Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the maintenance and repairs backlog at Stepping Hill Hospital on the quality of patient care.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that delivering high-quality National Health Service healthcare requires safe and effective infrastructure.
Integrated care systems (ICSs) are responsible for strategic infrastructure planning for their respective areas and were recently commissioned by NHS England to develop 10-year infrastructure strategies. As part of these strategies, systems assessed how the estate, digital, equipment, and workforce models contribute to the delivery of the overarching system strategy, related clinical pathways, and national priorities for delivering care. The strategies included consideration of the condition of the estate.
In 2025/26, the Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board (ICB), responsible for Stepping Hill Hospital, has been provisionally allocated £187 million for operational capital, over £36 million for estates safety, and over £30 million to support constitutional standards recovery. The Stockport NHS Foundation Trust is encouraged to discuss options with the Greater Manchester ICB to allocate some of their operational capital and national programme allocations towards tackling the backlog of maintenance and ensuring that infrastructure supports quality care at Stepping Hill Hospital.
We are pleased that despite challenging infrastructure, the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust has made progress towards reducing its waiting list. As of February 2025, there were 35,824 patient pathways waiting for a procedure. Of these, 54.3% of pathways were waiting within 18 weeks for a procedure. This compares to 50.3% of pathways waiting within 18 weeks for a procedure in February 2024.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the annual profits of NHS Professionals Ltd were in each of the last five years; and whether those profits were (a) reinvested into NHS service provision and (b) returned to his Department.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS Professionals Ltd (NHSP), a limited company wholly owned by the Department, is a supplier of clinical and non-clinical temporary workforce to client National Health Service trusts.
The following table shows NHSP profit before tax and dividends paid to the Department over the last five years:
| Year Ended 31/3/24 £million | Year Ended 31/3/23 £million | Year Ended 31/3/22 £million | Year Ended 31/3/21 £million | Year Ended 31/3/20 £million |
Profit before Tax | 3.7 | 8.5 | 16.8 | 18.9 | 11 |
Dividends paid | nil | 10 | 18 | nil | 10 |
Dividends received from NHSP are not ringfenced for specific purposes, but they are directly invested back into the wider healthcare economy by the Department. Where dividends are not taken, any profits generated are retained within the business and reinvested to support the delivery of its strategy.
Full details of profits, dividend payments and declarations are shown in NHSP’s statutory accounts which are available at the following link:
https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/06704614
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
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 support to (a) local authorities and (b) Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council to identify new sites for the (i) expansion and (ii) development of existing hospital facilities.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that delivering high quality National Health Service healthcare requires the right infrastructure in the right places.
Integrated care systems (ICSs) are responsible for strategic infrastructure planning as well as managing the operational capital for their respective local areas. This includes expanding and developing hospital facilities. The Department is supporting local NHS organisations to better manage their estates, and systems have developed infrastructure strategies which will inform their decision making and estate management.
In this context, the Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council and other local authorities are encouraged to engage with their local integrated care board (ICB), the Greater Manchester ICB, to discuss opportunities for developing hospital infrastructure.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of not including Stepping Hill Hospital in the New Hospital Programme on (a) patient and staff safety, (b) quality of care and (c) the condition and adequacy of the infrastructure at that hospital.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Stockport Foundation NHS Trust submitted an expression of interest (EOI) to join the New Hospital Programme (NHP) in 2021, alongside other National Health Service trusts. The Department worked with NHS England on a joint prioritisation exercise assessing the EOIs in detail.
All EOIs were scored against a series of indicators from four categories: deliverability; better and smarter use of NHS infrastructure; fairer allocation of investment and efficient use of public resources; and stronger and greener NHS buildings. This assessment was conducted in conjunction with an analysis of metrics covering estates, finance, and quality from existing national datasets. An assessment of these EOIs against regional strategic priorities was also conducted.
In May 2023, the Government confirmed that five hospitals constructed primarily using reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) would be brought into the NHP, following a structural assessment by NHS England and the Department, which found that these hospitals would be unsafe to operate beyond 2030. Due to the size, complexity, and costs involved in rebuilding RAAC hospitals, it was not possible to invite other schemes to join.
We are supporting the Stockport Foundation NHS Trust to improve the condition of the infrastructure at Stepping Hill Hospital, with up to £11.5 million from the critical infrastructure risk fund confirmed in 2024/25 to support the replacement of outpatient capacity and to deliver much needed improvements to patient and staff safety.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
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 potential impact of differing pay and conditions between people employed by NHS Professionals Ltd and people directly employed by the NHS on (a) recruitment, (b) retention and (c) staff morale.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No such assessment has been made. National Health Service trusts will locally identify the mix of permanent and temporary staffing that fits their workforce requirements and delivers value for money. This can include the use of NHS professionals.
The Government values the dedicated staff we have working in the NHS, and is committed to supporting them so that they can continue to thrive, and we can retain their valuable skills and experience within the NHS. NHS England is leading a national NHS retention programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many hospital admissions were recorded for inflammatory bowel disease in the Hospital Episode Statistics dataset in (a) Hazel Grove constituency and (b) England in each of the last five years.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the annual number of finished admission episodes with a primary diagnosis recorded for inflammatory bowel disease in England, in each of the last five years:
Year | Finished admission episodes |
2023/24 | 358,063 |
2022/23 | 327,693 |
2021/22 | 308,528 |
2020/21 | 259,058 |
2019/20 | 282,335 |
Source: Hospital Episode Statistics.
Data on the number of admissions for the Hazel Grove constituency is not available.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
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 review Shared Care arrangements to ensure they are delivering effective outcomes for patients.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are currently no plans to review shared care agreements.
General practices (GPs) are independent contractors that provide National Health Services. Shared care agreements between a GP and a specialist are voluntary and are not part of the GP Contract. The General Medical Council is clear that a GP cannot be mandated to enter into a shared care agreement, and there is guidance in place to help GPs decide whether to accept shared care responsibilities.
On initiating a treatment, the specialist clinician must follow General Medical Council guidance, that if continuation of the treatment is dependent on shared care, then an agreement with the GP must be in place before the treatment is started.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing over-the-counter sales of vitamin B12 injections in the UK.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has authorised several medicines for use in different circumstances associated with vitamin B12 deficiency. The legal status assigned to medicines is dependent on an assessment of the product against the criteria for either Prescription Only Medicine status or General Sales List status, and the classification is determined via the marketing authorisation.
The criteria for classification are set out in Regulation 62 of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 [SI 2012/2016 as amended], and Regulation 62(3) is clear that if the medicine is usually prescribed for parenteral administration, that is by injection, then the medicinal product must by law be classified as a prescription only medicine. Other aspects within Regulation 62 also apply in consideration of the most suitable legal status of vitamin B12 injection and its use in deficiency states.
Currently, United Kingdom law specifies that all products administered by injection must be subject to a prescription. The MHRA is therefore unable to reclassify the status of injections, including Vitamin B12, to medicines, as this would not be consistent with the legislation.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of expanding standard NHS blood tests to routinely include (a) B12, (b) B6, (c) folate, (d) vitamin C and (e) vitamin D.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has made no assessment of the potential merits of expanding standard National Health Service blood tests to routinely include B12, B6, folate, vitamin C, and vitamin D. The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which provides evidence-base guidance for the health and care system on best practice, makes recommendations on testing for vitamin deficiency based on symptoms and risk factors.
NICE guidance makes recommendations on tests where the evidence supports their use in making a diagnosis, ruling out a condition, or for guiding treatment decisions. This is usually condition or symptom specific, and the NICE would not make recommendations on a ‘standard’ blood test or range of blood tests. NICE guidance is not mandatory, and therefore healthcare professionals should use their clinical judgement in deciding what blood tests should be carried out for individual patients, taking into account relevant national or local guidance, including NICE guidelines.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to help ensure that carers are (a) involved in patient care decisions and (b) given appropriate access to medical (i) records and (ii) updates during hospital stays in cases where patients have (A) cognitive and (B) neurological conditions.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Health and Care Act 2022 introduced significant measures for people caring for their family and friends, as well as the people they are caring for. These include:
Lord Darzi’s independent review of the NHS said that a fresh approach to supporting and involving unpaid carers is required to improve outcomes for carers, people needing care, and the NHS.
We will carefully consider these findings as part of our 10-year plan for reforming and modernising the NHS and as we develop plans to reform adult social care, including through the National Care Service.