Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
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 increase the availability of treatments for Ehlers-Danlos syndrome in Cornwall.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs), including the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly ICB, are responsible for the commissioning of treatment services for people with Ehlers Danlos syndrome (EDS). NHS England commissions some specialist services for patients with rare forms of EDS, which are currently delivered by two centres in England, namely the London North West University Healthcare Trust and the Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust. The complex EDS service provides diagnosis and advice to referrers on the treatment and management of complex cases.
ICBs, including the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly ICB, have a statutory responsibility to commission services which meet the needs of their local population. It is the responsibility of ICBs, working with clinicians, service users, and patient groups, to develop services and care pathways that are convenient and which meet patients’ needs.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
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 increase rates of cervical screening amongst women from (a) deprived areas, (b) ethnic minority backgrounds and those with limited access to health education.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England launched its first ever cervical cancer elimination creative campaign and communications toolkit for Cervical Screening Awareness Week, which took place between 16 and 24 June 2025. The campaign included digital resources that create a strong sense of shared responsibility and aim to increase awareness of the elimination goal, educate the public, and build confidence in cervical screening.
In March 2025, NHS England published its Cervical cancer elimination plan by 2040 – plan for England, setting out how the National Health Service will improve equitable uptake and coverage across cervical screening to meet the goal to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040. NHS England will build on what is already working well to drive vaccination and screening uptake and coverage, focussing on five cross-cutting themes: increasing access; raising awareness; reducing inequalities; improving digital capabilities; and strengthening workforce capacity. Further information on the Cervical cancer elimination plan by 2040 – plan for England is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/cervical-cancer-elimination-by-2040-plan-for-england/
From early 2026, screening providers in the NHS Cervical Screening Programme in England will be able to offer human papillomavirus self-sampling kits to women if they have not attended their appointment for six months or more following routine invitation.
Barriers to cervical screening for underserved communities and people who experience health inequalities must continue to be addressed. This will include identifying groups using national and local level data who may be at higher risk of developing cervical cancer, to inform national initiatives, such as tailored screening invitations, and support local service planning.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
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 impact of extending the intervals between cervical screenings on instances of cervical cancer.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Southport on 30 June 2025 to Question 60149.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 13 May 2025 to Question 50758 on Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors: Sexual Dysfunction, which regulatory options are under consideration; and what his planned timeframe is for the review.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following the next meeting of the Expert Working group (EWG), the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) will seek advice from the Commission on Human Medicines on the recommendations of the EWG, on a wide range of regulatory options for the communication of the risk of sexual dysfunction where symptoms continue after taking antidepressants.
Once the regulatory procedure is completed, a public assessment report will be published which will contain the evidence underpinning any regulatory action. The MHRA anticipates that regulatory action will be finalised in Autumn 2025.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support is available for people discontinuing anti-depressants.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In 2022, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published the guideline Medicines associated with dependence or withdrawal symptoms: safe prescribing and withdrawal management for adults, which makes recommendations on discontinuing antidepressant medication. This is also addressed in Depression in adults: treatment and management. Further information on the guidelines on medicines associated with dependence or withdrawal symptoms and depression in adults is available, respectively, at the following two links:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng215
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng222/chapter/Recommendations
In 2023, NHS England published Optimising personalised care for adults prescribed medicines associated with dependence or withdrawal symptoms: Framework for action for integrated care boards (ICBs) and primary care. The framework includes five actions, resources, and case studies to help develop plans that can support people who are taking medicines associated with dependence and withdrawal symptoms. The framework is available at the following link:
NHS England is also encouraging ICBs to address inappropriate antidepressant prescribing and to consider commissioning services for patients wishing to reduce or stop prescribed medicines that can cause dependence and withdrawal. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/national-medicines-optimisation-opportunities-2023-24/
The Government recognises that too many people with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need, and we know that waits for mental health services are far too long. This is why we are committed to ensuring we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health, so that people can be confident in accessing high quality mental health support when they need it.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will recognise Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction as a condition.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The current Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved product information for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) has a warning for the risk of sexual dysfunction where symptoms continue despite stopping treatment.
The term Post SSRI Sexual Dysfunction was added to the regulatory dictionary in 2021, which will help with the recording and retrieval of Yellow Card data and literature cases, and in the future, will contribute to the much needed research into this important health issue.
Persistent sexual dysfunction following withdrawal of an SSRI, as a disorder, was added to the electronic health records system SNOMED in October 2024, as a code that will help with the clinical identification of patients with persistent sexual dysfunction, including after taking SSRIs.
An Expert Working Group of the Commission on Human Medicines has been established by the MHRA to consider how the risk of sexual dysfunction which continues after stopping antidepressants use is communicated in patient information leaflets, however this work will not address the clinical recognition of post-SSRI sexual dysfunction, as that is outside the remit of the MHRA.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance (a) his Department and (b) NHS England provide to people who are prescribed SSRIs on the risks of developing Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved product information provided to healthcare professionals and patients for all selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) was updated in 2019 to inform them that reports had been received of long-lasting sexual dysfunction where symptoms continue despite discontinuation of the SSRI. The MHRA was an integral part of the European Union-wide review of the available evidence, which underpinned the current warnings.
An Expert Working Group of the Commission on Human Medicines has been established to review evidence from patients and the scientific literature available since 2019, to address concerns about the ongoing lack of awareness of the existing warnings in the product information. A range of regulatory options are under consideration to help improve the communication of the risk of sexual dysfunction where symptoms continue after taking SSRIs.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
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 the recommendations of the report entitled Recipe for health: A plan to fix our broken food system by the House of Lords Food, Diet and Obesity Committee, published on 24 October 2024.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
After the House of Lords’ Food, Diet and Obesity Committee report published in October 2024, the Government published its response to the report on 30 January 2025. It is available at the following link:
The Government welcomed the report and gave thanks to everyone involved in giving evidence and producing the recommendations. The response agreed with the committee’s assessment of the challenges in the food environment driving obesity rates. To best direct further policy action here, we are developing the National Health Service’s 10-Year Health Plan as well as a cross-Government Food Strategy, and will make more information available in due course.
As part of the Government’s Plan for Change, we are committed to achieving our Health Mission to build an NHS fit for the future, and under the 10-Year Health Plan to shift from sickness to prevention.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
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 ensure that everyone entitled to NHS Healthy Start is registered to receive it.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. Those eligible for Healthy Start must apply to the NHSBSA to receive Healthy Start payments.
All applicants, where they meet the eligibility criteria, must accept the terms and conditions of the Healthy Start prepaid card at the point of application. As the prepaid card is a financial product and cannot be issued without the applicant accepting these terms, the NHSBSA is not able to automatically provide eligible families with a prepaid card.
We remain open to all viable routes to improve uptake to ensure that as many eligible people as possible are accessing the scheme, to support their children with a healthy start in life.
In March 2025 Healthy Start supported over 359,000 people.
Asked by: Jayne Kirkham (Labour (Co-op) - Truro and Falmouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of training convenience store staff and managers on the (a) administration and (b) acceptance of NHS Healthy Start cards.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) runs the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. Retailers do not need to register to be part of the Healthy Start scheme. Retailers can accept Healthy Start card payments where they sell eligible Healthy Start foods, and where their store accepts Mastercard. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/retailers/
The NHSBSA does not provide training for convenience store staff or managers. The NHSBSA provides a range of materials to help retailers promote the scheme and understand where the prepaid card is accepted. The NHSBSA provides a guide for retailers to explain how the scheme works, their role, and how to promote the scheme. A copy of this guide for retailers is attached.