Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what (a) assessment he has made and (b) research his Department has commissioned on the potential impact of Parkinson’s Disease on the (i) NHS, (ii) social care and (iii) the economy in (A) 2025 and (B) the future.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are a number of initiatives at the national level supporting service improvement and better care for patients with Parkinson’s disease, including the RightCare Progressive Neurological Conditions Toolkit and the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology.
NHS England has also established a Neurology Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically led programme, which has developed a new model of integrated care for neurology services, to support integrated care boards (ICBs) to deliver the right service, at the right time for all neurology patients. This focuses on providing access equitably across the country, care as close to home as possible, and early intervention to prevent illness and deterioration in patients with long-term neurological conditions. A toolkit is being developed to support ICBs to understand and implement this new model, which will include components on delivering acute neurology services, improving health equity in neurology and improving community neurology services.
We have set up a United Kingdom-wide Neuro Forum, facilitating formal, biannual meetings across the Department, NHS England, devolved governments and health services, and Neurological Alliances of all four nations. The new forum brings key stakeholders together, to share learnings across the system and discuss challenges, best practice examples and potential solutions for improving the care of people with neurological conditions, including Parkinson’s disease.
The Government is strongly committed to supporting research into Parkinson’s disease to support prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care. The Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), is investing £6 million in two Dementia & Neurodegeneration Policy Research Units to increase evidence and inform policymaking in the Department and its arms-length bodies, including for Parkinson’s disease. This includes research exploring the impact of place, ethnicity and socio-demographic characteristics on health service utilisation by people with Parkinson’s and how health and social care services can best support people living alone with Parkinson’s.
The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including Parkinson’s disease. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made based on the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
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 the (a) treatment and (b) care of patients with (a) non-preventable and progressive neurological conditions and (ii) Parkinson’s through the 10-Year Health Plan.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The three shifts outlined in the 10-Year Health Plan will revolutionise care for people with Parkinson’s and other non-preventable progressive neurological conditions by shifting from hospital-centric care to community-based and preventative approaches, alongside utilising technologies for better access to services and management of their care.
Neighbourhood health centres will provide integrated, accessible, and localised services that will focus on early detection and diagnosis and comprehensive multidisciplinary care. By being community based, the centres will reduce barriers to care and ongoing support and will empower patients to manage their condition more effectively.
People with complex conditions like Parkinson's will be offered a personalised care plan, developed with healthcare professionals. These will improve coordination and ensure care is tailored to the individual's needs.
We have committed to at least doubling the number of people offered a personal health budget by the 2028/29 financial year, and we will make personal health budgets a universal offer for all who would benefit from them by 2035. This will give people greater autonomy, flexibility, and involvement in their own healthcare, allowing them to organise care that best meets their needs.
Digital tools like the NHS App will empower patients to manage their conditions, access information, and communicate with healthcare professionals more easily. Digital technologies will also enable remote monitoring of patients, allowing for early intervention and personalised care.
The 10-Year Health Plan envisions a healthcare system that is more proactive, personalised, and digitally enabled, leading to earlier diagnosis, more effective management, and ultimately, better outcomes for individuals with long-term conditions such as Parkinson’s and other progressive neurological conditions.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
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 implications for his policies of new research by Trussell which found that the impact of (a) hunger and (b) hardship drives an additional £6.3 billion in public service expenditure on healthcare each year.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government welcomes the Trussell report on the cost of hunger and hardship and recognises that poverty is a wider determinant of health. Under the Health Mission, the Government is committed to supporting people to stay healthier for longer, reducing health inequalities, easing the strain on the National Health Service and driving economic growth.
The Department is also working closely with the Child Poverty Taskforce to develop and deliver an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty, tackle the root causes, and give every child the best start in life. The Government is supporting those in need through the Healthy Start scheme and through the roll out of breakfast clubs. The Government is also expanding Free School Meals which will benefit over half a million more children and lift 100,000 children out of poverty.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
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 treatment options for people with Friedreich's Ataxia.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Working under the UK Rare Diseases Framework, the Government is committed to improving the lives of those living with rare diseases, such as Friedreich's Ataxia. One of the framework’s priorities is improving access to specialist care, treatments, and drugs. We remain committed to delivering under the framework, and published the fourth action plan for England on 28 February 2025.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many Sikhs are employed in his Department; and whether they are recorded as (a) an ethnic or (b) a religious group.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In line with Office for National Statistics’ guidelines for collecting data on ethnic group, religion, and nationality, the Department records Sikhs as a religious group.
Employees of the Department are asked to self-declare diversity data, including on their religious group. Of these, 40 have declared as Sikh.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to Public Health England's report entitled Commercial infant and baby food and drink: evidence review, published in June 2019, what steps he is taking to help tackle commercial baby foods with high levels of added sugar.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Children’s early years provide an important foundation for their future health and strongly influence many aspects of wellbeing in later life.
A 2019 evidence review showed that babies and young children are exceeding their energy intake requirement and are eating too much sugar and salt. Some commercial baby foods, particularly finger foods, had added sugar, or contained ingredients that are high in sugar.
More recently, a report by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition highlighted that free sugar intakes are above recommendations, and that commercial baby food and drinks contributed to around 20% of free sugar intake in children aged 12 to 18 months. This does not align with recommendations that, in diets of children aged 1 to 5 years, foods including snacks high in free sugars should be limited, and that commercially manufactured foods and drinks are not needed to meet nutrition requirements.
It is vital that we maintain the highest standards for foods consumed by babies and infants, which is why we have regulations in place that set nutritional and compositional standards for commercial baby food. The regulations also set labelling standards to ensure consumers have clear and accurate information about the products they buy. We continue to keep these regulations under review to ensure they reflect the latest scientific and dietary guidelines.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
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 help ensure the effectiveness of HIV health promotion campaigns in reaching (a) under served and (b) at risk communities.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ending new transmissions of HIV in England by 2030. The Department, the UK Health Security Agency, NHS England, and partners are developing the new HIV Action Plan for England, which we aim to publish this year. The plan will address improving preventive HIV care and HIV health promotion campaigns across England, including in London.
HIV testing is partly funded by local authorities through the ringfenced Public Health Grant (PHG). In 2025/26, we are increasing funding through the PHG to £3.858 billion, providing local authorities with an average 5.4% cash increase and a 3% real terms increase, the biggest real-terms increase after nearly a decade of reduced spending.
The London HIV Prevention Programme (LHPP) and Sexual Health London (SHL) are key organisations at the centre of London’s HIV prevention efforts, working to reduce new HIV diagnoses and improve access to testing. The LHPP promotes early testing and prevention, particularly among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men, through its Do It London campaigns and targeted outreach. In parallel, SHL offers free, easy-to-access sexually transmitted infection testing for Londoners aged 16 years old and over via online self-sampling and local collection points.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
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 help improve preventative HIV care in London.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ending new transmissions of HIV in England by 2030. The Department, the UK Health Security Agency, NHS England, and partners are developing the new HIV Action Plan for England, which we aim to publish this year. The plan will address improving preventive HIV care and HIV health promotion campaigns across England, including in London.
HIV testing is partly funded by local authorities through the ringfenced Public Health Grant (PHG). In 2025/26, we are increasing funding through the PHG to £3.858 billion, providing local authorities with an average 5.4% cash increase and a 3% real terms increase, the biggest real-terms increase after nearly a decade of reduced spending.
The London HIV Prevention Programme (LHPP) and Sexual Health London (SHL) are key organisations at the centre of London’s HIV prevention efforts, working to reduce new HIV diagnoses and improve access to testing. The LHPP promotes early testing and prevention, particularly among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men, through its Do It London campaigns and targeted outreach. In parallel, SHL offers free, easy-to-access sexually transmitted infection testing for Londoners aged 16 years old and over via online self-sampling and local collection points.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
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 tackle racial inequalities in access to healthcare.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have set a Health Mission with the aim of tackling the social determinants of health, focusing on prevention, and ensuring that everyone lives longer, healthier lives. The Government recognises that racial health inequalities are linked to broader socioeconomic factors. Tackling these disparities is central to building a fairer health system where outcomes are not dictated by race or background. We are committed to ensuring that everyone, regardless of where they are born or their financial circumstances, can live longer, healthier lives, spending less time in poor health.
We are working to halve the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest areas by addressing the social determinants of health. This includes measures to reduce socioeconomic inequalities that disproportionately affect ethnic minority communities, ensuring everyone can live longer, healthier lives.
We will also take a cross-Government approach to tackle the root causes of health inequalities. By prioritising prevention, shifting care closer to communities, and intervening earlier in life, we are committed to raising the healthiest generation of children in our nation's history.
The National Health Service’s Core20PLUS5 approach targets health inequalities by focusing on the most deprived 20% of the population, the Core20, and specific inclusion health groups and ‘PLUS’ populations, including ethnic minorities. Integrated care boards are responsible for implementing this approach, aiming to reduce inequalities in health outcomes and improve equitable access to healthcare treatments and services.
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding his Department plans to provide for community mental health hubs in London in each of the next three financial years.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Thus far, government funding to support Early Support Hubs from 2024/25 has allowed hubs to expand their current service offer to reach at least 12,000 additional young people.
The Department has confirmed a one-year contract to support and evaluate these hubs, helping to lay the foundations of the mental health offer for young people, including through expanding the workforce, introducing Young Futures Hubs, and rolling out Mental Health Support teams to more schools.
This new funding for 2025/26 will enable Early Support Hubs to deliver at least 10,000 additional mental health and wellbeing interventions, so that more children and young people are supported. Funding decisions for 2026/27 are subject to future Spending Reviews.