Topical Questions

Answer from Sajid Javid

Our healthcare system is standing at a crossroads, and sooner or later we will have to make a choice between endlessly going back to the taxpayer to ask for more money and reforming the way in which we do healthcare in our country. Last month, I unveiled an ambitious new programme of reform, setting out how we are going to prioritise prevention, offer more personalised care, deliver improvements in performance and back the people making the difference in the NHS.

Answer from Sajid Javid

My hon. Friend is right to raise this. We are already in contact with the acute trust in Gloucestershire and some of the other trusts that are finding delayed discharge a particular challenge. My hon. Friend will know that, because of the pandemic, what has been a long-term challenge has become much more acute, not least because of the lost beds due to infection protection control and staff absences both in healthcare and in social care. Our delayed discharge taskforce is making a difference—the numbers are coming down overall—but we will be working with Gloucestershire.

Answer from Sajid Javid

I am very happy to answer if you will allow me, Mr Speaker. The hon. Gentleman could have asked me a question on anything to do with health and care—anything he wanted—but instead he chooses to talk about my personal affairs before public life. That was his choice. He could have asked me about the covid backlogs that he pretends he cares so much about.

Answer from Sajid Javid

Mr Speaker, you have been very generous to the hon. Gentleman: you gave him another try, but that was another failure to ask a question. Again, the hon. Gentleman is not asking about the serious issues, which again shows that he will play petty party politics and that Labour has no plan for the challenges this country faces.

Answer from Sajid Javid

Like many across the House I have been deeply disturbed by the reports we have all seen from Shanghai and my thoughts are with the people affected. It shows what a dangerous fallacy this whole idea of zero covid was, and it also shows that we are the most open country in Europe and that we have got the big decisions right. We did not listen to the Opposition when they said we should not open up in the summer, and we did not listen to them when they again called for restrictions in the winter. We are showing the world how to live with covid.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

I thank the hon. Lady for her question, and we have met to discuss this previously. I am happy to discuss with Health Education England whether one of its centres for dentist development could be suitable for her constituency.

Answer from Edward Argar

No one, with the possible exception of my hon. Friend the Member for Kettering (Mr Hollobone), is more passionate than my hon. Friend the Member for Wellingborough (Mr Bone) about seeing improvements delivered in their local hospital, and I had the pleasure of visiting. As my hon. Friend will know, the £46 million was allocated originally for an urgent treatment centre; the hospital asked that that be changed and it folded in with the overall programme. It has yet to submit a business case for the enabling works; when it does, I will make sure that it is expedited.

Answer from Sajid Javid

As the hon. Gentleman is aware, I know his constituency well; it is my birthplace. He might also know that just a couple of months ago I visited his constituency and met members of the local community at the Deeplish community centre to talk about exactly what he has rightly raised today: the importance of tackling inequalities in Rochdale and beyond. We will set out our plans in our upcoming health disparities White Paper.

Answer from Sajid Javid

I share my hon. Friend's concerns, which is why the NHS commissioned this review from one of our top paediatricians. It is already clear to me from her interim findings and the other evidence I have seen that NHS services in this area are too narrow; they are overly affirmative and in fact are bordering on ideological. That is why in this emerging area, of course we need to be absolutely sensitive, but we also need to make sure that holistic care is provided, that there is not a one-way street and that all medical interventions are based on the best clinical evidence.

Answer from Gillian Keegan

The hon. Lady raises a very important question. We want a society in which every person with dementia and their families and carers receive high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis through to end of life. We have provided £17 million this financial year to NHS England and NHS Improvement to increase the number of diagnoses. That funding was spent in a range of ways, including investing in the workforce to increase capacity in memory assessment services.

Answer from Sajid Javid

My right hon. Friend is right to raise this, and many of us will have seen the recent reports, especially from the families affected. It is right that we reconsider this and make sure that sodium valproate, and any other medicine, is given only in the clinically appropriate setting.

Answer from Edward Argar

I did indeed have a positive and constructive meeting with my hon. Friend. It is right that we have access geographically spread to A&E services, but the decisions are rightly taken by clinical commissioners on the basis of clinical evidence. I know that she will continue fighting the corner for the reopening of her local A&E with tenacity and passion.

Answer from Sajid Javid

I would be pleased to have the meeting that the hon. Lady has suggested. She should know that we just closed the consultation on the 10-year cancer plan. There has been a fantastic response. She may also have seen the announcement that we made today about lung cancer health checks. With improvements like that, we intend to do a lot more.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

I thank my hon. Friend for her question. I had an excellent visit to the surgery in East Leake, and I look forward to the submission of the business case so that we can look at it further. She is right that investing in primary care does a huge amount to support the health of the local community.

Answer from Gillian Keegan

The hon. Lady raises an important point about the demand for children's mental health services quadrupling since the pandemic. The government invested £79 million in these services, ensuring that 345,000 more young people will access support by 2023-24. A call for evidence is ongoing to develop a 10-year plan and introduce mental health support teams in schools, along with community hubs.

Answer from Maggie Throup

The Department of Health and Social Care commissioned a study worth £580,000 through the National Institute for Health and Care Research to assess the safety and effectiveness of two covid-19 vaccines administered by respiratory tract. The phase one clinical trial is in its later stages.

Answer from Gillian Keegan

According to Skills for Care data, most care workers were paid above the national living wage in 2020-21. The government committed £1.36 billion to the market sustainability and fair cost fund to support local authorities in paying providers a fair cost of care.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

The Government recognise that menopause services need improvement and are a priority in the women's health strategy, with an emphasis on primary care but also considering specialist services for some women. The taskforce is looking into this matter.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

Interviews have taken place for a women's health ambassador, expecting an announcement soon. The women's health strategy will be published in coming weeks.

Answer from Sajid Javid

I would be pleased to meet my right hon. Friend to discuss this issue further, and he will welcome the publication of the upcoming health disparities White Paper.

Answer from Gillian Keegan

Around 360,000 carer households on universal credit can receive an additional £2,000 a year through the carer element. The weekly rate of carer's allowance increased to £69.70 in April 2022, and real-terms expenditure on carer's allowance is forecast to increase by around £1.3 billion.