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 improve maternity estates and clear the fixable maintenance backlog.

We are investing over £131 million through the 2025/26 Estates Safety Fund to address critical safety risks on the maternity estate, enabling better care for mothers and their newborns. The funded works will deliver vital safety improvements, enhance patient and staff environments, and support National Health Service productivity by reducing disruptions across NHS clinical services.

Improving the standard of maternity and neonatal departments is also a core component of the New Hospital Programme. 11 of the 16 hospitals that are expected to begin construction between 2025 and 2030 will be rebuilding maternity and women and children’s services.