Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to take to tackle the increase in the number of Do Not Resuscitate orders given to people with learning disabilities in advance of the Care Quality Commission publishing its review on the use of those orders during the covid-19 outbreak.

We have been clear that learning disability should never be a reason for a Do Not Attempt Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (DNACPR) decision and that blanket DNACPR decisions are completely inappropriate.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have issued a number of joint statements to health and care providers reiterating that DNACPR decisions must not be applied in a blanket fashion to any group. The 2020/21 General Medical Services Contract Quality and Outcomes Framework now includes a requirement for all DNACPR decisions for people with a learning disability to be reviewed. We continue to monitor the situation and have asked organisations representing people with learning disabilities to inform us where cases of inappropriate DNACPR practice are identified so that these can be investigated.