Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

NHS Capacity

Tuesday 19 October 2021 · 8 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 2 Partly answered 4 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The NHS will receive an extra 5.4 billion for the second half of the financial year to support its response to covid-19.
  • The Government prioritizes cancer care through investment in advanced technology and diagnostics.
  • The NHS long-term plan commits to increasing investment in mental health at least as fast as in physical health.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Nigel Mills Con
NHS
Context

The MP asked about the recent steps taken by the Department to increase NHS capacity.

Question

What recent steps his Department has taken to increase NHS capacity?

Answer from Sajid Javid

The NHS will receive an extra £5.4 billion for the second half of this financial year to support its response to covid-19. This includes an extra £1 billion to help to tackle the treatment backlog and £478 million to continue the enhanced hospital discharge programme, freeing up beds. This brings the total extra investment in health and care services so far this year, during the pandemic, to £34 billion.

Answered
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Q2 Julian Sturdy Con
NHS
Context

The MP inquired about the support for local collaboration to introduce a da Vinci robotic cancer surgery system.

Question

My wonderful local charity York Against Cancer has been approached by York Hospital regarding the part funding of a da Vinci robotic cancer surgery system. This revolutionary machine allows for fewer and smaller incisions, meaning faster patient recovery, shorter hospital stays and, ultimately, better and faster cancer care. Will the Secretary of State assure me that he fully supports local collaboration, wherever needed, to introduce these machines and that he is doing everything he can to roll out this new technology across our health service?

Answer from Sajid Javid

I assure my hon. Friend that cancer care, whether provided through these machines, diagnostics or in any other way, remains an absolute priority for the Government. Colleagues will understand that some cancers were not diagnosed during the pandemic, and I join him in congratulating York Against Cancer on the work it is doing. I would like to learn more about this machine and to see how we can make it work throughout the NHS.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific commitment or support for introducing da Vinci machines was not provided.

How: Would Like To Learn More

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Q3 Andrew Jones Con
NHS Mental Health
Context

The MP questioned about catching up on mental health, particularly focusing on beds.

Question

I thank my right hon. Friend for his answer and welcome the extra investment he outlined, but too often we talk about catch up in terms of physical health. What is he doing to catch up on mental health, particularly mental health beds?

Answer from Sajid Javid

My hon. Friend is right to highlight the importance of mental health. He will know that one of the unintended consequences of the lockdowns is that, sadly, there were more cases of mental ill health. The NHS long-term plan commits to increasing investment in mental health at least as fast as investment in physical health, with at least £2.3 billion of extra spending on mental health by 12-24, which I hope he welcomes.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific actions or timeline for addressing mental health beds was not provided.

How: Committed To Increase Investment

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Q4 Nigel Mills Con
NHS
Context

The MP questioned the capacity of local GPs to give patients the service they want.

Question

Local general practitioners report that they are working as hard as they ever have, with full lists of appointments, but constituents are still unhappy that they cannot get appointments quickly or in the format they would like. Is there more the Government could do to help local GPs across the country to give patients the service that they want and that GPs want to provide?

Answer from Sajid Javid

We are hugely grateful for the tireless efforts of GPs and their teams throughout the pandemic. In our comprehensive new plan, which we announced last week, we are including a £250 million winter access fund to support GPs and make it easier for them to see and speak to their patients. A record number of GPs began training in 2021, and we are committed to increasing the number to 4,000 each year.

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Q5 Rosena Allin-Khan Lab Tooting
NHS Mental Health
Context

The MP questioned the government's commitment to mental health, citing Labour's plans as a better alternative.

Question

I start by paying my respects to Sir David Amess and James Brokenshire, who were sadly taken from us far too soon. I welcome the Minister for Care and Mental Health, the hon. Member for Chichester (Gillian Keegan), to her new brief. I look forward to working with her. We are all too aware of the growing demand for support across the NHS, but all too often mental health treatment is forgotten. With up to 10 million more people thought to require treatment as a result of the pandemic, with waiting lists soaring and with beds being cut, we need more than just warm words from the Government. Labour will guarantee treatment, not just an assessment, starting within a month, and we will recruit 8,500 new staff so that 1 million additional people can receive the timely treatment they so deserve.

Answer from Sajid Javid

Sorry, Mr Speaker. I did not realise the hon. Lady had finished. What she calls old pledges are hugely significant, and they continue to play a significant role. The NHS long-term plan, as I said a moment ago, has £2.3 billion extra each year by 2023-24. That extra investment will support 380,000 more adults and 345,000 more children. The hon. Lady is, of course, right that the number of cases of mental ill health has sadly grown during the pandemic, which is one of the reasons we published a mental health recovery action plan with an additional £500 million this financial year.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific commitment to recruit staff or guarantee timely treatment was not provided.

How: Old Pledges Are Hugely Significant

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Q6 Yvette Cooper Lab Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley
NHS
Context

The MP questioned the government's approach to addressing the crisis in NHS dentistry.

Question

NHS dentistry is facing a capacity crisis. There is a huge backlog of urgent care and treatment, which is leaving many dentists overwhelmed. Patients, including those in Pontefract and in towns across the country, are now unable to get routine check-ups, which is making the urgent care crisis worse and creating a vicious spiral. Will the Health Secretary ask his Ministers to meet dentist groups and patient groups in Yorkshire to hear about the urgent crisis they are facing and set out an urgent plan to deal with the huge capacity crisis in NHS dentistry?

Answer from Sajid Javid

The right hon. Lady is right to raise the issue of access to dentistry for her constituents and those across England. Dentists have done a fantastic job faced with the challenges of the pandemic. We all knew that those were very real for dentists, who, of course, could not see their patients in the normal way, and they have done everything they can to help on that.

Not addressed: The specific request to meet with dental groups was avoided.

How: Did A Fantastic Job

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Q7 Ben Bradshaw Lab
NHS
Context

The MP questioned the high infection, hospitalisation and death rates in Devon compared to western Europe.

Question

All Devon's hospitals are on red alert, partly because of capacity issues caused by ongoing covid cases. Why does the Secretary of State think the UK now has the highest covid infection, hospitalisation and death rates in western Europe?

Answer from Sajid Javid

First, may I take this opportunity to congratulate all the health and care workers across Devon on the fantastic work they are doing? The right hon. Gentleman will know that the Government have set out clearly their approach to dealing with the pandemic and that we are very much focused on vaccinations, which are working, building a wall of defence, treatments and testing.

Not addressed: The specific reasons for high rates were not addressed.

How: Congratulated Health Workers, Focused On Vaccines

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Q8 Kevin Hollinrake Con Thirsk and Malton
NHS
Context

There is no NHS dentist availability across the whole of Thirsk and Malton, with a closed practice in Helmsley that will take two years to recommission. The Thirsk practice has just closed its doors.

Question

We are in a difficult situation across North Yorkshire where there is no NHS dentist availability across the whole of Thirsk and Malton. It will take the NHS two years to recommission the service in Helmsley—the closed practice in Helmsley—and the Thirsk practice has just closed its doors with its current list of patients. Will my right hon. Friend set out exactly what we can do to increase the availability of NHS dentistry?

Answer from Sajid Javid

Again, my hon. Friend is right to raise this issue. As we have just heard from other hon. Members, there is a real issue with dentistry across England, including in North Yorkshire, and we know how the pandemic has had an impact on that. Dentists have tried to do the best they can in those circumstances. The changes we are making to infection prevention and control will help. We are looking at further measures, and I understand that my hon. Friend will be meeting the Minister shortly to discuss his issues in North Yorkshire carefully.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The response does not provide specific plans or commitments on how to increase NHS dentistry availability.

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