Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 25 June 2025 to Question 60037 on Dentistry: Higher Education, when he expects the Privy Council approval process to be completed.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Privy Council must be satisfied that it has all the required information before it can make a final decision to award Dental Authority Status to an organisation.
I understand that the Privy Council Office has recently requested additional information from Portsmouth Dental Academy pertinent to its application, and that it is awaiting a response.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
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 Ministerial Statement of 22 May 2025, HCWS652, whether programmatic advertisements served to UK residents on non-UK sites will be covered by the regulations.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has committed to implementing advertising restrictions for less healthy food and drink on television and online as part of its ambition to raise the healthiest generation of children ever. These restrictions are expected to remove up to 7.2 billion calories from United Kingdom children’s diets per year and deliver £2 billion in health benefits.
As set out in the Communications Act 2003 (as amended by the Health and Care Act 2022), the online restrictions will apply to advertisements which are intended to be accessed principally by people in the United Kingdom. The Advertising Standards Authority, as the frontline regulator, will issue guidance to set out how this will be enforced. As also set out in legislation, video on demand (VOD) and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) services that are under the jurisdiction of the UK, and therefore regulated by Ofcom, will be subject to the 9:00pm television watershed. Whereas VOD and IPTV services not regulated by Ofcom, and therefore outside of UK jurisdiction, will be subject to the 24-hour online restrictions.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of awarding Dental Schools status to the University of Portsmouth Dental Academy.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
All United Kingdom dental education providers must have Dental Authority Status (DAS) before they can award degrees in dentistry. DAS is a legal status described in the Dentists Act 1984 and awarded to organisations by the Privy Council.
The Portsmouth Dental Academy has submitted an application to the Privy Council for DAS. This is currently going through the Privy Council’s approval process.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
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 22 May 2025 on Childhood Obesity, HCWS652, what his distinction is between a product and a brand.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to implementing advertising restrictions for less healthy food and drink on television and online, as part of its ambition to raise the healthiest generation of children ever.
Advertising restrictions for less healthy food or drink will be determined by whether a television channel or video-on-demand service is regulated by Ofcom. All Ofcom-regulated services, whether broadcast or delivered over the internet, will be subject to a 9:00pm watershed. All other internet-delivered television services will be subject to the 24-hour restriction.
We announced in a Written Ministerial Statement to Parliament on 22 May that the Government will set out in legislation an explicit brand exemption from the advertising restrictions for brand advertising that does not identify a less healthy food or drink product. This will provide legal clarification on this aspect of the existing policy as it was understood and agreed by Parliament during the passage of the Health and Care Bill, following extensive consultation.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
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 22 May 2025 on Childhood Obesity, HCWS652, whether the output of TV channels not viewed as live broadcast TV will count as (a) TV and (b) online.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to implementing advertising restrictions for less healthy food and drink on television and online, as part of its ambition to raise the healthiest generation of children ever.
Advertising restrictions for less healthy food or drink will be determined by whether a television channel or video-on-demand service is regulated by Ofcom. All Ofcom-regulated services, whether broadcast or delivered over the internet, will be subject to a 9:00pm watershed. All other internet-delivered television services will be subject to the 24-hour restriction.
We announced in a Written Ministerial Statement to Parliament on 22 May that the Government will set out in legislation an explicit brand exemption from the advertising restrictions for brand advertising that does not identify a less healthy food or drink product. This will provide legal clarification on this aspect of the existing policy as it was understood and agreed by Parliament during the passage of the Health and Care Bill, following extensive consultation.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 19 May 2025 to Question 52225, whether there is a (a) budget cap, (b) indicative range and (c) best estimate of the money allocated in this financial year's capital budget for the purchase of land near Junction 7 of the M3.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The New Hospital Programme (NHP) has confirmed the budget allocation for Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust’s land purchase in this financial year. This does include a budget cap which is based on an estimate of what is expected to be required to complete the land acquisition. The actual funding amount will only be confirmed once the short form business case is approved as per the business case process set out in HM Treasury Green Book.
The trust is currently in the process of developing their short form business case in relation to the purchase of land near Junction 7 of the M3 with support from the NHP.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his Answer of 19 May 2025 to Question 52225 on Hospitals: Basingstoke, what is the timescale for the short form business case for the purchase of land near Junction 7 of the M3.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The New Hospital Programme (NHP) has confirmed the budget allocation for Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust’s land purchase in this financial year. This does include a budget cap which is based on an estimate of what is expected to be required to complete the land acquisition. The actual funding amount will only be confirmed once the short form business case is approved as per the business case process set out in HM Treasury Green Book.
The trust is currently in the process of developing their short form business case in relation to the purchase of land near Junction 7 of the M3 with support from the NHP.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Almost million more pupils get access to mental health support, published on 16 May 2025, whether the next phase of the implementation schedule for mental health support teams in schools differs from that of the previous Government.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Almost one million more young people will have access to mental health support in school this year. Previous plans to expand mental health support in schools were unfunded. By confirming this new investment, six in 10 pupils will have access to a mental health support team by March 2026. All pupils will have access to mental health support in school by 2029/30.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much (a) capital funding and (b) revenue funding has been allocated for the purchase of land near Junction 7 of the M3 for development of a new hospital for Basingstoke and North Hampshire.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The New Hospital Programme confirmed to the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust on 7 May that it has included provision for the purchase of land for their scheme in this financial year’s capital budget. Revenue budget is not expected to be needed.
The funding amount will be confirmed once the short form business case is approved as per the business case process set out in HM Treasury’s Green Book.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 10 December 2024 to Question 17083 on Mental Health Services: Schools, whether planned aspects of provision of access to a specialist mental health professional in every school go beyond the plan to introduce Mental Health Support Teams.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has committed to expanding Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) in schools and colleges to reach 100% coverage by 2029/30. As the programme matures, the Department of Health and Social Care will work with the Department for Education to consider if there are ways the MHST offer can be improved to better support children and young people.
We also continue to work with the Department for Education to deliver our commitment of providing access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England. We are also working across Government and with NHS England to set up a network of community Young Futures hubs.
We are currently developing the 10-Year Health Plan with the public, staff, and patients. We continue to listen to emerging insights on children and young people’s mental health and are taking participants' concerns seriously. The consultation process has provided invaluable feedback, and we are in the process of exploring how we best take this forward.