Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 create capacity in hospital eye services by expanding the use of optometry-led diagnostic and treatment pathways.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards are responsible for assessing the health needs of their local population and commissioning primary and secondary eye care services to meet them.
This can already include the commissioning of enhanced eye care services from high street optical practices, including minor and urgent eye care services and glaucoma referral refinement services.
NHS England accelerator pilots have demonstrated that improved IT connectivity and a single point of access can significantly speed up eye care referrals and support more patients to be managed in the community, in line with the ambitions in the 10-Year Health Plan.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 of 21 February 2025 entitled Dental patients to benefit from 700,000 extra urgent appointments, how many of the additional urgent care appointments were purchased in 2025 by integrated care board.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the number of National Health Service urgent treatments delivered each year between 2020/21 and 2024/25:
Financial year | Number of urgent dental treatments delivered |
2024/25 | 3,658,273 |
2023/24 | 3,674,710 |
2022/23 | 3,785,952 |
2021/22 | 3,819,226 |
2020/21 | 3,646,868 |
Source: NHS Business Services Authority, Dental statistics - England 2024/25, avaiable at the following link:
https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202425
Comparable monthly data on the number of urgent dental appointments delivered is not published.
We have asked integrated care boards (ICBs) to commission extra urgent dental appointments to make sure that patients with urgent needs can get the treatment they require. ICBs have been making extra appointments available from April 2025.
Appointments are available across the country, with specific expectations for each region. These appointments are more heavily weighted towards those areas where they are needed the most. The Surrey Heartlands ICB, which includes the Epsom and Ewell constituency, has been asked to deliver 6,585 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.
Data on delivery of urgent dental care, including additional delivery, will be published annually as part of the NHS Dental Statistics England Official Statistics series. These statistics are released each August and are the primary source of data on the delivery of NHS dental care.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many urgent dental appointments were delivered in each month from January 2024 to January 2025.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the number of National Health Service urgent treatments delivered each year between 2020/21 and 2024/25:
Financial year | Number of urgent dental treatments delivered |
2024/25 | 3,658,273 |
2023/24 | 3,674,710 |
2022/23 | 3,785,952 |
2021/22 | 3,819,226 |
2020/21 | 3,646,868 |
Source: NHS Business Services Authority, Dental statistics - England 2024/25, avaiable at the following link:
https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202425
Comparable monthly data on the number of urgent dental appointments delivered is not published.
We have asked integrated care boards (ICBs) to commission extra urgent dental appointments to make sure that patients with urgent needs can get the treatment they require. ICBs have been making extra appointments available from April 2025.
Appointments are available across the country, with specific expectations for each region. These appointments are more heavily weighted towards those areas where they are needed the most. The Surrey Heartlands ICB, which includes the Epsom and Ewell constituency, has been asked to deliver 6,585 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.
Data on delivery of urgent dental care, including additional delivery, will be published annually as part of the NHS Dental Statistics England Official Statistics series. These statistics are released each August and are the primary source of data on the delivery of NHS dental care.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many urgent dental appointments were delivered each year from 2020 up to and including 2025.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the number of National Health Service urgent treatments delivered each year between 2020/21 and 2024/25:
Financial year | Number of urgent dental treatments delivered |
2024/25 | 3,658,273 |
2023/24 | 3,674,710 |
2022/23 | 3,785,952 |
2021/22 | 3,819,226 |
2020/21 | 3,646,868 |
Source: NHS Business Services Authority, Dental statistics - England 2024/25, avaiable at the following link:
https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202425
Comparable monthly data on the number of urgent dental appointments delivered is not published.
We have asked integrated care boards (ICBs) to commission extra urgent dental appointments to make sure that patients with urgent needs can get the treatment they require. ICBs have been making extra appointments available from April 2025.
Appointments are available across the country, with specific expectations for each region. These appointments are more heavily weighted towards those areas where they are needed the most. The Surrey Heartlands ICB, which includes the Epsom and Ewell constituency, has been asked to deliver 6,585 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.
Data on delivery of urgent dental care, including additional delivery, will be published annually as part of the NHS Dental Statistics England Official Statistics series. These statistics are released each August and are the primary source of data on the delivery of NHS dental care.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 merits of removing the exceptionality requirement for Individual Funding Requires for Chemosaturation therapy and comparable intervention for people whose lives are at risk.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department and the National Health Service in England are committed to ensuring that cancer patients have timely access to treatment and tailored medical support. In 2016, NHS England concluded that there was insufficient evidence to make chemosaturation treatment available to patients on the NHS. NHS England is currently in the early stages of policy development for chemosaturation to treat metastatic uveal melanoma where surgery to remove or destroy affected cells and tissue in the liver is not feasible.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance recommends that chemosaturation can be used for patients with secondary liver metastases resulting from a primary ocular melanoma, provided special arrangements are in place. A special arrangements recommendation states that clinicians using the procedure should inform the clinical governance lead in their trust, tell the patient about the uncertainties regarding the safety and efficacy of the procedure, and collect further data by means of audit or research. NICE is in the process of updating its guidance, with final guidance expected on 15 October 2026. The first committee meeting, to discuss the evidence, is expected to take place on 16 April 2026. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-ipg10448
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 publication date for the draft commissioning policy for Chemosaturation therapy.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department and the National Health Service in England are committed to ensuring that cancer patients have timely access to treatment and tailored medical support. In 2016, NHS England concluded that there was insufficient evidence to make chemosaturation treatment available to patients on the NHS. NHS England is currently in the early stages of policy development for chemosaturation to treat metastatic uveal melanoma where surgery to remove or destroy affected cells and tissue in the liver is not feasible.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance recommends that chemosaturation can be used for patients with secondary liver metastases resulting from a primary ocular melanoma, provided special arrangements are in place. A special arrangements recommendation states that clinicians using the procedure should inform the clinical governance lead in their trust, tell the patient about the uncertainties regarding the safety and efficacy of the procedure, and collect further data by means of audit or research. NICE is in the process of updating its guidance, with final guidance expected on 15 October 2026. The first committee meeting, to discuss the evidence, is expected to take place on 16 April 2026. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-ipg10448
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 decrease treatment wait times for patients with metastatic ocular melanoma.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department remains committed to ensuring that cancer patients, including those with metastatic ocular melanoma, have timely access to treatment and tailored medical support.
The Government supports Scott Arthur’s Private Members Bill on rare cancers which will make it easier for clinical trials into rare cancers to take place in England by ensuring the patient population can be easily contacted by researchers. This will ensure that the National Health Service will remain at the forefront of medical innovation and is able to provide patients with the newest, most effective treatment options, and ultimately boost survival rates.
The forthcoming National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for patients with cancer, as well as speeding up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, and ultimately driving up this country’s cancer survival rates. This will benefit all cancer patients, including metastatic ocular melanoma patients.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 regulate food preservatives associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and cancer.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
All food additives used in the United Kingdom, including preservatives, are subject to rigorous safety assessments before they are authorised for use. These assessments consider the intended purpose, the types of foods they may be added to, and maximum permitted levels to ensure consumer safety.
The permitted levels are established in line with the latest scientific evidence to protect health, and there is no conclusive evidence that approved preservatives, when used within these limits, increase the risk of type 2 diabetes or cancer.
The Food Standards Agency is responsible for food safety in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and regularly reviews emerging evidence, taking action if new risks are identified.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has been made of the merits of providing training to mental health teams to support children with lifelong speech and language difficulties.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
No such specific assessment has been made. The Department of Health and Social Care is working closely with the Department for Education and NHS England to improve access to community health services, including speech and language therapy, for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
In addition to the undergraduate degree route, speech and language therapists can now also train via a degree apprenticeship. This route is going into its fourth year of delivery and offers an alternative pathway to the traditional degree route into a successful career as a speech and language therapist.
In partnership with NHS England, the Department for Education has extended the Early Language and Support for Every Child programme, trialling new ways of working to better identify and support children with Speech, Language and Communication Needs in early years settings and primary schools.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the budget for NHS dentistry is for 2026.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 2026/27 dental ringfenced budget for NHS dentistry is £4.2 billion. For 2026/27, the budget for dental checks in Special Educational Settings (SES) is being included within the dental ringfenced budget. This was previously included within the wider Pharmacy, Ophthalmic, Dental (POD) budget but was not ringfenced with other dental spend.
NHS England has now published the Medium-Term Planning Framework for delivering change together 2026/27 to 2028/29, which is available at the following link:
In addition, information on allocations for 2026/27 to 2027/28 is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/allocation-of-resources-2026-27-to-2027-28/
NHS organisations are now in the process of developing their operational plans that will detail how they will meet the standards set out in the Medium-Term Planning Framework.
A separate schedule has been issued setting out the 2026/27 to 2028/29 Integrated Care Board (ICB) POD allocations. The utilisation of ICB POD allocations is subject to a ringfence on budgets for dental services. More information is available at the following link: