Every parliamentary written question tabled by Neil Shastri-Hurst this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 1–20 of 81 · Department of Health and Social Care
What steps NHS England is taking to fulfil its oversight responsibilities for NHS Continuing Healthcare as set out in paragraph 23 of the National Framework.
NHS England operates an assurance regime to promote accurate assessment, equal access, standardisation, and consistency within NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC). This involves regional assurance meetings every two months, with a focus on reducing unwarrante...
What discussions his Department has had with the Home Office on enforcement against the illegal online sale of anabolic steroids.
The Department collects data, through the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS), on the number of people in structured substance misuse treatment, including those reporting a problem with anabolic steroids and other image and performance enhan...
Whether his Department has held discussions with social media companies on content promoting anabolic steroid use and extreme body image ideals to young men.
The Department has not held discussions with social media companies on content promoting anabolic steroid use and extreme body image ideals to young men.However, in November 2025, the Department launched England’s first ever Men’s Health Strategy which se...
What mechanisms are used by his Department to monitor the prevalence of anabolic steroid and other image and performance enhancing drug use in England.
The Department collects data, through the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS), on the number of people in structured substance misuse treatment, including those reporting a problem with anabolic steroids and other image and performance enhan...
Whether his Department maintains data on the number of hospital admissions linked to anabolic steroid use and related complications.
The Department collects data, through the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS), on the number of people in structured substance misuse treatment, including those reporting a problem with anabolic steroids and other image and performance enhan...
What data his Department holds on the average time taken by Integrated Care Boards to complete NHS Continuing Healthcare eligibility assessments, including for patients receiving end-of-life care.
NHS England publishes data on NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) and NHS-funded Nursing Care (FNC) on a quarterly basis. This includes the number and proportion of CHC referrals and eligibility decisions made for both the Standard and Fast Track CHC referral...
What data his Department holds on complications arising out of non-therapeutic circumcision between 2020 and 2025.
Information on complications arising out of non-therapeutic circumcision between 2020 and 2025 is not held in the format requested.
What steps he is taking to help prevent deaths related to non-therapeutic male circumcision.
The Department is currently considering its response to a prevention of future deaths report regarding non-therapeutic male circumcision. The response will set out any steps being taken to help prevent deaths related to non-therapeutic male circumcision. It will be published in due course.
What advice his Department has received from the UK Health Security Agency on the health impacts and emerging evidence concerning electromagnetic fields associated with public exclusion zone requirements for telecommunications masts.
Advice provided by the UK Health Security Agency to the Government, which includes the Department, on the health impacts of electromagnetic fields associated with telecommunications masts is publicly available on the GOV.UK website, at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mobile-phone-base-stations-radio-waves-and-health/mobile-phone-base-stations-radio-waves-and-health
Which Minister is attending meetings to discuss NHS England’s Urgent and Emergency Care Daily Situation Reports.
In May 2025, I initiated meetings to reflect on lessons learnt from last winter and to discuss priorities and preparations for this winter. These meetings ran until September 2025. In addition to this my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, and the Chief Executive Officer of NHS England brought leaders from across the system together in September 2025.Since October 2025, my Rt. Hon. Friend and I have been chairing regular winter meetings to ensure the whole system was prepared for, and is responding well to, pressures this winter. The latest urgent and emergency care data is a standing agenda item within these meetings. Since the publication of NHS England’s Urgent and Emergency Care Daily Situation Reports on 4 December 2025, information from these reports has been considered as part of this standing item.
How often meetings are held to discuss NHS England’s Urgent and Emergency Care Daily Situation Reports.
In May 2025, I initiated meetings to reflect on lessons learnt from last winter and to discuss priorities and preparations for this winter. These meetings ran until September 2025. In addition to this my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, and the Chief Executive Officer of NHS England brought leaders from across the system together in September 2025.Since October 2025, my Rt. Hon. Friend and I have been chairing regular winter meetings to ensure the whole system was prepared for, and is responding well to, pressures this winter. The latest urgent and emergency care data is a standing agenda item within these meetings. Since the publication of NHS England’s Urgent and Emergency Care Daily Situation Reports on 4 December 2025, information from these reports has been considered as part of this standing item.
What assessment he has made of the adequacy of current national oversight arrangements for the implementation of the framework set out in the document Maintaining High Professional Standards procedures within NHS trusts.
Maintaining High Professional Standards was first published in 2005, and it remains an important framework for the initial handling of concerns about doctors and dentists in the National Health Service. All Department and NHS England guidance documents are kept under review.
What steps his Department is taking to ensure that concerns raised by NHS whistleblowers on patient safety are (a) recorded, (b) escalated and (c) reviewed.
There are a number of avenues through which healthcare workers can speak up and raise concerns, with established procedures in place to record, act on, and escalate issues as needed.In England, more than 1,300 Freedom to Speak Up Guardians now support staff in speaking up. Their role involves working alongside governance, risk, and safety teams to ensure that speaking up translates into improvements in patient care, as well as identifying patterns and trends, for example, in patient safety incidents. Freedom to Speak Up Guardians collect and report anonymised data on the issues raised with them, including patient safety. This data is published by the National Guardian’s Office at the following link:https://nationalguardian.org.uk/learning-resources/speaking-up-data/The National Guardian’s Office and NHS England are ‘prescribed persons’, authorised to receive protected disclosures, including those in relation to safety and quality concerns. They are legally required to publish annual reports on protected disclosures and their outcomes.Every National Health Service organisation in England should be following the national Freedom to Speak Up policy, which outlines minimum standards for handling and addressing concerns. This policy ensures that all reported concerns are considered carefully and investigated objectively when necessary.
How many NHS staff were subject to Maintaining High Professional Standards procedures in each of the last five years.
The Department does not hold data centrally on how many National Health Service staff were investigated under the Maintaining High Professional Standards framework in each of the last five years. This data is also not held by NHS England.
If he will make an assessment of the prevalence of the use of Class (a) A, (b) B and (c) C drugs in NHS Mental Health Facilities.
We currently have no plans to make such an assessment. NHS England does not hold information or data related to the prevalence of illegal drug use across specialised mental health facilities.
What assessment he has made of the potential merits of mandating specialist dementia care homes to complete the Herbert Protocol for all residents with dementia.
The Herbert Protocol is a form that can provide the police and other emergency services with essential information about a person with dementia should they go missing.While this is not currently mandated, it is freely available for use online and can be completed by a person living with dementia, or those that care for them. Further information is available on the Herbert Protocol website at the following link:https://herbertprotocol.com/
What steps his Department is taking to ensure children presenting with obsessive compulsive disorder receive timely assessment and treatment within CAMHS.
We are transforming children and young people's mental health services to improve access to treatment for children with mental health needs, including obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). In the 12 months to July 2025, over 846,000 children and young people accessed National Health Service funded mental health support, a 65% increase compared to 2019. We are also expanding Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) in schools to reach full national coverage by 2029/30, and May 2025 data shows that over five million, or 52% of, pupils and learners are covered by an MHST. Systems should ensure that there are mental health services accessible to all children and young people with a mental health need in their area, including those with OCD.
Whether his Department plans to introduce specific waiting time targets for the assessment and treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder in children.
NHS England has been publishing data on children and young people’s community mental health waiting times since April 2024. These metrics measure the time taken for a child or young person who is starting to receive help in the form of assessments, co-produced care plans, and clinical and social interventions, as well as measuring baseline outcomes. These metrics cover a broad range of referrals to community children and young people’s mental health services. But there are no targets or standards set for specific mental health conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, at this time.
What discussions he has had with NHS England on the provision of (a) peer-support and (b) community-based networks for parents and carers of children with obsessive compulsive disorder.
Decisions about service provision are made locally, determined by locally identified need. Whilst service configurations and offers will differ across the country, local provision may include peer support or community-based networks for parents and carers, although NHS England does not hold this information.
Whether he has considered a Sponsored Reserve model or similar arrangement to enable NHS clinicians to contribute directly to Defence Medical Services while maintaining NHS employment.
There have been no formal considerations for the implementation of a Sponsored Reserve model within the National Health Service. The Department of Health and Social Care, in partnership with the Ministry of Defence, is focused on growing and maintaining the Active Armed Forces reserve and works with NHS organisations to enable individuals to train and deploy when needed.