Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a national A&E Appreciation Week.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government highly values hardworking National Health Service staff who go above and beyond to provide rapid and critical care. Local NHS trusts have in place their own approaches to recognising and rewarding staff, supported by advice and guidance set out in the Staff Recognition Framework. This is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/staff-recognition-framework/
Members of Parliament can also acknowledge the work of NHS staff in their constituency through the NHS Parliamentary Awards.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with NHS England on (a) the appointment of a single Chair for two different NHS Trusts and (b) ensuring that the effectiveness of those Trusts' (i) governance, (ii) accountability and (iii) local representation are not compromised by such arrangements.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government and NHS England support and expect collaboration between National Health Service trusts. Shared leadership, including having a shared chair, is one way which trusts can collaborate to address the issues they are facing.
With any governance model they have in place, NHS trusts are required to meet the conditions in the NHS provider licence to ensure that organisations operate in a way that is safe, financially sustainable, cooperative, and accountable.
Trusts can work with their regional NHS England teams to discuss potential shared leadership arrangements to ensure that governance and accountability remain effective, while realising the benefits of collaboration.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
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 adequacy of community care for dementia patients.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs). We expect ICBs to commission services based on local population needs, taking account of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guidelines.
Under the 10-Year Health Plan, those living with dementia will benefit from improved care planning and better services. We will deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity.
The Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia will seek to reduce unwarranted variation and narrow inequality for those living with dementia, will set national standards for dementia care and will redirect National Health Service priorities to provide the best possible care and support.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support people with postural tachycardia syndrome.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Improving health outcomes for everyone living with a long-term condition, including postural tachycardia syndrome (PoTS), is a key part of the Government's mission to build a National Health Service fit for the future.
People with PoTS can access a variety of NHS services that are locally commissioned by integrated care boards, which are responsible for ensuring that their local area has appropriate services in place to meet the needs of their population.
Many patients can be diagnosed and managed effectively within primary care. In complex cases, or where patients do not respond to initial treatment, patients may be referred to specialised cardiology or neurology services.
At a national level, NHS England has made additional support available. This includes a focus on healthy working environments, tools and resources to support line managers to hold meaningful conversations with staff to discuss their wellbeing, and emotional and psychological health and wellbeing support.
The three shifts outlined in the 10-Year Health Plan will support people with long-term conditions, including those with PoTS, to better manage their condition and access services closer to home. For example, it will empower them to access their medical history and allow them to book and manage their appointments and medication.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support people with multiple sclerosis.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services for their local population, including for multiple sclerosis (MS). The Government expects ICBs to assess the demand for service provision when designing their local services.
There are initiatives to support better care for patients with neurological conditions, such as MS, across England. These include the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology, which aims to improve MS care by supporting the National Health Service to address variations in care and promote best practice.
The Progressive Neurological Conditions Toolkit, published by NHS England’s RightCare Programme, supports healthcare systems in improving the care of individuals living with progressive neurological conditions, including MS. It aims to enhance local services and reduce hospital admissions by focusing on preventative care and optimising the delivery of services.
NHS England’s Neurology Transformation Programme (NTP) is a multi-year programme to develop a new model of integrated care for neurology services. The NTP has collaborated with clinicians and patient groups to create specific pathways for MS, aiming to improve the quality and coordination of care.
NHS England is also updating its Specialised Neurology service specification, which includes MS. Service specifications define the standards of care expected from organisations funded by NHS England to provide specialised care.
The three shifts outlined in the 10-Year Health Plan will support people with long-term conditions, including those with MS, to better manage their condition and access services closer to home. For example, it will empower them to access their medical history and allow them to book and manage their appointments and medication.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support people with pulmonary fibrosis.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is responsible for the commissioning of services for interstitial lung disease and funds the cost of anti-fibrotic treatments to treat this disease. Access to these treatments has recently been expanded to patients with non-idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, following the publication of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s technology appraisal Nintedanib for treating progressive fibrosing interstitial lung diseases, in November 2021.
In order to increase awareness of pulmonary fibrosis, NHS England has established 13 Respiratory Clinical Networks across the country. These have been vital in providing clinical leadership for respiratory services and supporting services in primary care, including restoring spirometry, which is one of the tests used to diagnose pulmonary fibrosis.
Pulmonary rehabilitation plays an important role in the management of patients with pulmonary fibrosis, and should be made available to all patients who would benefit from this intervention.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
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 adequacy of existing treatment options for people with Secondary Breast Cancer.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
To assess the adequacy of existing treatment options for people with secondary breast cancer, NHS England funded an audit into primary and metastatic breast cancer. Using routine data collected from patients diagnosed in a National Health Service setting, the audit brings together information to look at what is being done well, where it’s being done well, and what needs to be done better. On 12 September 2024, the National Cancer Audit Collaborating Centre published this audit, and the NHS is now acting on the findings.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) evaluates all new licensed medicines and makes recommendations on whether they should be routinely funded by the NHS based on their costs and benefits. The NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended by NICE. Since April 2018, NICE has recommended 24 of the 25 breast cancer medicines it has evaluated, and they are now available for the treatment of NHS patients.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support dementia carers.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan reaffirms our commitment to improve the lives of people drawing on care, unpaid carers, and the social care workforce through the first ever Fair Pay Agreement for the sector, as well as our commitment to the creation of a National Care Service, informed by Baroness Louise Casey’s independent commission into adult social care.
The commission will build national consensus on how to create a National Care Service and will produce tangible, pragmatic recommendations that make adult social care more productive and preventative, giving people who draw on care, and their families and carers, more power in the system.
In the meantime, to support unpaid carers, the Government has increased the Carer's Allowance weekly earnings limit from £151 a week to £196, the equivalent of 16 hours at the National Living Wage. This represents the largest increase in the earnings limit since the Carer’s Allowance was introduced in 1976, and the highest percentage increase since 2001. We are also committed to reviewing the implementation of Carer’s Leave and examining the benefits of introducing paid Carer’s Leave.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
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 merits of mandating standardised domestic abuse training for all frontline NHS staff.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is the responsibility of National Health Service organisations to ensure that all staff undertake mandatory training on domestic abuse. Mandatory training at Level 1 is captured in the NHS Electronic Staff Record (ESR), as part of the integrated safeguarding training module. This is monitored by the Care Quality Commission as part of their provider compliance visit. Level 2 and 3 are stand-alone modules and are not always captured in the ESR. Staff are also required to undertake further domestic abuse training where it is relevant to their role.
National mandatory safeguarding training for all NHS staff is being strengthened for launch in early 2026. This will reinforce the safeguarding responsibilities of staff and will support them in identifying and responding to victims of abuse.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to make the NHS more accessible for people with hearing impairment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Under the Equality Act (2010), health and social care organisations must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled people are not disadvantaged.
The Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag was developed to enable health and care workers to record, share, and view details of reasonable adjustments, across the National Health Service and social care, wherever the person is seen or treated.
Since 2016, all NHS organisations and publicly funded social care providers are expected to meet the Accessible Information Standard, which details the recommended approach to supporting the information and communication support needs of people with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss, including people with a hearing or visual impairment.
On 30 June 2025, a revised Accessible Information Standard (AIS) was published. NHS England is working to support implementation of the AIS with awareness raising, communication, and engagement, and is reviewing the current e-learning modules on the AIS. The intention is to ensure that staff and organisations in the NHS are aware of the AIS and the importance of meeting the information and communication needs of disabled people using services.