Public Services

Dehenna Davison Excerpts

Tuesday 28th April 2020 Commons Chamber

[Michael Gove]

Contact tracing is vitally important. It should be done both through the new NHS app that is being developed and through those who are working at Public Health England, and others. But I will consider with the Health Secretary what additional steps may be required.

[Dehenna Davison (Bishop Auckland) (Con) [V]]

Across our country we are seeing some incredible displays of community spirit and selflessness. So will my right hon. Friend join me in praising the incredible work of Bishop Auckland’s first unsung hero, Kim Clark, in cooking and delivering over 6,000 meals to the elderly and vulnerable from her very own kitchen?

[Michael Gove]

That is a fantastic example of community spirit, and just what I would expect from the people of County Durham and Bishop Auckland in particular.

Ministerial Code

Dehenna Davison Excerpts

Monday 2nd March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Michael Gove]

My hon. Friend makes an important point. Ministers are rightly accountable here at the Dispatch Box and, at general elections, at the ballot box. Our civil servants ensure that the policies on which we stand, and for which we stand, are delivered effectively but, as Ministers, we also need to do everything to ensure that civil servants are supported to provide the most efficient service possible. That work is ongoing, and the Cabinet Secretary and others are ensuring we do everything we can to make sure that civil servants have the support and the capacity required to be as efficient as possible.

[Dehenna Davison (Bishop Auckland) (Con)]

It may be a bit of my northern bias, but I know that what the media report on here in London does not necessarily reflect what people are talking about in my constituency of Bishop Auckland and, I am sure, in many constituencies represented by my hon. and right hon. Friends.

Does my right hon. Friend agree that this issue should not become a distraction from delivering on our manifesto, which was overwhelmingly supported by our communities, and delivering a points-based immigration system and more police?

[Michael Gove]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Of course it is important that, in Whitehall and Westminster, high standards are upheld by everyone involved in delivering for the public, but our most important duty is to make sure that the people of Bishop Auckland have the policies for which they voted implemented effectively.

Lobby and Media Briefings: Journalists' Access

Dehenna Davison Excerpts

Tuesday 4th February 2020 Commons Chamber

[Chloe Smith]

Because the hon. Lady is wrongly describing the situation. The Prime Minister stands by those words, as do I.

[Dehenna Davison (Bishop Auckland) (Con)]

While the Labour party, true to form these days it seems, is obsessing about the London bubble, will my hon. Friend confirm that the Treasury is looking at how best it can support the media across the country? What impact does she believe that the recently announced business rates relief for local newspaper offices will have, particularly on great Bishop Auckland organisations, such as the Teesdale Mercury and The Northern Echo?

[Chloe Smith]

My hon. Friend makes a helpful wider point, which is how we, as a Government, can use policy and indeed scrutinise it here in this place—I say this as the Budget and other such vehicles come up—to look at ways to support the vibrancy of our press and media across the country. I referenced the Cairncross review earlier. These things, together with fiscal measures, are important in that debate.

Oral Answers to Questions

Dehenna Davison Excerpts

Wednesday 8th January 2020 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for raising a very important issue and a difficult problem. The question is how do we, as it were, introduce consumption rooms without encouraging consumption; that is the challenge we face. As he knows, we are having a drugs summit this year; it will be held in Scotland, and we will be announcing a date shortly.

[Dehenna Davison (Bishop Auckland) (Con)]

My local NHS trust is currently consulting on closing the stroke rehabilitation service at Bishop Auckland hospital. Staff on the ward are rightly very concerned about the proposed closure and the impact it will have on local residents, particularly those in my rural communities, so may I ask the Prime Minister whether he is willing to work with me and the Health Secretary, take this matter seriously and prove to the residents of Bishop Auckland that we are on their side?

[The Prime Minister]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on getting elected, and welcome her, and indeed all new colleagues, to their first edition of Prime Minister’s Question Time. I thank my hon. Friend for raising her concerns with me; I have heard just now from the Health Secretary, passing the ball straight down the line, that he is indeed going to address the matter that she raises as fast as possible. As she knows, we are putting record sums into the NHS and it is our intention to help Bishop Auckland.