Written questions by Maskell.

If he will take steps to ensure that hospices receive adequate funding.

We understand that financially times are difficult for many voluntary and charitable organisations, including hospices, due to the increased cost of living. We want a society where these costs are manageable for both voluntary organisations, like hospices, and the people whom they serve.The Government is going to shift the focus of healthcare out of the hospital and into the community, and we recognise that hospices will play a vital role. We will consider the next steps on palliative and end of life care more widely in the coming weeks.

Whether he is taking steps to reduce waiting times for dentists to take qualifying dental exams.

The General Dental Council (GDC) is responsible for setting requirements for entry to the dentists register and administers the Overseas Registration Exam (ORE), which assesses the knowledge and skills of dentists holding qualifications not otherwise recognised for registration. The Royal College of Surgeons operates the Licence in Dental Surgery, which is an alternative examination for such dentists.The GDC tripled the capacity of sittings for part 1 of the ORE from August 2023 through all of 2024, and is running an additional sitting of part 2 of the ORE in 2024. Together, these steps have created more than 1,300 additional places across the two parts. The GDC has opened tendering for provision of parts 1 and 2 of the ORE for the next five years, looking to improve the flexibility and availability of the ORE. Department officials continue to meet regularly with the GDC to discuss this important issue.

What steps he plans to take to tackle the backlog in autism and ADHD assessments.

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessments, in line with the relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to deliver improved outcomes in all-age autism assessment pathways. This guidance will help ICBs and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for children, young people and adults referred to an autism assessment service.The Department are supporting a cross-sector taskforce that NHS England has launched into challenges in ADHD service provision. The taskforce is expected to report on its findings and recommendations later this year.

If he make an assessment of the effectiveness of the roll-out of the shingles vaccine.

From September 2023, the routine shingles vaccination programme changed from the Zostavax vaccine to the more effective Shingrix vaccine, to better protect individuals from the effects of shingles, provide better clinical outcomes and reduce pressures on the health system. A phased expansion of the routine eligible cohort from people aged 70 years old to those aged 60 years old also began in September 2023, as Shingrix provides a substantially superior and longer duration of protection.Uptake is in line with where we expect it to be at this stage. Data from approximately 40% of general practices across England showed that uptake of the first dose of Shingrix in adults turning 65 years old in the first quarter of the programme roll-out was 25.1%. The data also showed that uptake of the first dose of Shingrix in adults turning 70 years old in the same period was 34.2%. This is comparable to uptake of Zostavax in those aged 70 years old in the early part of the programme roll-out, and is anticipated to increase over time.Published data is cumulative and there is a time lag because, whilst the data covers all eligible individuals that quarter, individuals whose birthday is at the end of a quarter have far less time to receive the vaccine than those at the beginning and may then be picked up in the next or subsequent quarters. Individuals become eligible when they turn 65 or 70 years old but then remain eligible until aged 80 years old and may not come forward or be called to receive the vaccine immediately. This is accounted for in planning the programme and in relation to vaccine supply.With the new vaccine schedule, patients now need two doses of the shingles vaccine. Ensuring patients receive both doses is vital to making sure patients receive the full benefits. To ensure patients come in for their second dose, which is due from six to 12 months following their first dose, NHS England is encouraging local systems to let patients know when and where they will receive their second dose to increase follow-through, send reminders, promote the programme and frame the overall goal in terms of having maximum protection by receiving both doses. A consistent offer and sustained communication to the public is key to achieving uptake of both first and second dose to all those eligible in line with the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s advice.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of a per capita funding arrangement for NHS dentistry.

One of our missions is to rescue and rebuild National Health Service dentistry. To do this, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.There are no perfect payment systems, and careful consideration needs to be given to any potential changes to the complex dental system, so that we deliver a system better for patients and professionals.Between 2011 and 2022, the Department tested a prototype system which included a mix of capitation and activity payments. The results of that trial are available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dental-contract-reform-evaluating-the-results-of-the-prototype-scheme/dental-contract-reform-a-report-on-learnings-from-the-dental-contract-prototype-test-between-april-2016-and-march-2019

If he will introduce training bonds for overseas dentists to work in the NHS for a fixed period.

The Government has no plans to enforce or incentivise overseas dentists specifically to work in the National Health Service.The General Dental Council (GDC) has opened tendering for provision of Overseas Registration Exam (ORE) Part 1 and Part 2 for the next five years, looking to improve flexibility and availability to the ORE for overseas-dentists. The GDC expanded ORE capacity by 1300 places in 2023-2024.On 23 May a consultation for a ‘tie-in’ to NHS dentistry for graduate dentists was published. The consultation closed on 18 July. We will consider responses to the consultation and will set out the Government’s position on the proposal in due course.This Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access NHS dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to areas that need them most.To rebuild dentistry in the long term and increase access to NHS dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.