Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the NHS Federated Data Platform has completed roll out to all NHS trusts and integrated care systems.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The progress of the NHS Federated Data Platform’s uptake and deployment has exceeded programme expectations, surpassing the projected uptake. The programme planned to deliver to all National Health Service trusts and integrated care boards (ICBs) by 2027, based on a phased implementation over four and a half years. As of 27 November, the programme has signed up 41 of the 42 ICBs and a total of 165 trusts through a formal Memorandum of Understanding, with 122 trusts live or in delivery. Of those trusts signed up to the platform, there are 127 acute trusts, nine community trusts, 26 mental health trusts, and three ambulance trusts. It is anticipated that by the end of its third year the programme will have deployed tenancies to all 246 organisations.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he expects to receive the finalised report of the study into mesh complication surgery by the National Institute for Health and Care Research study.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the research delivery arm of the Department, funds and supports a range of research to support women’s health conditions, including pelvic organ prolapse.
In May 2023 the NIHR commissioned a £1.6 million study to develop a validated patient reported outcome measure for prolapse, incontinence, and mesh complication surgery, to better understand the short and long-term health impacts of pelvic mesh surgery. Further information is available at the following link:
https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/NIHR152187
This study is expected to report its findings in April 2026. The NIHR is also funding a study which will look at the long term effectiveness of surgical treatment for prolapse including pelvic mesh, with further information available at the following link:
https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/NIHR133665
The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health including the use of vaginal mesh to treat pelvic organ prolapse. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being 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 Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the reduction in the qualifying age for bowel cancer screening on detection rates in the past five years.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The final roll out of this policy only concluded in April 2025. As such, NHS England has not yet made any formal assessment of the impact of lowering the age for bowel cancer screening down to 50 on detection rates.
However, when making the recommendation to extend the screening age, from 60- to 74- year olds to 50- to 74- year olds, and to replace the faecal occult blood test with the faecal immunochemical test at the current test sensitivity threshold of 120 micrograms of haemoglobin per gram of faeces, these two activities combined were estimated to nearly double the number of colorectal cancer incidences detected and mortality reduced.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to Question 85105, tabled on 27 October 2025.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 13 November 2025 to Question 85105.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when does he expect to receive the results of the Generation Study.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan set out an ambition to “implement universal genomic testing” within the next decade. Delivering against this ambition will be subject to evidence gathered through the Generation Study. This research programme is evaluating the effectiveness of using whole genome sequencing to test 100,000 newborns for genetic mutations associated with more than 200 rare genetic conditions. The sequencing of 100,000 newborns through the study will be completed by summer 2027. The evaluation part of the study will then be completed and presented to the UK National Screening Committee who will make a recommendation to Government ministers on whether newborn genomic screening should be offered in the National Health Service or whether more research is required. Subject to this, and appropriate funding being available, genomic testing could be available for all newborns by 2035.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of people aged 75 years and over have requested a bowel screening kit by phoning the free bowel cancer screening helpline in the last two years.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service bowel cancer screening programme’s published data for 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2024 shows that 396,325 people self-referred or opted back into the programme within the year. This includes ‘over-age self-referrals’, those aged 75 years old and over who are not invited routinely, and also ‘late responder self-referrals’ who have not responded to the initial invitation but have later chosen to participate. This data cannot be disaggregated into each of the categories listed. This data is provided in the Bowel cancer screening standards data report 2022/23 and the Bowel cancer screening standards data report 2023/24, which are available, respectively, at the following two links:
Additional unpublished data available to the programme shows that for this time period, from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2024, 224,665 requests were made for self-referrals from individuals who are aged 75 years old and over. We are unable to identify if all of these requests were made via the bowel screening helpline. The total number of people aged 75 years old and over is 5,736,072, sourced from the Patients Registered at a GP Practice, October 2025 dataset, which is available at the following link:
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
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 NHS England on the level of risk of vaping on (a) fertility and (b) pregnancy.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The current evidence is clear that vaping is safer than smoking, including the impact on fertility and pregnancy. Smoking affects the ability to conceive for both men and women, with all stages of reproductive function affected by tobacco toxicants. Pregnant women are especially advised to quit smoking, due to the two-fold increased risk of low birthweight, 27% increase in premature birth, 32% increase in miscarriage, and 47% increase in stillbirth.
Whilst research in this area is limited, a study funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research found that vaping can be a more effective cessation aid for pregnant women than traditional nicotine replacement therapies, with almost twice as many women in this study quitting smoking with vapes rather than with nicotine patches. Importantly, this study concluded that the safety of vapes for use during pregnancy was similar to that of nicotine patches.
However, the long-term harms of vaping are not fully known. Therefore, non-smokers should not vape.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
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 more widespread availability of the drug 2-HDP.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are pleased to see promising results from the Queen's University Belfast study into the novel drug known as 2-Hydrazino-4,6-dimethylpyrimidine (2-HDP). This demonstrates the strength of the United Kingdom’s clinical research environment and the important role played by patient organisations such as Diabetes UK.
This is early-stage research and further studies, including clinical trials, are required before it can be made available to patients. We look forward to seeing how it progresses.
In the UK, medicines need to have a licence before they can be marketed. These are granted by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Licences confirm the health condition the medicine should be used for and the recommended dosage. To get a licence, the manufacturer of the medicine has to provide evidence which shows that the medicine is safe and effective enough to be used for a specific condition and for a specific group of patients, and that they can manufacture the medicine to the required quality.
The anticipated licensing timelines for 2-HDP are currently unknown, but the MHRA and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence liaise closely with pharmaceutical companies on their plans with respect to regulatory approval in the UK to support timely access to clinically and cost-effective licensed medicines for National Health Service patients.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress he is making on finding (a) a cure and (b) improved treatments for people with Huntingtons disease.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise the significant challenges faced by those living with rare diseases such as Huntington’s disease. Although there is currently no cure for the disease, there are efforts to ensure that innovative treatments and research opportunities reach patients and improve outcomes for those affected by Huntington’s disease. The Department supports research into Huntington’s disease through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR invests not only in individual studies but also in world-class research centres, a dedicated delivery workforce, and specialist facilities across the National Health Service. This infrastructure supports pioneering research into Huntington's, including the positive preliminary results for a novel gene therapy reported last month. The NIHR’s Be Part of Research service helps people find and participate in relevant research. There are eight Huntington’s disease studies currently recruiting.
The UK Rare Diseases Framework identifies four main priorities, including improving access to specialist care, treatments, and drugs. In February 2025, we published the England annual action plan, which outlines the steps we have taken to advance this priority.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how often the UK National Screening Committee met in 2024; and in what format it met.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) usually meets three times a year. In 2024 the UK NSC met twice, firstly in March, in an online format, and again in November, in person with online facilities available. The June meeting did not take place as it fell in between the pre-election period of 25 May to 4 July ahead of the United Kingdom general election. Information about the UK NSC’s meetings and minutes can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/uk-nsc-meetings-and-minutes