Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the MS Society’s report entitled A Different Path: Rethinking MS hospital care, published in September 2025, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of preventable unplanned hospital admissions for people with multiple sclerosis on (a) people with MS, (b) the NHS and (c) the economy.

As set out in our recently published 10-Year Health Plan, the Government is determined to shift more healthcare out of hospitals and into the community, to ensure patients and their families receive personalised care in the most appropriate setting, including patients with multiple sclerosis (MS).

We recognise that preventable unplanned hospitals admissions for people with MS creates added pressure on acute services and are more costly for the National Health Service and the economy, when in fact most patients would prefer to be supported in the community.

The 10-Year Health Plan sets out our vision for a Neighbourhood Health Service, which will embody our new preventative principle that care should happen as locally as it can, digitally by default, in a person’s home if possible, in a neighbourhood health centre when needed, and only in a hospital if necessary.

The Neighbourhood Health Service will rebalance our health and care system so that it fits around peoples’ lives, not the other way round, moving away from a one-size-fits-all approach and giving people more power and choice over the care they receive.