Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with Sussex Police on their investigation into alleged medical negligence at the Royal Sussex County Hospital; and whether he has considered providing additional resources to support their inquiry.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has not had recent discussions with Sussex Police on their investigation and the provision of additional resources has not been considered to support them.
Ministers have met with the leadership of University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust and are aware of the ongoing investigation. We have been reassured that the Trust and Sussex Police maintain an open and constructive working relationship, and governance frameworks are in place to safeguard patients, families, and staff.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will have discussions with Cabinet colleagues on how to support individuals who develop temporomandibular disorder as a result of orthodontic treatment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Information is not held centrally on the number of people with temporomandibular disorder linked to orthodontic treatment.
More widely, the Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of people diagnosed with temporomandibular disorder linked to orthodontic malpractice.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Information is not held centrally on the number of people with temporomandibular disorder linked to orthodontic treatment.
More widely, the Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 make (a) dental mouth guards and (b) other dental orthotics services available for free on the NHS for people who are on Pension Credit.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Dental mouth guards are available for free to any patient who is in receipt of Pension Credit, Guarantee Credit, or anyone else who is exempt from dental patient charges, where they have a specific dental need for one. There are currently no plans to change the dental patient charge exemption criteria.
National Health Service orthodontic treatment is free for people under 18 years old with a clear health need for treatment. Orthodontic treatment is not usually available on the NHS for adults. More information is available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/orthodontics/
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 increase access to NHS dentistry for (a) pensioners and (b) people who are unable to afford private treatment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to areas that need them most. Sussex Integrated Care Board, which includes Lewes constituency, is expected to deliver 26,546 additional urgent dental appointments.
The responsibility for commissioning primary care, including dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England.
Free NHS dental care is available to people who meet the following criteria: aged under 18 years old, or under 19 years old and in full-time education; pregnant or have had a baby in the previous 12 months; being treated in an NHS hospital and the treatment is carried out by the hospital dentist, with patients possibly having to pay for any dentures or bridges; or receiving low-income benefits, or under 20 years old and a dependant of someone receiving low-income benefits.
Support is also available through the NHS Low Income Scheme for those patients who are not eligible for exemption or full remission of dental patient charges. More information is available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/dentists/who-is-entitled-to-free-nhs-dental-treatment-in-england/
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 reduce waiting times for endometriosis treatment in Sussex, including (a) specialist consultations and (b) surgery.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
At the end of December 2024, the gynaecology waiting list, which includes those waiting for endometriosis treatment, for Sussex Integrated Care Board stood at 18,454, with 54.3% of patient pathways waiting less than 18 weeks.
As set out in the Plan for Change, we have committed to return to the NHS constitutional standard that 92% of patients, including those waiting for endometriosis treatment, wait no longer than 18 weeks from Referral to Treatment (RTT) by March 2029. We have already supported this with additional investment in the Autumn Budget 2024, which has enabled us to deliver an additional two million appointments, seven months ahead of schedule.
There are a range of efforts underway, nationally and in Sussex, to reduce the time patients are waiting for gynaecological care. The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the productivity and reform efforts we will undertake to return to the 18-week standard, and ensure patients have the best possible experience while they wait. This includes increasing the relative funding available to support gynaecology procedures, including for certain endometriosis pathways, with the largest waiting lists and reviewing support options from the independent sector.
Sussex has launched Women’s Health Hubs in five locations, namely Hastings, Eastbourne, Brighton and Hove, Worthing, and Horsham. The core specification in the hub model includes menstrual problems, assessment, and treatment, including but not limited to, care for heavy, painful, or irregular menstrual bleeding, and care for conditions such as endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome. The establishment of these five hubs aims to improve access for local women to advice, support and treatment.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department plans to remove the requirement for female same-sex couples to self-fund initial IVF treatments; and what steps he has taken to ensure equal access to fertility services across the NHS.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that fertility treatment across the National Health Service in England is subject to variation in access. Work continues on joint advice from the Department and NHS England about the offer around NHS-funded fertility services, including the issues for female same sex couples.
Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards and are based on the clinical needs of their local population. We expect these organisations to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines, ensuring equal access to fertility treatment across England. NICE is currently reviewing these guidelines.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 improve access to public defibrillators outside of business hours in (a) rural, (b) suburban and (c) other areas.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to improving access to automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in public spaces, and reducing inequalities in access to these life saving devices. We have made a further £500,000 available from August 2024 to fulfil existing applications to the Department’s Community AED Fund. The criteria specified for the original grant continues to apply and will go to applications for AEDs in areas of England where there is the greatest need, including in areas of high footfall, hot spots for cardiac arrest, and areas that already have low access to AEDs. A further requirement of the fund was that AEDs be publicly accessible 24 hours a day, where practical.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 Enhertu in (a) Scotland and (b) Europe compared to (c) England and (d) Wales.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Health is a devolved matter and decisions on the availability of medicines in Scotland and Wales are a matter for their own administrations. Other European countries operate very different health systems and direct comparisons of medicine availability are very difficult.
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.
The 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 routinely funded for eligible patients in England in line with the NICE’s recommendations.
The 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 the NICE and NHS England have 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 the NICE and NHS England offering unprecedented flexibilities, the companies were unable to offer Enhertu at a cost-effective price. The NICE’s guidance, published in July 2024, will therefore remain unchanged. Although the deadline for a rapid review has now passed, the 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: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 (a) transparency and (b) public trust in the collection and sharing of NHS patient data.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Strong public trust is critical for the collection and sharing of National Health Service patient data, and transparency is key to building that trust and retaining public confidence.
NHS England publishes a range of documentation to maintain transparency about how data is used. These include:
- directions made by my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, to NHS England to establish information systems;
- Data Protection Impact Assessments and other documentation, which provide information on how the information will be used in particular programmes; and
- data use registers that include details of external data sharing agreements and are published monthly. All NHS Research Network Secure Data Environments also maintain a data use register that includes details of data access agreements.
Statutory roles and functions have also been established to provide confidence and assurance that data is used lawfully and for the benefit of patients. The Confidentiality Advisory Group of the Health Research Authority (HRA), provides independent, expert advice to the HRA, and to my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on the use of confidential patient information, and their minutes and a register of the applications and decisions made are published. The National Data Guardian (NDG) provides advice to help ensure that people’s confidential information is kept safe and used properly. The eight Caldicott rules established by the previous NDG set out key principles for the use of confidential information, including that individuals are informed about how their data is used. Caldicott guardians in every NHS organisation work to ensure these principles are upheld. The NDG publishes an annual report on their work and objectives.
To further build trust, we are delivering a national programme of large-scale public engagement on data which will reach over 6,000 people across England, representative of our diverse communities. This provides the opportunity for us to meaningfully involve the public in decisions and changes to how their health data is used, and complements smaller-scale activities carried out by data programmes throughout the NHS.