Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 10 July 2025 to Question 63541 on Autism: Foetal Valproate Spectrum Disorder, if she will take steps to collate this information centrally.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Research already exists that shows evidence of an increased risk for children of neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism, when exposed to Valproate during pregnancy. This includes the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s publication, Valproate: review of safety data and expert advice on management of risks.
As this link is already identified in the evidence and research available, NHS England has no plans to collate further information about the number of children with autism also diagnosed with foetal valproate syndrome.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of continuing the use of Education, Health and Care Plans to support children who have Special Education Needs and Disabilities with a guaranteed right to support.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The department is determined to restore confidence in the system of support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), so that all children and young people get the chance to achieve and thrive in their education. Our aim is to improve educational outcomes.
The department is working with and listening to parents, local authorities, SEND organisations, education settings and others on how best we can strengthen the SEND system. We want to deliver better support for these vulnerable children and young people and their parents, and we are committed to getting this right. We will continue with this engagement over the summer, in preparation for consultation on a Schools White Paper in the autumn.
We have made no decisions yet on the future of education, health and care plans. There will, however, always be a legal right to additional support for children and young people with SEND.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
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 merits of appointing a Government lead to establish a strategic mission for (a) rare and (b) less survivable cancers.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We will get the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster so more patients survive, and we will improve patients’ experience across the system
The Government supports Scott Arthur’s Private Members Bill on rare cancers. The bill will make it easier for clinical trials into rare cancers to take place in England by ensuring the patient population can be easily contacted by researchers. The Government is committed to backing innovative clinical research ecosystem in the United Kingdom so that British patients can be among the first to benefit as we make the NHS fit for the future.
Finally, the National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for patients with rare cancers, as well as speeding up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason the role of the Patient Safety Commissioner is now going to be hosted within the MHRA; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of this on her ability to advocate for MHRA reform.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Dr Dash’s review of patient safety across the health and care landscape was published in July 2025. The review sets out a broad aim to streamline, simplify, and consolidate functions across the patient safety landscape. Dr Dash made nine recommendations which the Government has accepted in full and fed into the 10-Year Health Plan.
The review specifically recommends that the patient safety commissioner is hosted by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency. The office of the patient safety commissioner remains accountable to the Department, as it is now.
The Patient Safety Commissioner will play an important role in holding the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency to account for its work on patient safety and in ensuring that patient safety and the voice of patients remains a core priority in the agency’s work.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many children diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorders also have a diagnosis of foetal valproate syndrome.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Everyone who has been harmed from sodium valproate has our deepest sympathies. Information about the number of children diagnosed with an autistic spectrum disorder and a diagnosis of foetal valproate syndrome is not collected centrally.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
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 ensure that the (a) experiences and (b) interests of (i) children with foetal valproate syndrome and (ii) their families are included in NHS reform.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
As part of National Health Service reform, the Department has launched a transformation programme, led by a senior responsible officer. The Department is engaging with partners to ensure their experiences and interests are considered in shaping the future NHS.
The valuable work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and the resulting Hughes Report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh, is being considered by the Government. This is a complex area of work, involving several Government departments, and it is important that we get this right. We will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to respond to the Hughes Report before 23 July 2025.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is carefully considering the work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and her report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex issue involving input from different Government departments. The Government will provide a further update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of schools have administered adrenaline auto-injector devices to pupils experiencing anaphylaxis at school in each year since 2017.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The department does not hold this data.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason (a) Valproate redress and (b) interim payments are delayed.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is carefully considering the valuable work done by the Patient Safety Commissioner and the resulting Hughes Report, which set out options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh. This is a complex area of work, involving several Government departments. We will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s report at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Gateshead South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of extending exemptions to the proposed lactose allowance for milk-based drinks to equivalent milk-substitute drinks as part of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
At Autumn Budget 2024 the Chancellor announced her intention to review the Soft Drinks Industry levy (SDIL) – which has incentivised producers to remove almost half (46%) the sugar in relevant drinks – to further drive product reformulation.
The ‘Strengthening the Soft Drinks Industry Levy’ consultation, published on 28 April 2025 , therefore sets out proposals to reduce the minimum sugar content threshold at which the levy applies, and to remove the current exemptions for milk-based drinks and milk substitute drinks with added sugar.
To account for the naturally occurring sugar in the milk component of these milk-based drinks, the consultation proposes the introduction of a lactose allowance. This will be calculated based upon the milk content of each drink.
The Government is also consulting on the treatment of milk substitute drinks, and proposes only to extend the SDIL to milk substitutes with added sugar. In a similar fashion to the lactose allowance, drinks with sugars only released from their principal, or ‘core’ ingredient will be out of scope of the levy.
This is to maintain consistency of treatment between milk substitute drinks and plain animal milk-based drinks, whilst bringing into SDIL milk substitutes with added sugar, including the flavoured varieties that could be consumed as alternatives to flavoured milk-based drinks. Under these proposals, if any sugars other than those from the principal ingredient are added to a milk substitute drink the SDIL thresholds will apply, based on total sugar content (g) per 100ml.