Written question asked by Baroness Maclean of Redditch (Conservative) on Monday, 15 June 2026, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Monday, 29 June 2026. It was answered by Baroness Merron (Labour) on Wednesday, 24 June 2026 on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.

Health Services: Standards

Question: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the report of the Paterson Inquiry, what assessment they have made of the current system of regulation and whether the collaboration of regulators serves patient safety as the top priority; and what assessment they have made of whether gaps in regulatory oversight identified by the inquiry have been closed.

Answer: The Government’s regulatory reform programme will modernise the legislative frameworks for healthcare professionals in the United Kingdom. We are currently consulting on the draft General Medical Council Order, with further information available on the GOV.UK website, and this includes provisions that aim to deliver greater collaboration between regulators, and organisations and persons listed in Article 14 of the order. The intention is to improve the regulation of health and care professionals and the services they provide or contribute to. This could be through engagement or by sharing of information. The same provisions will be rolled out to the rest of the professional regulators when their legislation is subsequently modernised.

Secondary information