The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answers on 14th May 2025:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to address (1) the under-representation of women in health data, and (2) the lack of female-only UK clinical trials.
Baroness Merron (Lab, DHSC): The Department is committed to ensuring that women are represented across all forms of health data, including National Health Service patient data and data that is used for research. The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and recognises that increasing the diversity of people taking part in research is key to ensuring the evidence and data generated by research is relevant for the whole population.
On 10 March 2025, the NIHR launched its sex and gender policy, which is expected to come into force later in 2025. A document containing the NIHR’s sex and gender policy is attached. This outlines an NIHR statement of intent on integrating sex and gender into health and care research. Implementing such a policy will ensure research accounts for sex and gender across every stage of the research cycle, thus facilitating funding into topics that impact males and females and, crucially, a greater understanding of how males and females might be impacted differently by the same health condition.
The Department and NHS England fund the Research Engagement Network Development Programme, which aims to increase diversity in research participation through the development of research engagement networks with communities who are often underserved by research, and by ensuring diversity in research is considered by integrated care systems.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government whether they plan to fund research to establish safe microplastic exposure thresholds and identify key interventions to improve neglected areas, including soil and air quality.
Baroness Merron: The UK Health Security Agency carried out research to understand if there are potential health risks from exposure to micro and nano plastics through inhalational and oral routes. This was part of the National Institute of Health and Care Research funded Health Protection Research Unit in Environmental Exposures and Health.
In addition, the potential impact of microplastic materials on human health has been assessed by the UK Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment. The most recent statement was published in 2024, a copy of which is attached.
Under the 2022/23 UK REACH Work Programme, the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs initiated a research proposal to investigate the risks of intentionally added microplastics. The evidence project has reviewed their emissions and the risks they pose both to human health and the environment. The project also included a socio-economic assessment. This project is expected to report in early 2025. The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs and the Welsh and Scottish Governments will consider its findings once complete.
The Church of England in Parliament 
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