Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how he is balancing rapid access targets with preserving continuity, especially for patients with long-term or complex conditions.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government values continuity in general practice (GP), but this isn't inconsistent with efforts to improve access, such as via the 24-hour access target where urgent treatment is required.
In the 2025/26 contract, one of the domains of the Capacity and Access Improvement Payment, worth £29.2 million, incentivises primary care networks to risk stratify their patients to support continuity of care, including patients with long-term or complex conditions. This allows GPs to deliver care to meet the specific needs of their patients
Over the past 16 months, the Government has invested an extra £1.1 billion into primary care, allowing for the recruitment of over 2,000 more GPs, and has halved the number of targets GPs are held to so that GPs can spend more time caring for patients. As a result, patient satisfaction with GPs has improved after a decade of decline, rising from 61% in July 2024 to 74% in July 2025, marking a 13-percentage-point increase over the last year.
Over ten million more GP appointments have been delivered in the 12 months to September 2025, compared to the same period last year, building capacity for continuity of care and improving access so that patients can be seen when they need to be in primary care.
We have always valued input from a range of stakeholders on the future of GPs and continue to engage with GPs broadly to ensure the targets are achievable, reflect the needs of the populations they serve, and understand any barriers to delivery of this target.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will review access metrics to ensure that they support relationship-based care in general practice.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government values continuity in general practice (GP), but this isn't inconsistent with efforts to improve access, such as via the 24-hour access target where urgent treatment is required.
In the 2025/26 contract, one of the domains of the Capacity and Access Improvement Payment, worth £29.2 million, incentivises primary care networks to risk stratify their patients to support continuity of care, including patients with long-term or complex conditions. This allows GPs to deliver care to meet the specific needs of their patients
Over the past 16 months, the Government has invested an extra £1.1 billion into primary care, allowing for the recruitment of over 2,000 more GPs, and has halved the number of targets GPs are held to so that GPs can spend more time caring for patients. As a result, patient satisfaction with GPs has improved after a decade of decline, rising from 61% in July 2024 to 74% in July 2025, marking a 13-percentage-point increase over the last year.
Over ten million more GP appointments have been delivered in the 12 months to September 2025, compared to the same period last year, building capacity for continuity of care and improving access so that patients can be seen when they need to be in primary care.
We have always valued input from a range of stakeholders on the future of GPs and continue to engage with GPs broadly to ensure the targets are achievable, reflect the needs of the populations they serve, and understand any barriers to delivery of this target.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
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 access targets for general practice on continuity of care.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government values continuity in general practice (GP), but this isn't inconsistent with efforts to improve access, such as via the 24-hour access target where urgent treatment is required.
In the 2025/26 contract, one of the domains of the Capacity and Access Improvement Payment, worth £29.2 million, incentivises primary care networks to risk stratify their patients to support continuity of care, including patients with long-term or complex conditions. This allows GPs to deliver care to meet the specific needs of their patients
Over the past 16 months, the Government has invested an extra £1.1 billion into primary care, allowing for the recruitment of over 2,000 more GPs, and has halved the number of targets GPs are held to so that GPs can spend more time caring for patients. As a result, patient satisfaction with GPs has improved after a decade of decline, rising from 61% in July 2024 to 74% in July 2025, marking a 13-percentage-point increase over the last year.
Over ten million more GP appointments have been delivered in the 12 months to September 2025, compared to the same period last year, building capacity for continuity of care and improving access so that patients can be seen when they need to be in primary care.
We have always valued input from a range of stakeholders on the future of GPs and continue to engage with GPs broadly to ensure the targets are achievable, reflect the needs of the populations they serve, and understand any barriers to delivery of this target.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
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 adequacy of the Care Quality Commission’s inspection capacity in Gloucestershire; and what steps are being taken to help ensure that people in (a) South Cotswolds constituency and (b) the UK have access to up-to-date and reliable inspection information when choosing care providers.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England. Health is a devolved matter for the rest of United Kingdom.
The Department is aware of the need for the CQC to make improvements in the number of assessments it undertakes, following Dr Penny Dash’s review of the CQC’s operational effectiveness, published in October 2025.
The CQC is being supported and held to account for making improvements, including increasing the number of provider assessments and the timely publication of assessments reports.
Assessment reports are published on the CQC’s website and accessible to the public for information when choosing care providers.
From January 2026, the CQC will prioritise inspections of services with outdated ratings and those not previously assessed, while continuing to respond to risks. These steps aim to provide timely and reliable inspection information for individuals choosing care providers, including those in the South Cotswolds.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will review the adequacy of the GP contract at funding increases in levels of demand, inflationary pressures, and additional responsibilities.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
General practices (GPs) are valued independent contractors who provide over £13 billion worth of National Health Services. Every year we consult with the sector both about what services they provide, and the money providers are entitled to in return under their contract, taking into account the cost of delivering services.
We are investing an additional £1.1 billion in GPs to reinforce the front door of the NHS, bringing total spend on the GP Contract to £13.4 billion in 2025/26, which is the biggest cash increase in over a decade. The 8.9% boost to the GP Contract in 2025/26 is greater than the 5.8% growth to the NHS budget as a whole.
We have started the 2026/27 GP Contract consultation, and we look forward to listening to a range of stakeholders to help strengthen policy making, ensuring that GPs work for staff and patients. Further details will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how he is supporting public understanding of what general practice can safely deliver.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As part of the 2025/26 GP Contract, NHS England published You and Your General Practice (YYGP) guidance. YYGP has been developed to help patients understand what to expect from their general practice (GP) and how they can get the best from their GP team. The guidance is based on the contractual requirements that all contractors providing essential GP services must meet and is intended to make patients more informed and to increase practice accountability to patients, with the aim of improving services and patient engagement.
GPs are required to provide a link on their website to the NHS England YYGP document, which can also be found on the NHS England website, at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/you-and-your-general-practice/
The guidance will remain under review and will continue to be updated to reflect changes made to GP contracts.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how practices will be supported with increases in levels of workload arising from private sector activity, including ADHD, gender affirming care and weight management prescribing.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are investing an additional £1.1 billion in general practice (GP) to reinforce the front door of the National Health Service, bringing total spend on the GP Contract to £13.4 billion in 2025/26, which is the biggest cash increase in over a decade. The 8.9% boost to the GP Contract in 2025/26 is greater than the 5.8% growth to the NHS budget as a whole.
Since October 2024, we have funded primary care networks with an additional £160 million to recruit recently qualified GPs through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme. Over 2,600 individual GPs have now been recruited, preventing them from graduating into unemployment. We have committed to training thousands more GPs across the country which will increase capacity and take the pressure off those currently working in the system.
The Government is committed to ensuring the GP workforce is sustainable, supported, and valued for the work they do. Good staff experience is crucial in ensuring the NHS is able to recruit and retain staff and its importance is recognised and illustrated in the recently published 10-Year Health Plan. In the spring we will publish a 10 Year Workforce Plan, which will set out how we will deliver change to ensure that staff will be better treated, have better training, more fulfilling roles, and hope for the future, so they can achieve more.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence produces evidence-based guidance for health and care practitioners on best practice for a variety of conditions including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and obesity. NHS England has also published service specifications that describe how clinical and medical care is offered to people with gender dysphoria.
GPs have access to a range of support from their integrated care boards and NHS England has developed a suite of implementation materials, delivery guidance and protocols, and has provided access to training resources to help GPs with weight management prescribing.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the closure of specialist Long Covid clinics on the collection of data on the long-term health impacts of Covid-19; and what steps he is taking to ensure that these conditions are not under-recognised or under-resourced as a result.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
While no central assessment has been made of the impact of local closures of post-COVID-19 services on patient outcomes and data collection, the Government understands the scale of the issue at hand, particularly the impact of long COVID-19 on health, employment, and the economy.
The Government is aware that post-acute infection conditions, such as long COVID-19, can have a devastating effect on those who suffer from them. We are committed to taking a comprehensive and compassionate approach to supporting individuals with post-acute infection conditions such as long COVID-19, recognising the unique challenges these conditions present.
Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning specialist services for long COVID-19 that meet the needs of their population, subject to local prioritisation and funding. NHS England has published commissioning guidance for post-COVID-19, or long COVID-19, services, which sets out a blueprint for best practice in supporting people with long COVID-19 and is designed to be adapted to local needs. This guidance is avaiable at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/national-commissioning-guidance-for-post-covid-services/
Anyone who is concerned about long lasting symptoms after having COVID-19 should contact their general practitioner (GP). If appropriate, their GP will refer them to a National Health Service long COVID-19 service where available, or a suitable alternative, which will assess people and direct them into care pathways which provide appropriate support, treatment, and rehabilitation.
To support clinical leadership in this area, NHS England worked in partnership with the British Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine to establish the International Post- Covid and Post-Infection Conditions Society to facilitate the ongoing sharing of best practice to support people affected by long COVID-19.
Ongoing projects funded through the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Medical Research Council (MRC) aim to improve our understanding of the diagnosis and underlying mechanisms of long COVID-19 and the effectiveness of both pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies and interventions, as well as to evaluate clinical care. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including long COVID-19. The NIHR and MRC remain committed to funding high-quality research to understand the causes, consequences, and treatment of post-viral conditions, including long COVID-19, and are actively exploring next steps for research into post-viral conditions.
On 6 November 2025, the NIHR and MRC hosted a showcase event for post-acute infection conditions, including long COVID-19, research. This brought together people with lived experience, researchers, clinicians, and research funders to help stimulate further research in this field. We are now considering discussions from the showcase event to explore next steps to stimulate further vital research in this area.
We are determined to accelerate progress in the treatment and management of long COVID-19. This includes a new funding opportunity for a development award which is focussed on the feasibility of a phase 2 platform clinical trial that tests multiple repurposed pharmaceutical interventions and/or non-pharmacological interventions and devices. This targeted funding opportunity is one component of our approach to improve evidence around the diagnosis, management, and treatment of post-acute infection conditions, including long COVID-19.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on patient outcomes for those with Long-Covid following the closure of dedicated services; and how many former Long Covid patients are being supported through ME/CFS services.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
While no central assessment has been made of the impact of local closures of post-COVID-19 services on patient outcomes and data collection, the Government understands the scale of the issue at hand, particularly the impact of long COVID-19 on health, employment, and the economy.
The Government is aware that post-acute infection conditions, such as long COVID-19, can have a devastating effect on those who suffer from them. We are committed to taking a comprehensive and compassionate approach to supporting individuals with post-acute infection conditions such as long COVID-19, recognising the unique challenges these conditions present.
Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning specialist services for long COVID-19 that meet the needs of their population, subject to local prioritisation and funding. NHS England has published commissioning guidance for post-COVID-19, or long COVID-19, services, which sets out a blueprint for best practice in supporting people with long COVID-19 and is designed to be adapted to local needs. This guidance is avaiable at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/national-commissioning-guidance-for-post-covid-services/
Anyone who is concerned about long lasting symptoms after having COVID-19 should contact their general practitioner (GP). If appropriate, their GP will refer them to a National Health Service long COVID-19 service where available, or a suitable alternative, which will assess people and direct them into care pathways which provide appropriate support, treatment, and rehabilitation.
To support clinical leadership in this area, NHS England worked in partnership with the British Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine to establish the International Post- Covid and Post-Infection Conditions Society to facilitate the ongoing sharing of best practice to support people affected by long COVID-19.
Ongoing projects funded through the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Medical Research Council (MRC) aim to improve our understanding of the diagnosis and underlying mechanisms of long COVID-19 and the effectiveness of both pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies and interventions, as well as to evaluate clinical care. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including long COVID-19. The NIHR and MRC remain committed to funding high-quality research to understand the causes, consequences, and treatment of post-viral conditions, including long COVID-19, and are actively exploring next steps for research into post-viral conditions.
On 6 November 2025, the NIHR and MRC hosted a showcase event for post-acute infection conditions, including long COVID-19, research. This brought together people with lived experience, researchers, clinicians, and research funders to help stimulate further research in this field. We are now considering discussions from the showcase event to explore next steps to stimulate further vital research in this area.
We are determined to accelerate progress in the treatment and management of long COVID-19. This includes a new funding opportunity for a development award which is focussed on the feasibility of a phase 2 platform clinical trial that tests multiple repurposed pharmaceutical interventions and/or non-pharmacological interventions and devices. This targeted funding opportunity is one component of our approach to improve evidence around the diagnosis, management, and treatment of post-acute infection conditions, including long COVID-19.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the closure of dedicated Long Covid services on patient outcomes; and what steps he is taking to ensure that the long-term effects of Covid-19 are (a) properly identified, (b) monitored and (c) treated.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
While no central assessment has been made of the impact of local closures of post-COVID-19 services on patient outcomes and data collection, the Government understands the scale of the issue at hand, particularly the impact of long COVID-19 on health, employment, and the economy.
The Government is aware that post-acute infection conditions, such as long COVID-19, can have a devastating effect on those who suffer from them. We are committed to taking a comprehensive and compassionate approach to supporting individuals with post-acute infection conditions such as long COVID-19, recognising the unique challenges these conditions present.
Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning specialist services for long COVID-19 that meet the needs of their population, subject to local prioritisation and funding. NHS England has published commissioning guidance for post-COVID-19, or long COVID-19, services, which sets out a blueprint for best practice in supporting people with long COVID-19 and is designed to be adapted to local needs. This guidance is avaiable at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/national-commissioning-guidance-for-post-covid-services/
Anyone who is concerned about long lasting symptoms after having COVID-19 should contact their general practitioner (GP). If appropriate, their GP will refer them to a National Health Service long COVID-19 service where available, or a suitable alternative, which will assess people and direct them into care pathways which provide appropriate support, treatment, and rehabilitation.
To support clinical leadership in this area, NHS England worked in partnership with the British Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine to establish the International Post- Covid and Post-Infection Conditions Society to facilitate the ongoing sharing of best practice to support people affected by long COVID-19.
Ongoing projects funded through the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Medical Research Council (MRC) aim to improve our understanding of the diagnosis and underlying mechanisms of long COVID-19 and the effectiveness of both pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies and interventions, as well as to evaluate clinical care. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including long COVID-19. The NIHR and MRC remain committed to funding high-quality research to understand the causes, consequences, and treatment of post-viral conditions, including long COVID-19, and are actively exploring next steps for research into post-viral conditions.
On 6 November 2025, the NIHR and MRC hosted a showcase event for post-acute infection conditions, including long COVID-19, research. This brought together people with lived experience, researchers, clinicians, and research funders to help stimulate further research in this field. We are now considering discussions from the showcase event to explore next steps to stimulate further vital research in this area.
We are determined to accelerate progress in the treatment and management of long COVID-19. This includes a new funding opportunity for a development award which is focussed on the feasibility of a phase 2 platform clinical trial that tests multiple repurposed pharmaceutical interventions and/or non-pharmacological interventions and devices. This targeted funding opportunity is one component of our approach to improve evidence around the diagnosis, management, and treatment of post-acute infection conditions, including long COVID-19.