Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to increase specialist capacity for complex and rare connective tissue disorders.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise the significant challenges faced by those living with complex and rare connective tissue disorders such as Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS). Optimal management of these conditions is across services beginning with primary care, including various services and pathways within primary and intermediate care, which allows for appropriate identification of those patients who have the rarer and more complex manifestations and appropriate resources for them. Integrated care boards have a statutory responsibility to commission services which meet the needs of their local population, including for those with complex and rare connective tissue disorders.
A primary goal of the Complex EDS Service, which is commissioned by NHS England, is to educate referring doctors about the diagnosis, investigation, and management of patients with complex and atypical forms of EDS. While the service focuses on rare types and accepts referrals from secondary and tertiary care, its development of guidelines and educational initiatives also benefits general practitioners who are on the front line of patient care.
Under the UK Rare Diseases Framework, the government is working to improve coordination of care across all rare conditions including rare connective tissue disorders.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
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 help reduce waiting times for ADHD medication.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) in England to make appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including providing access to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessment and treatment, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
NHS England established an ADHD taskforce which brought together those with lived experience with experts from the National Health Service, education, charity, and justice sectors to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including in accessing timely and equitable access to services and support. We are pleased that the taskforce's final report was published in November 2025, and we are carefully considering its recommendations.
For the first time, NHS England published management information on ADHD waits at a national level on 29 May 2025 as part of its ADHD data improvement plan; it will soon release technical guidance to ICBs to improve recording of ADHD data, with a view to improving the quality of ADHD waits data. NHS England has also captured examples from ICBs who are trialling innovative ways of delivering ADHD services and is using this information to support systems to tackle ADHD waiting lists and provide support to address people’s needs.
My rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced on 4 December 2025 the launch of an Independent Review into Prevalence and Support for Mental Health Conditions, ADHD and Autism. This independent review will inform our approach to enabling people with ADHD and autistic people to have the right support to enable them to live well in their communities.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
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 potential merits of increasing the accessibility of Enhertu as a treatment for breast cancer.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Decisions on whether new medicines should be routinely funded by the National Health Service in England are made on the basis of recommendations from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) following an evaluation of a treatment’s costs and benefits. These are very difficult decisions to make, and it is important that they are made independently and on the basis of the available evidence.
NICE has recommended Enhertu (trastuzumab deruxtecan) in advanced breast cancer for treating HER2-positive unresectable or metastatic breast cancer after one or more anti-HER 2 treatments and for treating HER2-positive unresectable or metastatic breast cancer after two or more anti-HER2 therapies. Enhertu is now funded for eligible patients in England in line with NICE’s recommendations.
NICE published guidance in July 2024 on the use of Enhertu for the treatment of HER-2 low metastatic and unresectable breast cancer and was unfortunately unable to recommend it for routine NHS funding. I understand that NICE and NHS England sought to apply as much flexibility as they can in their considerations of Enhertu for HER2-low breast cancer and have made it clear to the companies that their pricing of the drug remains the only obstacle to access.
Ministers met with the manufacturers of Enhertu, AstraZeneca, and Daiichi Sankyo in November 2024, to encourage them to re-engage in commercial discussions with NHS England. Despite NICE and NHS England offering unprecedented flexibilities, the companies were unable to offer Enhertu at a cost-effective price. NICE’s guidance published in July 2024 will therefore remain unchanged. Although the deadline for a rapid review has now passed, NICE has reassured me that the door remains open for the companies to enter into a new NICE appraisal if they are willing to offer Enhertu at a cost-effective price.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions the Government has had with representatives of the United States on the pricing of medicines for the NHS in the last six months.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The pharmaceutical sector and the innovative medicines it produces are critical to our national interest, helping people to access life changing treatments, reducing pressure on the health service over the longer-term, and ensuring we have a National Health Service that is fit for the future.
Thanks to the strength of our relationship with the United States, we have secured the first and only deal with them that delivers 0% tariffs on pharmaceutical products, the lowest rate offered to any country. This deal secures the United Kingdom’s access to and supply of medicines for tens of thousands of patients while safeguarding our supply chain and ensuring groundbreaking new treatments will reach the NHS front line quicker. It also delivers mitigations on the US’ ‘Most Favoured Nation’ policy and preferential terms for UK MedTech exports, helping expand access innovative treatments for patients and driving crucial investment in the UK.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
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 adequacy of the availability of ADHD medication.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has made substantial progress in improving the availability of medicines for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), working closely with industry and key stakeholders to resolve previous supply challenges. Through intensive work with industry, NHS England and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency have resolved most of the previous shortages. All strengths of lisdexamfetamine, atomoxetine, both the capsules and the oral solution, guanfacine prolonged-release tablets, and methylphenidate prolonged-release tablets are now available.
There is a current supply issue with methylphenidate 30 milligram prolonged-release capsules, brand name Equasym XL, which is out of stock until late December. The Department has issued guidance to healthcare professionals with advice on how to manage patients until this shortage resolves.
We continue to work closely with suppliers to resolve the few remaining challenges and to strengthen resilience in the supply chain. This includes securing additional stocks, expediting deliveries, and expanding the United Kingdom supplier base to support future demand. In collaboration with NHS England’s ADHD taskforce and national data improvement plan, we are developing growth forecasts to improve demand planning and ensure a sustainable supply of ADHD medicines.
To support prescribers and dispensers, the Department maintains and regularly updates a list of currently available and unavailable ADHD products on the Specialist Pharmacy Service website, at the following link:
www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/prescribing-available-medicines-to-treat-adhd
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
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 current strategic approach to ME/CFS research; and whether his Department plans to develop a coordinated national research strategy for the condition.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have outlined our strategy to support myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), research in the ME/CFS Final Delivery Plan published in July. These steps include a research showcase event, a new funding opportunity for a development award focussed on evaluating repurposed pharmaceutical interventions, and the announcement of new funded studies in health and care services, and research infrastructure and capacity-building.
We are determined to accelerate progress in the treatment and management of ME/CFS and will continue working with the ME/CFS community to identify and address barriers to research, with the ambition of supporting more research and capacity-building programmes.
The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including ME/CFS. Research funding is available, and applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
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 the early flu season on corridor care, hospital capacity and patient outcomes.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We continue to monitor the impact of flu and the performance of hospitals over the winter months.
The Department is continuing to take key steps to ensure the health service is prepared for the colder months. This includes taking actions to try and reduce demand pressure on accident and emergency, increasing vaccination rates, and offering health checks to the most vulnerable, as well as stress-testing integrated care boards and trust winter plans to ensure that they are able to meet demand and ensure patient flow.
Flu is a recurring pressure that the National Health Service faces every winter. There is particular risk of severe illness for older people, the very young, pregnant people, and those with certain underlying health conditions. The flu vaccine remains the best form of defense against influenza, particularly for the most vulnerable, and continues to be highly effective at preventing severe disease and hospitalisation.