healthcare professionals involved in the offer of NHS FASP screening, once every 24 months for ultrasound practitioners. This e-learning package is available at the following link:
https://portal.e-lfh.org.uk/Catalogue/Index?HierarchyId=0_37210&programmeId=37210
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of complaints and accountability processes for NHS patients referred to private healthcare providers.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed
The Local Authority Social Services and National Health Service Complaints (England) Regulations 2009 set out in law the minimum standards National Health Service organisations, and independent providers of NHS-funded care, must adhere to in respect of their complaint handling arrangements. Under the regulations, patients who have received NHS-funded care and wish to make a complaint can do so to either the provider or the commissioner that paid for the service.
In our 10-Year Health Plan for England, we acknowledged that the NHS complaints procedure is far from where it needs to be. Through Change NHS, the biggest ever conversation on the future of the NHS, we heard from patients and carers about their struggle to get responses to their concerns. As committed to in the 10-Year Health Plan, we intend to improve the complaints process across all NHS commissioners and providers, setting clear standards for both the timeliness and the quality of responses to complaints.
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate the Government has made of the prevalence of ketamine addiction among under 25s; what steps the Government is taking to address ketamine addiction among young people; and what tailored addiction support the Government is providing for young people.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
The Department takes seriously the risk of ketamine and other drugs to our young people and is working with partners from across the Government to respond to existing and new drug threats and to reduce and prevent the health harms.
Ketamine use among children and young people has increased in recent years. According to the Crime Survey for England and Wales, the prevalence of ketamine use among 16 to 24 year olds was 2.9% in 2023/24. This is an increase from 1.3% in 2018/19, but a decrease from 3.8% in 2022/23. Data from the Smoking, Drinking and Drugs 2023 survey shows that, although relatively low, the prevalence of ketamine use among school children doubled in the last decade, from 0.4% in 2014 to 0.9% in 2023. We also know that the proportion of young people aged under 18 years old who are in treatment for ketamine problems has increased from 1.3% in 2016/17, to 8.4% in 2023/24.
The Government is committed to ensuring that anyone with a drug problem can access the help and support they need, and we recognise the need for evidence-based, high-quality treatment. In addition to the Public Health Grant, in 2025/26, the Department is providing £310 million in additional targeted grants to improve drug and alcohol treatment services and recovery support in England, including for housing and employment.
Furthermore, on 16 October 2025, the Department launched a campaign to alert young people to the dangers of ketamine, as well as synthetic opioids in counterfeit medicines and adulterated THC vapes. Resources have been made available to schools, universities, and local public health teams with content available on FRANK, the Government’s drug information and advice website. Influencer content has been posted on social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat. The full press notice is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/young-people-given-stark-warning-on-deadly-risks-of-taking-drugs
Asked by: Claire Hazelgrove (Labour - Filton and Bradley Stoke)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) manufacturers on the effectiveness of the packaging and labelling of SSRIs in warning patients of (a) the associated risks, (b) suicidal thoughts as a side effect of their use and (c) withdrawal symptoms.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for ensuring that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) packaging and labelling produced by marketing authorisation holders (MAHs) reflects what is known about the safety of these medicines for patients on all associated risks or side effects, including suicidal thoughts and withdrawal symptoms.
The product information can be updated based on new safety data or to address concerns. The MHRA wrote to the MAHs of SSRIs to inform them of an independent expert working group (EWG) review into how the risk of suicidal behaviour and sexual dysfunction where symptoms continue are communicated in patient leaflets. Updates to the statutory patient information leaflets (PILs) for antidepressants were agreed for the risk of “post-SSRI sexual dysfunction” for some of the 28 antidepressants involved in the review. The EWG recommended that proposed updates to the PILs on the risk of suicidal behaviour should be tested by a group of patients with a range of mental health conditions and the MHRA is currently exploring the most appropriate way to take this advice forward
In addition to this work, a review into how the risk of withdrawal symptoms is communicated in the SSRI and other antidepressants patient leaflets will be started by the MHRA later in the year and all affected MAHs will be informed.