Peter Prinsley

We are committed to ensuring that all National Health Service healthcare settings are safe places to work and that everyone working in the NHS feels safe and supported at work. There is a zero-tolerance approach to any instances of sexual misconduct in the NHS workplace. The NHS Sexual Safety Charter has been signed by over 400 organisations across the health system to date and requires signatories to ensure appropriate reporting mechanisms are in place, including anonymous reporting. This has been strengthened by the National People Policy Framework on Sexual Misconduct and further evaluation work is ongoing to ensure consistent implementation across all integrated care boards and NHS trusts.

We are committed to ensuring that all National Health Service healthcare settings are safe places to work and everyone working in the NHS feels safe at work. There is a zero-tolerance approach to any instances of sexual misconduct in the NHS workplace.

NHS England is currently reviewing sexual misconduct data as part of a wider review of Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (DASV) data to promote better collection of annual data on sexual misconduct cases. Better collection of data will support and strengthen the zero-tolerance approach. NHS England is currently reviewing staff sexual misconduct workforce data as part of wider DASV data improvement work.

The Government recognises that the protection in law of certain professional titles is important for public safety. Protecting a title provides assurance to the public that someone using that title is competent and safe to practise.

The title anaesthetist is not protected in law in the United Kingdom. Section 49 of the Medical Act 1983 currently protects the titles physician, doctor of medicine, licentiate in medicine and surgery, bachelor of medicine, surgeon, general practitioner, apothecary, and any name, title, addition, or description implying that a person is registered with the General Medical Council (GMC).

The Government has set out its intention to reform the legislative frameworks of all healthcare professional regulators, starting with the GMC. The Government is aiming to consult on draft GMC legislation by the end of this year and it expects to lay the legislation during this Parliament. The Government will review current protection of title offences including those concerning professions regulated by the GMC as part of this work.

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new executive team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to lead the formation of a new joint centre. As we work to bring the two organisations together, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds.

We continue to work collaboratively across both organisations to put in place plans to ensure continuity of services.

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), funded by the Department, is the nation’s largest funder of clinical, public health, and social care research, and is committed to working in partnership with the National Health Service, universities, local government, other research funders, patients, and the public to improve the health and wealth of the nation through research. The Department’s investment in NIHR research partnerships will not be impacted by the formation of a new joint centre.

We recognise that clinical academics are crucial to delivering world leading research across the health and care system, and for training future generations of healthcare professionals.

NHS England published an Educator Workforce Strategy in 2023 setting out the key priority actions that will lead to the sufficient capacity and quality of diverse educators to allow for the growth in the healthcare workforce needed now and in the future.

The National Clinical Impact Awards Scheme serves as a recognition and retention tool for the consultant doctors and dentists, clinical academics, and academic general practitioners who have the highest impact on the wider National Health Service and public health.

Through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, the Department has invested substantially in training since 2006, with the Department being the largest funder of research training for clinical academics in the United Kingdom.

We will publish a refreshed workforce plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade and treat patients on time again.

We recognise that clinical academics are crucial to delivering world leading research across the health and care system, and for training future generations of healthcare professionals.

NHS England published an Educator Workforce Strategy in 2023 setting out the key priority actions that will lead to the sufficient capacity and quality of diverse educators to allow for the growth in the healthcare workforce needed now and in the future.

The National Clinical Impact Awards Scheme serves as a recognition and retention tool for the consultant doctors and dentists, clinical academics, and academic general practitioners who have the highest impact on the wider National Health Service and public health.

Through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, the Department has invested substantially in training since 2006, with the Department being the largest funder of research training for clinical academics in the United Kingdom.

We will publish a refreshed workforce plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade and treat patients on time again.

The Department of Health and Social Care works closely with the Department for Education on a wide range of matters to ensure cross-departmental collaboration on workforce planning in higher education and the healthcare service.

We have launched the 10-Year Health Plan, which will set out a bold agenda to reform and repair the National Health Service. Ensuring we have the right people, in the right places, and with the right skills, will be central to this vision.

The Government remains committed to supporting National Health Service bodies to meet their obligations regarding the environment, and we continue to work to ensure that the NHS fulfils its significant potential to contribute to our clean power mission and Net Zero legal commitments.

NHS trusts have made significant progress on environmental goals in recent years, including securing £1.2 billion in funding though the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme since 2019. In addition, every trust and integrated care board now has a clear “Green Plan” in place, setting out the key actions that will deliver emissions reductions and support resilience to climate impacts.

The Department will continue to work with partners across the NHS and Government to deliver on these aims. For instance, we have recently completed a £95 million investment through the National Energy Efficiency Fund to drive down trust energy bills and emissions. Looking forward, together with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, we recently announced a £100 million partnership with Great British Energy that will increase NHS solar generation by 300%.

The National Health Service has made substantial progress in supporting the Government’s Net Zero commitments. These include securing over £1.2 billion in funding through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, the NHS-wide decommissioning of desflurane, ongoing reduction in waste from nitrous oxide, and the introduction of requirements for NHS suppliers to disclose their emissions and publish a carbon reduction plan, in line with the NHS Net Zero Supplier Roadmap.

Going forward, the Department will continue to work with partners across the NHS and Government to deliver on these aims, including through our recently announced £100 million partnership with Great British Energy, that will increase NHS solar generation by 300%.

The Government remains committed to supporting NHS bodies to meet their obligations regarding the environment, and as we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds.

Across 2023/24, the latest data available, 2.5 million, or 64.6% of, patients on the asthma register received a review. Further information is available at the following link:

https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/respiratory-disease/data#page/4/gid/8000009/pat/159/par/K02000001/ati/15/are/E92000001/iid/93790/age/314/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1

In addition, the most recent asthma hospital admissions data for England is available at the following link:

https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/search/asthma

Furthermore, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development holds international comparison data for asthma hospital admissions, up to 2022, which is available at the following link:

https://data-explorer.oecd.org/vis?fs[0]=Topic%2C1%7CHealth%23HEA%23%7CHealthcare%20quality%20and%20outcomes%23HEA_HCQ%23&pg=0&fc=Topic&snb=11&df[ds]=dsDisseminateFinalDMZ&df[id]=DSD_HCQO%40DF_HCQO&df[ag]=OECD.ELS.HD&df[vs]=1.0&dq=.A.ADMRASTH..._T.OBS%2BVALUEW&pd=2014%2C&to[TIME_PERIOD]=false&vw=tb

There is no published international comparison data for asthma hospital admissions available for the past 12 months, and the Department currently has no plans to make an assessment of this.

Across 2023/24, the latest data available, 2.5 million, or 64.6% of, patients on the asthma register received a review. Further information is available at the following link:

https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/respiratory-disease/data#page/4/gid/8000009/pat/159/par/K02000001/ati/15/are/E92000001/iid/93790/age/314/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1

In addition, the most recent asthma hospital admissions data for England is available at the following link:

https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/search/asthma

Furthermore, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development holds international comparison data for asthma hospital admissions, up to 2022, which is available at the following link:

https://data-explorer.oecd.org/vis?fs[0]=Topic%2C1%7CHealth%23HEA%23%7CHealthcare%20quality%20and%20outcomes%23HEA_HCQ%23&pg=0&fc=Topic&snb=11&df[ds]=dsDisseminateFinalDMZ&df[id]=DSD_HCQO%40DF_HCQO&df[ag]=OECD.ELS.HD&df[vs]=1.0&dq=.A.ADMRASTH..._T.OBS%2BVALUEW&pd=2014%2C&to[TIME_PERIOD]=false&vw=tb

There is no published international comparison data for asthma hospital admissions available for the past 12 months, and the Department currently has no plans to make an assessment of this.

As part of the Respiratory Solutions Framework, NHS Supply Chain supplies fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) devices and related consumables. The spend for the past 12 months is as follows:

• £127,903.00 for FeNO devices, some of which come with starter consumables; and
• £483,210.00 for FeNO consumables.

Please note that these figures are for spend by NHS Supply Chain, and do not include spending for the whole National Health Service.

Patient Initiated Follow Up (PIFU) is one way in which the Government will reform follow up care to ensure more optimised and productive clinical pathways. Offering PIFU to patients gives them greater choice and control, where it is clinically recommended, so they can decide if/when they require follow up care. This in turn reduces low value follow up appointments, freeing up hospital capacity for patients who need it.

The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, commits to offering PIFU to patients with long-term conditions as standard in all appropriate pathways by March 2026, and to support the expansion of PIFU to at least 5% of all outpatient appointments by March 2029. The Government will implement digital and technology solutions to support this expansion, including piloting digital options for signing-up patients for PIFU via the NHS App and enhancing how patients suitable for PIFU are identified using artificial intelligence and automation.

In addition, remote monitoring of conditions at home or away from direct clinical settings can help support PIFU by helping inform patients and their healthcare teams about any changes in their condition, ensuring follow-up appointments only happen when clinically needed. We will expand remote monitoring by using Patient Engagement Portals and the NHS App to host digital questionnaires, integrating remote monitoring tools with hospital administration systems, and producing technical guides for remote monitoring to support the sharing of best practice across providers.

Improving health outcomes for people who live with long-term conditions is a key part of our mission to build a National Health Service fit for the future.

We have committed to delivering a 10-Year Health Plan which will set out a bold agenda to deliver on the three big shifts needed to move NHS healthcare from hospital to the community, analogue to digital, and treatment to prevention. We will be carefully considering input from the public, patients, health staff, and stakeholders as we develop the plan which will include a focus on how to improve the management of long-term conditions, over the coming months.

The implementation of Secure Data Environments (SDEs) allowing NHS data to be accessed through secure platforms rather than shared with researchers, will support safer and more secure access to health and care data for secondary uses, such as research into prevalence and impact. This is being delivered by major investment in digital infrastructure across the NHS in England, including the NHS Research SDE Network funded by the Data for Research and Development programme.

The Single Patient Record will give clinicians in different settings access to the comprehensive records on person's health, so that they have the information they need to make the best-informed decisions when delivering care and treatment.

Most services for long-term conditions are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs). ICBs 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 meet patients’ needs.

As announced by the Prime Minister on 13 March 2025, the Government is abolishing NHS England. That will put the NHS back at the centre of Government to focus on patients’ experience, less bureaucracy and on cutting waiting times at hospitals. Part of these considerations will include how national and local governance arrangements work together to improve health outcomes for NHS patients locally, including those with long-term conditions.

Improving health outcomes for people who live with long-term conditions is a key part of our mission to build a National Health Service fit for the future.

We have committed to delivering a 10-Year Health Plan which will set out a bold agenda to deliver on the three big shifts needed to move NHS healthcare from hospital to the community, analogue to digital, and treatment to prevention. We will be carefully considering input from the public, patients, health staff, and stakeholders as we develop the plan which will include a focus on how to improve the management of long-term conditions, over the coming months.

The implementation of Secure Data Environments (SDEs) allowing NHS data to be accessed through secure platforms rather than shared with researchers, will support safer and more secure access to health and care data for secondary uses, such as research into prevalence and impact. This is being delivered by major investment in digital infrastructure across the NHS in England, including the NHS Research SDE Network funded by the Data for Research and Development programme.

The Single Patient Record will give clinicians in different settings access to the comprehensive records on person's health, so that they have the information they need to make the best-informed decisions when delivering care and treatment.

Most services for long-term conditions are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs). ICBs 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 meet patients’ needs.

As announced by the Prime Minister on 13 March 2025, the Government is abolishing NHS England. That will put the NHS back at the centre of Government to focus on patients’ experience, less bureaucracy and on cutting waiting times at hospitals. Part of these considerations will include how national and local governance arrangements work together to improve health outcomes for NHS patients locally, including those with long-term conditions.

Improving health outcomes for people who live with long-term conditions is a key part of our mission to build a National Health Service fit for the future.

We have committed to delivering a 10-Year Health Plan which will set out a bold agenda to deliver on the three big shifts needed to move NHS healthcare from hospital to the community, analogue to digital, and treatment to prevention. We will be carefully considering input from the public, patients, health staff, and stakeholders as we develop the plan which will include a focus on how to improve the management of long-term conditions, over the coming months.

The implementation of Secure Data Environments (SDEs) allowing NHS data to be accessed through secure platforms rather than shared with researchers, will support safer and more secure access to health and care data for secondary uses, such as research into prevalence and impact. This is being delivered by major investment in digital infrastructure across the NHS in England, including the NHS Research SDE Network funded by the Data for Research and Development programme.

The Single Patient Record will give clinicians in different settings access to the comprehensive records on person's health, so that they have the information they need to make the best-informed decisions when delivering care and treatment.

Most services for long-term conditions are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs). ICBs 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 meet patients’ needs.

As announced by the Prime Minister on 13 March 2025, the Government is abolishing NHS England. That will put the NHS back at the centre of Government to focus on patients’ experience, less bureaucracy and on cutting waiting times at hospitals. Part of these considerations will include how national and local governance arrangements work together to improve health outcomes for NHS patients locally, including those with long-term conditions.

Local authorities have a statutory duty to shape their care markets and deliver services to meet diverse local needs. In performing that duty, a local authority must have regard to current and likely future demand for such services and consider how providers might meet that demand.

The Government is committed to moving towards a Neighbourhood Health Service, with more care delivered in local communities to spot problems earlier, supporting people to stay healthier and maintain their independence for longer.

Neighbourhood Health Guidelines have been published alongside the 2025/26 NHS Operational Planning Guidance and the 2025/26 Better Care Fund policy framework, to help integrated care boards, local authorities and health and care providers to continue to progress neighbourhood health in 2025/26. The focus for 2025/26 is on individuals with complex needs who require support from multiple services and organisations.

The Government is also launching an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service. It will consider what structural reforms may be needed where health and social care meet and who should be accountable and responsible for those services. It will look at how we recruit, retain, and recognise the workforce. And it will consider how adult social care can become truly preventative, meeting people’s needs much earlier, supporting our carers and delivering on our promise to make care ‘home first’.

The Government is committed to putting patients first. This means making sure patients are seen on time and ensuring people have the best possible experience of care. Our efforts to improve patient experience will be patient-led and co-developed to support and empower the people who use services within the National Health Service.

In the Elective Reform Plan, published on 6 January 2025, the Government committed to work with patients, carers and their representatives to publish the standards patients should expect to experience while they wait for care. Once published, these standards will set an expectation to all Trusts about the service they are expected to deliver. We will continue to work with patients and carers to build on this work and establish a gold standard for experience.

We will support NHS trusts to prioritise experience of care by ensuring they make customer care training available to non-clinical staff with patient facing roles, as well as ensuring the take up of training already available on the e-Referral Services to support more effective referral, booking and waiting list management processes. NHS trusts will also be required to name an existing director who will be responsible for improving experience of care.

The Department will also make improvements to patient experience on a national level; for example, by expanding the NHS App and Manage Your Referral website to improve information and appointment management for patients, as well as parents and carers through proxy access.

Additionally, in January 2025, NHS England published NHS Planning Guidance for 2025-26, setting out the first steps for reform, and the immediate actions for systems to take to deliver on the Government’s objectives. Acting on findings from the Darzi review, instructions to the NHS have been stripped down to what matters most to patients, including, for instance, improving patient experience of access to general practice as measured by the Office for National Statistics’ Health Insights Survey and shifting focus from inputs to outcomes for patients.

The following table shows the number of full time equivalent (FTE) doctors working in surgical specialty group roles by grade in the National Health Service in England, as of November 2024:

Source: Hospital and Community Health Service Workforce Statistics, NHS England.

Healthcare in Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland is a devolved responsibility and so the Department does not hold the data requested.

The following table shows the number of full time equivalent (FTE) doctors working in surgical specialty group roles by grade in the National Health Service in England, as of November 2024:

Source: Hospital and Community Health Service Workforce Statistics, NHS England.

Healthcare in Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland is a devolved responsibility and so the Department does not hold the data requested.

The following table shows the number of full time equivalent (FTE) doctors working in surgical specialty group roles by grade in the National Health Service in England, as of November 2024:

Source: Hospital and Community Health Service Workforce Statistics, NHS England.

Healthcare in Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland is a devolved responsibility and so the Department does not hold the data requested.

NHS England is taking a leading role in tackling sexual misconduct across the National Health Service. The NHS has a responsibility to protect staff, patients, and service users and offer safe spaces and routes for support.

In 2024, NHS England launched a new national sexual misconduct people policy framework and sexual safety charter assurance framework for integrated care bards (ICBs) and trusts to adopt and adapt, so that any member of staff who has experienced inappropriate and/or harmful sexual behaviours at work is supported by their employer. The frameworks are available at the following links:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/national-people-sexual-misconduct-policy-framework/

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/sexual-safety-charter-assurance-framework/

The new guidance was published following the launch in 2023 of the first-ever Sexual Safety Charter in collaboration with healthcare systems and people with lived experience of sexual misconduct. The Charter focuses on providing staff with clear reporting mechanisms, training and support, and ensuring that a zero-tolerance approach is taken by organisations.

All ICBs and trusts have signed the Sexual Safety Charter and are taking steps to prevent sexual misconduct at work. They have also been asked to appoint a domestic abuse and sexual violence lead to implement the new sexual misconduct guidance, review policies and provide support to staff relating to domestic abuse and sexual violence. There are now more than 300 in place across England.

NHS England, in collaboration with those with lived experience, has also developed NHS-wide training on sexual misconduct awareness, now available to the entire workforce.

The Government is committed to making the National Health Service the best place to work, to ensure the retention of our hardworking and dedicated staff. NHS England is leading the National Retention Programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts.

Retention efforts are aligned with the NHS People Promise, which was co-developed with staff to reflect what matters to them. This ensures that trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.

Within the terms and conditions of employment for consultants in England, there is the facility for employers to apply a local recruitment premium in addition to the base salary, time-limited for a maximum of four years. This can be used in circumstances where there is evidence of difficulties in recruiting which cannot be remedied through a non-pay solution.

The value of the premium is determined by the employer but should not typically exceed 30% of the normal starting salary for a consultant post.

As set out in the Plan for Change, we will ensure a return to 92% of patients waiting no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment by March 2029, a standard which has not been met consistently since September 2015. The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the productivity and reform efforts needed to return to the constitutional standard, including a focus on reforming delivery by working more productively, consistently, and in many cases differently, to deliver more elective care.

Patients in England are not registered with a National Health Service dental practice and no national waiting list is in operation, although many NHS dental practices do tend to see patients regularly. Dental practices may operate local waiting list arrangements.

We acknowledge that there are areas of the country that are experiencing recruitment and retention issues and that this can mean that patients may have difficulty accessing an NHS dentist.

We are taking steps to address the workforce challenges across the country. Integrated care boards have started to advertise posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see up to 240 dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.

As of 10 February 2025, in England, 35 dentists have commenced in post and a further 33 dentists have been recruited but are yet to start in post. A further 249 posts are currently advertised.

We are committed to ensuring that doctors trained in the United Kingdom remain within the National Health Service through a structured, data-driven approach to workforce retention, and to improving the working conditions of all resident doctors, including trainee surgeons.

NHS England’s Enhancing Resident Doctors Working Lives programme continues to implement several measures aimed at supporting resident doctors, encouraging them to stay in training and the NHS, and reducing overall attrition. In addition, the NHS National Retention Programme is actively improving working conditions for trainee surgeons by enhancing workplace culture, promoting flexible training, and reducing burnout and attrition.

On 18 February 2025, the Chief Medical Officer and the National Medical Director of NHS England jointly launched a review of postgraduate medical training. The review will cover placement options, the flexibility of training, difficulties with rotas, control and autonomy in training, and the balance between developing specialist knowledge and gaining a broad range of skills.

There are currently no such plans. We have launched a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the National Health Service. The plan will set out a bold agenda to deliver on the three big shifts needed to move healthcare from the hospital to the community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention.

A central part of the 10-Year Health Plan will be our workforce and how we ensure we train and provide the staff, technology, and infrastructure the NHS needs to care for patients across our communities.

This summer we will publish a refreshed Long Term Workforce Plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, to treat patients on time again.

Universities across England and the United Kingdom have been engaged throughout the 10-Year Health Plan’s engagement process to inform policy making. Everyone, including universities, continues to be able to share their views via the Change NHS portal in what is biggest conversation to fix the National Health Service since its creation.

36 universities and university faculties in the UK have submitted organisational responses, which have now been analysed and used to inform the next stage of the Plan’s development. Universities UK are also represented at the Partner’s Council. The Council convenes over 150 leaders from organisations across the UK health and care sector, including charities and the Royal Colleges, to provide progress updates on the 10-Year Health Plan and a forum to discuss and comment on emerging themes from the engagement and policy development to date.

We recognise that clinical academics are crucial to training future generations of healthcare professionals and leading research across the health and care system. In 2023, NHS England published an Educator Workforce Strategy, setting out the actions required to ensure the sufficient capacity and quality of clinical educators. This includes planning for career pathways, both in practice and in higher education institutions and across sectors and professions.

Through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the Department is the largest funder of research training for clinical academics in the United Kingdom, supporting clinical academics at all career stages and from all professions and specialties. Since 2006, the NIHR has supported 16,000 career development awards and 13,000 awardees across 200 different professions and specialties. We are committed to working with the devolved administrations, other funders, and wider stakeholders to ensure there is a comprehensive, clear, and rewarding career pathway for clinical academics in research, addressing issues raised in the report, Clinical researchers in the UK: reversing the decline to improve population health and promote economic growth.

We continue to work with NHS England to keep the selection process for all applicants to medical speciality training under review.

We are committed to ensuring that the number of medical specialty training places meets the demands of the National Health Service in the future. NHS England will work with stakeholders to ensure that any growth is sustainable and focused in the service areas where need is greatest.

We are committed to training the staff we need, including anaesthetists and all other medical specialities, to ensure patients are cared for by the right professional, when and where they need it. We have launched the 10-Year Health Plan which will set out a bold agenda to reform and repair the National Health Service. Ensuring we have the right people, in the right places, with the right skills will be central to this vision. NHS England has invested in 70 additional training posts in anaesthesia in 2022, 2023, and 2024. Further expansion will be determined by the upcoming Spending Review and the planned refresh of the Long Term Workforce Plan.

We are committed to training the staff we need, including anaesthetists and all other medical specialities, to ensure patients are cared for by the right professional, when and where they need it. We have launched the 10-Year Health Plan which will set out a bold agenda to reform and repair the National Health Service. Ensuring we have the right people, in the right places, with the right skills will be central to this vision. NHS England has invested in 70 additional training posts in anaesthesia in 2022, 2023, and 2024. Further expansion will be determined by the upcoming Spending Review and the planned refresh of the Long Term Workforce Plan.

The Elective Reform Plan, launched as part of the Government’s Plan for Change, sets out how we will get back to the NHS Constitutional Standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from Referral to Treatment by the end of this Parliament, and will also ensure that patients have the best possible experience of care.

We have set an ambition for 2025/26 that we reach 65% of patients waiting no longer than 18 weeks nationally, and for all trusts to deliver a minimum 5% improvement by March 2026. We will also publish minimum standards of care that patients can expect to experience, and will make digital improvements, including to the NHS App, to provide patients with greater choice, control, and flexibility.

At the Autumn Budget, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced an additional £1.5 billion in funding to support National Health Service performance across secondary and emergency care, including for surgical hubs. We will set out details of the allocation of funding for surgical hubs at the earliest opportunity, including details and locations of surgical hubs. Trusts with no operational or planned surgical hubs will be prioritised for new hub funding, as well as trusts with the highest waiting lists.

Across the country, dedicated and protected surgical hubs are transforming the way the NHS provides elective care, by focussing on high volume low complexity surgeries. The Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket constituency falls under the Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board. They have two recently opened surgical hubs, one in Ipswich, which opened in July 2024, and the second is the Essex and Suffolk Elective Orthopaedic Centre ESEOC, which opened in November 2024.

All local education providers, including in the East of England, are responsible for ensuring they have the appropriate capacity, including facilities, for training staff, including surgeons.

The General Medical Council’s (GMC’s) Promoting excellence: standards for medical education and training sets out the standards that the GMC expects organisations responsible for educating and training medical students and doctors in the United Kingdom to meet. This includes having the capacity, resources, and facilities to deliver safe and relevant learning opportunities, clinical supervision, and practical experiences for learners.

NHS England’s Education Quality Framework states that all staff, including learners and educators, should have access to the necessary resources, facilities, and equipment to ensure their safety within the workplace and to deliver safe clinical care. The framework is monitored locally in collaboration with medical schools. In addition, NHS England’s NHS Education Funding Agreement sets out in detail the expectations around the premises and facilities of placement providers.