Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support is available to GP practices operating from newly built premises that subsequently experience (a) building and (b) maintenance problems not identified at the (i) planning and (ii) construction stage.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The provision and maintenance of premises are typically the responsibility of general practice (GP) partners, who are either owner-occupiers or tenants of their surgery buildings. This includes addressing any building or maintenance issues identified after the planning and construction phases. The National Health Service reimburses partners for the recurring costs of operating in the property, for instance rent, notional rent, or mortgage costs, and funds services in the GP Contract.
GP owner-occupiers are responsible for all maintenance and repair of their property. For GPs that rent their premises, their lease agreement sets out who is responsible for maintenance. A Full Repairing and Insuring lease requires the practice to handle all repairs, while a Tenant's Internal Repairing lease means the landlord covers external and structural issues.
Commissioners may award improvement grants to GPs to fund extensions, improvements, and enhanced physical access. This can be up to 100% of a project’s value, subject to discretion and the integrated care boards available budget, under provisions of the NHS (General Medical Services) Premises Costs Directions 2024.
The £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund, announced at the 2024 Autumn Budget, is upgrading more than a thousand GP surgeries across England by April 2026.
Where facilities are an issue, it is imperative that GPs work with the local commissioner. There may be capital or revenue solutions to GP premises and facilities’ needs.
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support his Department has provided to GP practices operating from newly built premises with (a) building and (b) maintenance issues; and what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of that support in helping to resolve those issues with landlords.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The provision and maintenance of premises is typically the responsibility of GP partners, who are either owner-occupiers or tenants of their surgery buildings. The National Health Service reimburses partners for the recurring costs of operating in the property (rent, notional rent or mortgage cost) and funds services in the GP contract.
GP owner-occupiers are responsible for all maintenance and repair of their property. For GP practices that rent their premises, their lease agreement sets out who is responsible for maintenance. A ‘Full Repairing and Insuring’ (FRI) lease requires the practice to handle all repairs, while a ‘Tenant’s Internal Repairing’ (TIR) lease means the landlord covers external and structural issues.
Commissioners may award improvement grants to GP practices to fund extensions, improvements, and enhanced physical access. This can be up to 100% of a project’s value, subject to discretion and the integrated care board’s available budget, under provisions of the NHS (General Medical Services) Premises Costs Directions 2024.
The £102 million Primary Care Utilisation & Modernisation Fund, announced at Autumn Budget 2024, is upgrading more than a thousand GP surgeries across England by April 2026.
Where facilities are an issue, it is imperative that General Practices work with the local Commissioner. There may be capital or revenue solutions to general practice premises and facilities’ needs.
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
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 regional disparities in the (a) treatment and (b) outcomes of patients with peripheral arterial disease.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Peripheral arterial disease (PAD), like other cardiovascular conditions, shares risk factors and is largely preventable. However, access to timely diagnosis and treatment can vary significantly across regions. NHS England is working to reduce these disparities and improve outcomes for patients.
To support this, NHS England introduced the Vascular PAD Quality Improvement Framework, which was incentivised through a two-year scheme between 2022 and 2024. This framework helps ensure that patients across the country receive timely and effective interventions, such as revascularisation, by encouraging all providers to meet consistent standards of care. It aims to reduce variation in how quickly and effectively patients are treated, regardless of where they live. In addition, the National Vascular Registry (NVR) collects and publishes data on the outcomes of major vascular procedures across NHS hospitals. This includes procedures for PAD, such as angioplasty, bypass surgery, and amputations. By highlighting both good practice and areas needing improvement, the NVR supports hospitals and commissioners in identifying and addressing regional gaps in care quality and outcomes. While there is no dedicated public awareness campaign for PAD at present, information is available on the National Health Service website, and NHS England continues to work with clinical experts and professional bodies to improve care and reduce regional variation.
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
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 establish specialist care pathways for people with bipolar to (a) improve treatment and (b) reduce misdiagnosis.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is unacceptable that too many people are not receiving the mental health care they need, and we know that waits for mental health services are far too long, including for people with bipolar disorder. We are determined to change that.
As part of our mission to build a National Health Service that is fit for the future, we will provide access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England, create a network of open access community Young Futures hubs, recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers to cut wait times and provide faster treatment, and modernise the Mental Health Act.
We are also committed to new models of care for mental health, including reforming care for people experiencing a mental health crisis. We are testing neighbourhood mental health centres for people aged 18 years old and over with serious mental illness. These six pilot schemes are based in Tower Hamlets, Lewisham, Sheffield, York, Birmingham, and Whitehaven.
These models will offer 24/7 open access care closer to home, with an integrated service including healthcare providers, local authorities, and the voluntary sector. These pilots build on international evidence which shows that similar models have led to a reduction in hospitalisation and waiting times, and support our efforts to move more care into the community.
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
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 that all NICE-approved medicines for osteoporosis are included in (a) ICS and (b) local formularies.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) makes recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new licensed medicines should be routinely funded by the NHS based on an assessment of their costs and benefits.
The NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended by the NICE, usually within three months of final guidance.
The 2025/26 NHS Standard Contract, which applies to all contracts between NHS commissioners and providers, stipulates that, where any service involves or may involve the prescribing of medicines, the provider must ensure that its formulary reflects all relevant positive NICE technology appraisals.
The NICE has also published guidance on developing and updating local formularies, which is intended to support commissioners and healthcare providers, including those working within integrated care systems, in developing formularies that reflect local needs, reducing variation in prescribing, and allowing for the rapid adoption of new medicines and treatments. This guidance is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/mpg1
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
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 maternity services in the Forest of Dean constituency.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Several steps are being taken to support maternity services in the Forest of Dean constituency, in addition to those being delivered nationally through the three-year delivery plan for maternity and neonatal services across England. These include, but are not limited to:
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
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 merits of developing a national strategy to place defibrillators in high need 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. Following the depletion of the existing AED fund, launched in in September 2023, the Government approved a further £500,000 in August 2024 to fulfil existing applications to the fund.
The Department selected a joint bid from Smarter Society as its independent partners to manage grant applications. Smarter Society has reviewed funding applications against requirements specified by the Department. Although no decision has been made to develop a national strategy to place defibrillators in high need areas, these requirements are to ensure that resources are allocated to where there is the greatest need, for instance remote communities with extended ambulance response times, places with high footfall and high population densities, hotspots for cardiac arrest including sporting venues and venues with vulnerable people, and deprived areas.
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
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 on health outcomes of universal access to Fracture Liaison Services.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
The Government and NHS England support the clinical case for services which help to prevent fragility fractures and support the patients who sustain them. According to the Fracture Liaison Service Database 2022, at least 60 trusts in England had access to a Fracture Liaison Service. My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is committed to rolling out fracture liaison services across every part of the country by 2030.
Costs and benefits will be assessed, taking into consideration the evidence gathered from the 60 services already in operation in England.
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
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 on acute hospital bed usage of universal access to Fracture Liaison Services.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
The Government and NHS England support the clinical case for services which help to prevent fragility fractures and support the patients who sustain them. My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030.
Impacts will be assessed, including on acute hospital bed usage, taking into consideration the evidence gathered from the 60 services already in operation in England.
Asked by: Matt Bishop (Labour - Forest of Dean)
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 adequacy of the NHS sight test fee; and if he will take steps to increase that fee.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The level of the National Health Service sight test fee is considered annually and takes into account discussions with the Optical Fee Negotiating Committee, consideration of patient access to sight testing services, which continue to be widely available, and affordability for the NHS.