{"primaryDescription":"

MPs to question Women’s Health Minister and Chief Scientific Adviser on access to FGM reconstructive surgery

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The Women and Equalities Committee (WEC) will question Baroness Merron, Women’s Health Minister and Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Scientific Adviser at the DHSC and CEO of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)during an evidence session on access to reconstructive surgery for FGM survivors.

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WEC’s FGM report published in September 2025 called on Ministers to facilitate and fund research into the effectiveness of reconstructive surgery for FGM survivors as a matter of priority, adding if evidence indicates that the surgery is effective, then the NHS should provide it.

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Baroness Merron wrote to the Committee in October to say the NIHR, FGM specialists and scientific experts were working to progress the proposal and a commissioned call for research was published in November 2025. Yet applications received were rejected with no guarantee of future funding opportunities for research.

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In a letter to the Committee published this week, the NIHR said: “While we received two applications to this call, our independent funding committee recommended in May that neither application was ready for funding at that time…We strongly recognise the importance of addressing the Committee’s recommendation for further research in this area, and we remain committed to fund research on this topic.”

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The evidence session will examine the research call, funding and the Government’s commitment and progress on access to FGM reconstructive surgery in the UK. MPs may also discuss international comparisons, health services for FGM survivors, mental health support and women’s health research. 

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