Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
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 accessibility of hearing tests for those 18 years old and under, including by audiologists who are not registered with the CQC.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to transforming diagnostic services in England and will support the National Health Service to increase diagnostic capacity, including for audiology services for those 18 years old and under.
The National Diagnostic Waiting Times and Activity dataset includes data on the percentage of patients waiting more than six weeks for an audiology assessment, and can be found at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/diagnostics-waiting-times-and-activity/
However, this data cannot be split by adult/child, therefore the Department has not made a formal assessment of the accessibility of hearing tests for those 18 years old and under. As of January 2026, the dataset showed that 45% of patients were waiting more than six weeks for an audiology assessment.
Audiology services are not required to be registered with Care Quality Commission where the services provided do not fall under the regulated activities, as set out in the regulations. Audiology activities, such as hearing tests, hearing aid fittings, and tympanometry/routine assessments are not regulated activities. More information is available at the following link:
When an audiologist is a practicing clinical scientist or a hearing aid dispenser, they must be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council, with further information available at the following link:
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what role neighbourhood mental health centre pilot schemes will play in improving (a) care and (b) support for people living with bipolar; and whether these centres will provide specialist support to help reduce delays in (i) diagnosis and (ii) treatment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Bermondsey and Old Southwark on 10 June 2025 to Question 53884.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
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 including wombs on the list of routine organ donations included for transplant by the NHS on women's health.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is responsible for organ donation across the United Kingdom.
In the UK, womb donation for transplant is not included in the standard organ donation process and is therefore not part of routine deemed consent. Donations for new types of transplants are only undertaken following a special and/or additional voluntary request to a family. It is also usually done for specific research programmes where people die in very rare circumstances and where a particular kind of donation may be possible.
The Department has worked in collaboration with National Health Service hospitals like Imperial College Healthcare Trust and Oxford University Hospitals in facilitating womb transplant research and clinical trials, however, it is not yet a standard NHS treatment and there are no current plans to include womb transplants on the organ donation register.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
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 taking immunosuppressant drugs in cases of pregnancy after organ transplant on babies in utero.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
Some immunosuppressive drugs are known to cause a structural or functional change in the foetus, known as teratogenic drugs, and so this is a critical area of concern in transplant medicine, and discussion with a patient’s transplant team is important to ensure the most appropriate immunosuppressive regime is provided for the best care of both parent and embryo.
NHS England Specialised Commissioning has not undertaken a specific impact assessment of taking immunosuppressant drugs during pregnancy on babies in utero, specifically in the context of transplant recipients. However, guidance is typically informed by a combination of clinical experience, research literature, and recommendations from broader medical bodies. The policies and practices in place in solid organ transplant centres are evidence based, and consider the safety and efficacy of the use of these drugs, including where National Institute for Health and Care Excellence evaluations have taken place.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will mandate the compulsory listing of health risks on adverts placed by the NHS and fertility clinics which seek egg donors.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), the United Kingdom’s fertility sector regulator, has advised that it sets out strict requirements in its Licence Conditions and Code of Practice in relation to the recruitment of donors and the information that must be given to egg donors in advance of donating at United Kingdom licensed fertility clinics, which includes information about the potential immediate or longer-term health risks. The HFEA Code of Practice states that advertising should be designed with regard to the sensitive issues involved in recruiting donors and should follow the Advertising Standards Authority codes.
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has not considered additional compulsory listing of health risks on adverts for egg donors.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the number of new prescriptions issued by NHS Children and Young People’s Gender Services for (a) oestrogen and (b) testosterone to young people aged 16-18 since 1 April 2024.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Since 1 April 2024 there have been no new initiations of exogenous hormones through the NHS Children and Young People's Gender Service.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what services his Department and the NHS offer to people choosing to detransition.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government and NHS England are committed to implementing the recommendations of the Cass Review in full. This includes the recommendation for a pathway to be established for individuals who wish to detransition. The formative stages of this work will involve a process of evidence gathering in the spring of 2025, focused on individuals and clinicians with experience of detransition, and professional bodies. NHS England will engage stakeholders on a proposed service specification for the new pathway, including through public consultation.
In parallel, NHS England has begun the process of forming a clinical commissioning policy for hormone medications, that will describe the approach for the management of hormone medications for individuals who choose to detransition.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will meet representatives of women and children's rights groups to discuss proposals announced by the Law Commission on 29 March 2023 in relation to surrogacy.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Law Commission consulted widely as part of the preparation for their report. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Patient Safety, Women’s Health and Mental Health will be writing to the Chairs of the Law Commissions of England, Wales, and Scotland shortly, to follow up their meeting on 5 November 2024. A Government response to the commissions’ report will be published as time allows. As such, the Department is not planning to meet women and children’s rights groups to discuss the matter at this time. We welcome future meetings on the topic at the appropriate time.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on which (a) cognitive behavioural therapy, (b) family therapy, (c) exploratory therapy and (d) other non-medical treatments are offered to young people by NHS Children and Young People’s Gender Services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England commissions gender services for children and young people in line with its interim service specification for children and young people with gender incongruence.
Children and young people are cared for holistically by specialist multi-disciplinary teams based in specialist children's hospitals. The multi-disciplinary teams include expertise in child and adolescent mental health, including family therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy, and neurodevelopmental conditions.
Each child or young person will have a tailored individual care plan to meet their needs. Depending on individual need, the gender service for children and young people will provide psychosocial and clinical interventions, including support for the family.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Independent - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he expects the NHS review of adult gender dysphoria clinics to report its findings.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is currently undertaking a review of adult gender services, chaired by Dr David Levy. The review will examine the model of care and operating procedures of each service, and will carefully consider experiences, feedback, and outcomes from clinicians and patients, with the aim of producing an updated service specification. The review will report its findings at the earliest opportunity.