Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of full-time equivalent NHS dentists practising in Wiltshire in (a) 2025-26 and (b) 2013-14.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The latest year in which workforce data is available is 2023/24. There were 440 dentists who undertook some level of National Health Service activity in the Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board (ICB).
Due to changes in how data is collected, the Department cannot make a direct comparison to the number of dentists in 2013/14.
However, in that year there were 238 dentists who undertook some level of NHS activity in the Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Group area. Please note that this area covers a smaller geographic area than the Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire ICB.
Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many frontline NHS staff have completed both parts of the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism as of July 2025; and what steps are being taken to ensure full compliance across all trusts.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Data on completion of the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism (Oliver’s Training) is held locally and is reported to NHS England by integrated care boards. This data does not differentiate between completion by frontline staff and other National Health Service and social care staff, and is instead focussed on overall completion of Tier 1 and Tier 2. Tier 1 of Oliver’s Training is for those that require general awareness for their role, and Tier 2 is for those who may provide direct care for people with a learning disability and autistic people. The first part of both tiers of training is a co-produced e-learning module which has had over three million completions across all audiences. The most recently validated data on completion of both parts held by NHS England is up to March 2025, when it was reported that 85,718 staff had completed Tier 1 training and 113,003 had completed Tier 2 training.
NHS England is supporting the roll out of the training on a Payment by Results basis, co-coordinated by integrated care boards, and continues to monitor training uptake.
Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many serious incidents involving maternity care were reported by NHS Trusts covering Wiltshire in each of the last five years.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Across the last five years, there have been a total of 116 serious incidents involving maternity care reported by National Health Service trusts covering Wiltshire. The following table shows the number of incidents per year against the trusts in Wiltshire, from 2020/21 to 2024/25:
Year | Royal United Hospitals, Bath | Salisbury Foundation Trust | Great Western Hospital | Total |
2020/21 | 10 | 5 | 11 | 26 |
2021/22 | 16 | 5 | 12 | 33 |
2022/23 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 27 |
2023/24 | 7 | 6 | 16 | 29 |
2024/25 | 1 |
|
| 1 |
Total | 50 | 24 | 42 |
|
Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
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 reduce the number of dentists moving from NHS to private practice in (a) Wiltshire and (b) other (i) rural and (ii) semi-rural areas.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most.
Integrated care boards have started to recruit posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.
Training a dentist costs the taxpayer up to £200,000. Having consulted on the principle of requiring all dentists to work in the NHS for a minimum period, we will now make it a requirement for newly qualified dentists to practice in the NHS for a minimum period. We intend this minimum period to be at least three years. That will mean more NHS dentists, more NHS appointments, and better oral health.
As a first step to reforming the dental contract, we are consulting on a package of changes to improve access to, and improve the quality of, NHS dentistry, which will deliver improved care for the diverse oral health needs of people across England. Further information on the consultation is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/nhs-dentistry-contract-quality-and-payment-reforms
The consultation was launched on 8 July 2025 and will close on 19 August 2025.
Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of GP practices operating in premises not fit for purpose; and what steps his Department is taking to increase funding to address this issue.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to delivering a National Health Service that is fit for the future, with world class infrastructure across the entire NHS estate and confronting the challenges posed by historic underinvestment in primary care.
There are 8,500 buildings that form the general practice (GP) estate nationally and we have worked with integrated care systems to develop infrastructure strategies which create a long-term plan for future estate requirements and investment for each local area and its specific needs. These strategies bring together planning for the existing and future primary care and secondary estate when considering how best to improve local service delivery.
Bath, Northeast Somerset, Swindon & Wiltshire Integrated Care Board is responsible for commissioning, planning, securing, and monitoring GP services within Wiltshire through delegated responsibility from NHS England and works with local practices to ensure that the community continues to receive world class health services.
We recently announced over 1,000 GP schemes which will benefit from this year's £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund, supporting GPs to improve the use of their existing buildings and space, boosting productivity and enabling delivery of more appointments. However, GPs are independent contractors who should routinely fund investment in maintaining their estate by utilising their own funds, borrowing, or through partnerships with third party developers.
Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
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 GP premises in Wiltshire; and what recent estimate he has made of the number of practices operating in buildings considered unfit for purpose.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to delivering a National Health Service that is fit for the future, with world class infrastructure across the entire NHS estate and confronting the challenges posed by historic underinvestment in primary care.
There are 8,500 buildings that form the general practice (GP) estate nationally and we have worked with integrated care systems to develop infrastructure strategies which create a long-term plan for future estate requirements and investment for each local area and its specific needs. These strategies bring together planning for the existing and future primary care and secondary estate when considering how best to improve local service delivery.
Bath, Northeast Somerset, Swindon & Wiltshire Integrated Care Board is responsible for commissioning, planning, securing, and monitoring GP services within Wiltshire through delegated responsibility from NHS England and works with local practices to ensure that the community continues to receive world class health services.
We recently announced over 1,000 GP schemes which will benefit from this year's £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund, supporting GPs to improve the use of their existing buildings and space, boosting productivity and enabling delivery of more appointments. However, GPs are independent contractors who should routinely fund investment in maintaining their estate by utilising their own funds, borrowing, or through partnerships with third party developers.
Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department provides to (a) GPs and (b) health visitors to aid the early diagnosis of neuroblastoma.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
General practice teams are expected to follow guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Where symptoms are suggestive of neuroblastoma, appropriate referral to a specialist must be made.
Health visitors are not responsible for making diagnoses, but they play a vital role in providing advice and support to families and in recognising when a child may require further clinical assessment. They remain vigilant for signs that could indicate serious health concerns, including cancers, in line with professional guidance and protocols.
Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will revise the Eatwell Guide to include explicit guidance on (a) limiting ultra-processed food and (b) promoting whole and minimally processed foods.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
United Kingdom dietary recommendations are based on robust independent risk assessments by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN). In 2023, the SACN reviewed the scientific basis of UK recommendations in its report Feeding young children aged 1 to 5 years.
The SACN also reviewed the evidence on processed foods and health in its 2023 and 2025 position statements, as well as non-sugar sweeteners (NSS) in a position statement published in 2025.
The SACN has made a number of recommendations for children in relation to the consumption of processed foods and drinks, for instance:
The SACN has concluded that on balance, most people are likely to benefit from reducing their consumption of processed foods which are high in energy, saturated fat, salt, and free sugars, and which are and low in fibre. This is based on the nutrient content of many ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and concerns raised in relation to health.
The SACN’s recommendations align with our existing policies for supporting healthier diets and our advice to consumers. The SACN will continue to keep the topic under review.
Government dietary advice, as depicted in the Eatwell Guide, already shows that people should eat more fruit and vegetables and wholegrain or higher-fibre foods, as well as less processed meat and processed foods and drinks high in calories, sugar, saturated fat, and salt. For most people, following this advice would lead to a reduced consumption of UPFs.
The terms ‘whole’ and ‘minimally processed’ are not used in Government dietary recommendations because they are difficult to define and could be interpreted as including foods that we advise to eat less often and/or in small amounts, such as butter.
Further research is required to determine whether the processing itself, rather than the poor nutrient content of foods, has an impact on health, before any significant updates are made to the Eatwell Guide.
Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
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 diets high in ultra-processed foods on the health of children under five.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
United Kingdom dietary recommendations are based on robust independent risk assessments by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN). In 2023, the SACN reviewed the scientific basis of UK recommendations in its report Feeding young children aged 1 to 5 years.
The SACN also reviewed the evidence on processed foods and health in its 2023 and 2025 position statements, as well as non-sugar sweeteners (NSS) in a position statement published in 2025.
The SACN has made a number of recommendations for children in relation to the consumption of processed foods and drinks, for instance:
The SACN has concluded that on balance, most people are likely to benefit from reducing their consumption of processed foods which are high in energy, saturated fat, salt, and free sugars, and which are and low in fibre. This is based on the nutrient content of many ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and concerns raised in relation to health.
The SACN’s recommendations align with our existing policies for supporting healthier diets and our advice to consumers. The SACN will continue to keep the topic under review.
Government dietary advice, as depicted in the Eatwell Guide, already shows that people should eat more fruit and vegetables and wholegrain or higher-fibre foods, as well as less processed meat and processed foods and drinks high in calories, sugar, saturated fat, and salt. For most people, following this advice would lead to a reduced consumption of UPFs.
The terms ‘whole’ and ‘minimally processed’ are not used in Government dietary recommendations because they are difficult to define and could be interpreted as including foods that we advise to eat less often and/or in small amounts, such as butter.
Further research is required to determine whether the processing itself, rather than the poor nutrient content of foods, has an impact on health, before any significant updates are made to the Eatwell Guide.
Asked by: Sarah Gibson (Liberal Democrat - Chippenham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time is from initial referral to diagnosis for multiple sclerosis in each NHS region.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We do not hold data in the format requested. The latest data for referral to treatment waiting times in England, from April 2025, shows there were 223,699 pathways waiting for a neurology appointment, of which 53.8% were waiting for 18 weeks or less.