The Minister for Care (Stephen Kinnock)
I congratulate the hon. Member for Bridlington and The Wolds (Charlie Dewhirst) on securing the debate and on the constructive tone in which he put his comments forward.
This Government are committed to fixing our broken health and care system. As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has said, we will be honest about the problems facing the NHS and serious about tackling them. The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to raise the problems in Bridlington, which sadly will be familiar to colleagues right across the House. The truth is that we are very far from where we need and want to be, as he so rightly set out. He talked a lot about Lord Darzi’s report, and I am pleased that he has read it and appears to agree with the true extent of the challenges it sets out. Even Lord Darzi, with all his years of experience, was shocked by what he discovered.
The report is vital because it gives us the frank assessment we need to face the problems honestly and properly. It will take a decade of national renewal, lasting reform and a long-term plan to save our NHS. We have committed to three big shifts: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. Our 10-year plan will set out how we will deliver those shifts to ensure that we have a health and care system that is fit for the future, in Bridlington and across the United Kingdom.
To develop that plan, we must have a meaningful conversation with the public and those who work in the health system. We will conduct a comprehensive range of engagement and consultation activities, launching very soon, bringing in views from the public, the health and care workforce, national and local stakeholders and system leaders. Importantly, given the hon. Gentleman’s comments, parliamentarians will also have an opportunity to feed into this important national conversation. It will be the biggest national conversation about our health and care system since the NHS’s foundation in 1948.
The Government are committed to restoring our health and care system to its founding promise that it will be there for all our constituents when they need it. I hope that context helps the hon. Gentleman to understand that we are taking this very seriously, and that we do not want to make policy in the ivory towers of Westminster or Whitehall. This needs to be a national conversation, feeding into a 10-year plan that will be published in the spring of next year.
I will now address some of the hon. Gentleman’s specific points. First, I share his concern about dentistry access. The single biggest cause of children aged between five and nine being admitted to hospital is to have their rotten teeth taken out, which is frankly a disgrace. As the Prime Minister said a few weeks ago, it is soul-destroying for those young people, and it can so easily be prevented. That is why we will work with the sector to reform the dental contract, with a focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
In the meantime, we know that patients cannot wait. We will not wait to make improvements to increase access in the current system. That is why we are working to deliver our rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments. These will be available across the country, including, of course, for the residents of Bridlington. I am aware that an initial procurement for the additional service in Bridlington was unsuccessful. The ICB has since reviewed the specification and is working to further understand what may work best for the town, with preferred options for procurement due to be approved this month.
Unfortunately, people across the country will recognise the picture that the hon. Gentleman describes of GP access in Bridlington. Almost everywhere, patients are finding it increasingly difficult to see a GP. When they cannot get an appointment, the chances are that they will end up in accident and emergency. This is unacceptable, as it is worse for patients and more expensive for the taxpayer. Lord Darzi is clear that the situation is particularly acute in certain areas—that speaks to the hon. Gentleman’s point about health inequalities—and Bridlington is one such area.
Our plan starts with recruiting over 1,000 newly qualified GPs through an £82 million boost to the additional roles reimbursement scheme. In the longer term, we are committed to training thousands more GPs, guaranteeing face-to-face appointments for all those who want one, delivering a modern appointment booking system to avoid the 8 am scramble and, ultimately, shifting resources from acute care into primary and community care.
The hon. Gentleman raised the recent merger of GP practices in Bridlington, where six practices have been consolidated into two larger practices. These decisions are, of course, made by local commissioners, who determine what services and care pathways best serve the needs of patients in the area. I am pleased that performance has improved in both practices, with one demonstrating some of the best access within the integrated care board footprint. Of course, there are still issues, and the people of Bridlington deserve better, which is why we are committed to delivering our plan for primary care.
The hon. Gentleman also mentioned Bridlington hospital, which currently provides a range of services, including an urgent treatment centre, radiology, rehabilitation, in-patient surgical wards and out-patient clinics. Patients attending those services can, and often do, come from outside the Bridlington area. I am aware that there is more space at the hospital that can be used, and I can assure him that we are looking carefully at capital requirements as part of the spending review. We will know more about that on 30 October.
I hope I have addressed some of the hon. Gentleman’s concerns. I absolutely agree with his view about health inequalities, and it is quite shocking to hear the difference between one ward and another in his constituency. Those gaps have to be narrowed, and a lot of this is about ensuring that people are not only living longer but living healthier lives. The increase in complex conditions that we are now seeing at younger ages is creating huge pressure on our health system, and it is not good for his constituents either. I absolutely understand and see the context in which we are operating, and that is a top priority for the 10-year health plan we are bringing forward.
In conclusion, I thank the hon. Gentleman for bringing forward the issue and giving me the opportunity to reiterate from the Government Dispatch Box our promise to fix our broken health and care system and deliver for people in Bridlington and across Yorkshire. Sadly, the situation he describes resonates with the broader findings of Lord Darzi’s review. The health and care system is in a critical condition, but I assure him that this Government are committed to getting our healthcare system back on its feet and fit for the future.
Charlie Dewhirst
On the particular issue of coastal towns, Bridlington is not unique in the challenges it faces. Will the Minister pledge to look at the broader recommendations in Sir Chris Whitty’s report of 2021?
Stephen Kinnock
The hon. Gentleman makes an important point. One of the trends we are seeing is that an older demographic is moving to coastal towns. Those towns are often most the challenged because they are under-doctored, dental deserts and lacking in social care facilities. A toxic combination is caused by the additional pressures brought by that demographic and a lack of the required facilities on the supply side. The hon. Gentleman is right to identify the issue of coastal towns. I know our chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, is alive to the issue, and it will have to be factored into the 10-year plan. The 10-year plan cannot just be about the sectors we are looking at; it is also about geography and the lived experience of people in particular parts of the country.
Question put and agreed to.