Ashley Dalton

As I am sure the hon. Member knows, health is obviously a devolved matter. However, I am more than happy to look at the issues he has raised and come back to him. The data from the pilot areas will also be shared with all the integrated care boards, so that we can build up the case for more investment in T1DE from ICB budgets while looking at ways in which NHS England can support ICBs in commissioning their services. While those pilot sites are doing critical work, the NHS is supporting people with diabetes to live well. Central to that is making sure that patients have access to annual reviews that cover eight processes recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. We know that people who attend annual diabetes reviews have much better outcomes for emergency hospital admissions, amputations, retinopathy and mortality. That is why it is right that the NHS is investing £14.5 million over the next two years, supporting up to 140,000 people between the ages of 18 and 39 to receive additional tailored health checks by healthcare staff. That support will include vital support to break down any stigma associated with diabetes while helping those people to manage their condition, from blood sugar level control and weight management to minimising the risk of heart disease. As has been touched on, technology plays a critical role in helping people with diabetes to live healthier lives, and there is great potential to do the same for people with T1DE. NICE has made positive recommendations on offering real-time continuous glucose monitoring and hybrid closed loop technology to adults and children with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, meaning that those treatments are now offered on the NHS. Over two thirds of people with type 1 diabetes currently use glucose monitoring to help manage their condition, and following NICE’s recommendations on hybrid closed loop systems, NHS England has developed a five-year national strategy that began in April last year. I know that five years will seem like a long time to many of those young people struggling with this condition here and now, but the NHS does need an implementation period to ensure we have all the right people with the right skills within specialist adult services. We cannot compromise an inch on safety, and NHS trusts should only ever provide hybrid closed loop if specialist trained clinical staff, experienced in using insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitors, are in place.