Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to take steps to (a) review NHS hospital car parking charges for medical students and (b) provide funding for medical students in financial need.

Currently the Government has no plans to review National Health Service hospital car parking charges for medical students. NHS trusts determine car parking charges locally. All trusts that charge for car parking have implemented free hospital car parking for those with the greatest need. This includes NHS staff working overnight, which extends to students employed by the trust. The Government reviews funding arrangements for all healthcare students before the start of each academic year.

Whilst we will attempt to address a variety of issues with the finite resources available to us, we must also strike a balance between ensuring students are financially supported during their studies and delivering maximum value for money for the taxpayer.