Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 risk-stratified screening on improving early detection of prostate cancer.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC), which advises ministers on all screening matters, commissioned an evidence review modelling the clinical effectiveness and cost of several approaches to prostate cancer screening. This included different potential ways of screening the whole population and targeted screening aimed at groups of people identified as being at higher-than-average risk, such as black men or men with a family history of cancer.
The modelling and evidence review reports are now complete, and the UK NSC plans to open a three-month public consultation towards the end of the year. After this, the UK NSC will make a recommendation on screening for prostate cancer. Ministers will then be asked to consider whether to accept the recommendation.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to amend the NHS dental contract to prevent NHS patients from being required to pay the full cost of treatment at the time of booking an appointment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The dental contract does not provide any legal basis for a dental practice to take payment for National Health Service dental work before a course of treatment has been delivered. An NHS dentist or dental professional should not charge a deposit before assessing a patient’s mouth and teeth or checking their symptoms. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/dentists/what-happens-when-you-visit-the-dentist/
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, and for determining the priorities for investment, in order to meet the needs of the local populations. If dental practices are operating outside of their contract, the ICB will be able to engage with the practice to resolve this issue.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people in Newbury constituency are waiting for an ADHD assessment; what the average waiting time is for ADHD assessments in Newbury constituency.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There is, at present, no single, established dataset that can be used to monitor waiting times for assessment and diagnosis for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) for individual organisations or geographies in England. Although the data requested is not held centrally, it may be held locally by individual National Health Service trusts or commissioners.
For the first time, NHS England published management information on ADHD waits at a national level on 29 May 2025 as part of its ADHD data improvement plan. NHSE England has also released technical guidance to integrated care boards (ICBs) to improve recording of ADHD data, with a view to improving the quality of ADHD waits data and publishing more localised data in future. NHS England has also captured examples from ICBs who are trialling innovative ways of delivering ADHD services and is using this information to support systems to tackle ADHD waiting lists and provide support to address people’s needs.
NHS England established an ADHD taskforce which brought together those with lived experience with experts from the NHS, education, charity and justice sectors to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including in accessing services and support. An interim report was published on 20 June 2025, with the final report expected later this year, and we will carefully consider its recommendations.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to introduce a right for every adult patient to have a named advocate or support person with them throughout their hospital stay.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise the vital role that families, loved ones, advocates and carers play in supporting people to manage their health. There are rights in place to protect those most vulnerable. The Mental Health Act and the Care Act both outline the rights of individuals to appoint an advocate to support them during their care.
Both outpatients and day patients can invite someone to join them at their hospital appointment, such as a carer, family member or friend.
At present, the Department has not made plans to introduce a right for every adult patient to have a named advocate or support person with them throughout the duration of their inpatient stay in hospital.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the risk of insolvency among key providers of community equipment services.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Ministers regularly engage with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues. However, My rt Hon. friends, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, have had no meetings regarding the risk of insolvency among key providers of community equipment services.
Local authorities have a statutory duty under various pieces of legislation, including the Care Act 2014, to make arrangements for the provision of disability aids and community equipment, to meet the assessed eligible needs of individuals who are resident in their area. In terms of the management of the market for these services, the commissioning and oversight of their delivery rests with local authorities.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to take to raise awareness in young children about the health benefits of wearing suncream.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department continues to advise patients to follow National Health Service guidance on sun protection. This advice is available publicly at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/seasonal-health/sunscreen-and-sun-safety/
It includes guidance on the extra care that should be taken for babies and children. As their skin is much more sensitive than adults, guidance advises children under six months old to be kept out of direct sunlight. Additionally, from March to October in the United Kingdom, children should wear suitable clothing, and wear at least SPF30 suncream.
The UK Health Security Agency also provides guidance which includes information on suncream and is available at the following link:
The toolkit is intended to provide health information and other resources that can be communicated during hot spells.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take to help improve services at West Berkshire Community Hospital.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to shifting the focus of the National Health Service out of hospitals and into the community, and this will be referenced in our forthcoming 10-Year Health Plan. We recognise that delivering high-quality NHS healthcare services requires the right infrastructure in the right places.
The Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and West Berkshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) and providers have been provisionally allocated £39.3 million this financial year from our Constitutional Standards Recovery Fund to deliver new surgical hubs, diagnostic scanners, and beds to increase capacity for elective and emergency care. In addition, it has been provisionally allocated £2.8 million from our Primary Care Utilisation Fund to modernise and upgrade general practice surgeries, and £37.1 million from our Estates Safety Fund to address critical infrastructure and safety risks.
We are encouraging local NHS trusts and ICBs to explore possible options that could address constitutional standards recovery alongside addressing infrastructure issues, maximising value for money and patient benefits.
Alongside national programme allocations, the system has been provisionally allocated £123.1 million in operational capital funding, including primary care business-as-usual capital, for 2025/26, to be prioritised according to local needs, such as investing in acute and community hospital infrastructure.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will support plans to relocate additional facilities to West Berkshire Community Hospital to help ease pressures at the Royal Berkshire Hospital.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
National Health Service commissioners are responsible for delivery, implementation, and funding decisions for services, rather than the Department. Local health and care organisations are best placed to make decisions on commissioning services for their communities. Decisions about services should be clinically led, following appropriate engagement with the local authority, the local population, and stakeholders.
All service changes should be based on clear evidence that they will deliver better outcomes for patients.
Substantial planned service change is subject to a full public consultation and must meet the Government and NHS England’s ‘tests’ to ensure good decision making.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to improve (a) the referral process and (b) treatment for people with brain tumours.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department recognises that cancer patients, including those with brain tumours, are often waiting too long for referral and treatment. It is a priority for the Government to support the National Health Service to diagnose cancer, including brain tumours, earlier, and to treat them faster, so more patients survive, and patient experience improves across the system.
As the first step to ensuring early diagnosis and treatment, NHS England has delivered an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week since the start of this administration.
The Department recognises that there are currently limited treatment options available for people who have been diagnosed with brain tumours, and the significant impact that rarer forms of cancer can have on patients, carers, and their families. The Government is invested in driving new lifesaving and life-improving research, supporting those diagnosed and living with brain tumours.
In the five years between 2018/19 and 2022/23, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) directly invested £11.3 million in brain cancer research projects, plus an estimated £31.5 million to enable brain tumour research to take place through NIHR research infrastructure, namely facilities, services, and the research workforce, enabling delivery of 227 studies involving 8,500 people.
The National Cancer Plan will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and ongoing care. Research is a key focus of the plan, and the Department will work closely with partners, including the National Institute for Health and Care Research, on this.
The Department, with NHS England, will develop the plan, which will address the challenges in diagnostic waiting times, providing the number of computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and other tests that are needed to reduce cancer waits. The Government’s goal is to reduce the number of lives lost to cancer over the next ten years, including to brain tumours.
The Department expects to publish the National Cancer Plan later this year, following publication of the 10-Year Health Plan.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to improve support for family carers providing care at home for relatives with learning disabilities.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ensuring that the families of people with learning disabilities have the support they need.
On the 7 of April 2025, the Government increased the Carer's Allowance weekly earnings limit from £151 a week to £196, the equivalent of 16 hours at the National Living Wage. This represents the largest increase in the earnings limit since the Carer’s Allowance was introduced in 1976.
Lord Darzi’s independent review of the National Health Service highlighted the need for a fresh approach to supporting and involving unpaid carers, to improve outcomes across the board, for carers, for those they care for, and for the NHS itself.
These findings will be carefully considered as part of our 10-year plan to reform and modernise the NHS, and as we continue to shape our plans to reform adult social care, including through the National Care Service.
We have also launched an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service.
The commission will start a national conversation about what care and support working age adults, older people, and their families can expect from adult social care, including exploring the needs of unpaid carers, who provide vital care and support.