Hospital Car Parking Charges

Debate between Lord Field of Birkenhead and Dan Poulter

Monday 1st September 2014 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health (Dr Daniel Poulter)]

I would like to begin by congratulating my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Robert Halfon) on securing this debate and my hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock (Jackie Doyle-Price) on her opening speech, which outlined a number of the key issues, about which we are all concerned and to which a number of Members have referred. I understand and have listened to the concerns expressed, both in this House and by the public more generally, about car parking in our NHS, especially where the cost is high and can be considered a rip-off for patients, their families and, sometimes, NHS staff. That is why we published the new NHS patient, visitor and staff car parking principles last month, which will lead to new guidelines at the beginning of next year.

Before I address those principles and respond in more detail to some of the points raised, it is important to pick up on the key issue that has been outlined—my hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock raised it in her opening remarks—which is that, for a patient, driving to hospital is not a choice; it is essential in order to receive important and, often, life-saving treatment. It is also important for relatives and those wishing to support and look after friends and others who may be admitted to hospital through no fault of their own. It is right to say, as my hon. Friend did, that Basildon was a challenged trust, but addressing the challenges of that trust, both financial and in terms of patient care, should not come at the expense of short-changing patients. There are many other measures that trusts need to look to—such as improving their procurement practices, better managing the NHS estate and, in the long term, lowering costs by reducing their dependence on temporary staffing—to balance their books and ensure that as much money as possible is directed to front-line patient care.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton and Cheam (Paul Burstow) made a number of important points, including the key one that car parking should not be a cash cow and needs to be seen in the context of the wider sustainability challenge of the NHS, and that many trusts are still paying the price for poor PFI deals that they signed up to under the previous Government. He also asked what role the CQC could play in addressing the issue if parking charges were prohibitive. Of course there is a role for the CQC. If concerns were raised about patients being prevented from accessing the NHS care they needed as a result of prohibitive car parking charges, the CQC could of course make recommendations and raise that with the trust as part of its inspection regime. The power for the CQC to do that exists at the moment, and I am sure the chief inspector of hospitals will be mindful of that as part of the inspection regime.

We had many other good and important contributions, including from my hon. Friends the Members for Harrow East (Bob Blackman) and for Harlow, who spoke very eloquently and outlined clearly the reasons for calling this debate. We also heard from my hon. Friends the Members for Peterborough (Mr Jackson), for South Derbyshire (Heather Wheeler), for Worcester (Mr Walker) and for Hexham (Guy Opperman), all of whom spoke eloquently. In the time available to me, I will do my best to pick up on some of their points in my broader remarks.

We talk about the fact that there are many examples of unacceptable practice in hospital car parking, but it is important to highlight the fact that 40% of hospitals that provide car parking do not charge and of those that do, 88% provide concessions to patients. However, I am aware that there are 40 hospital sites—which is 3.6% of hospitals in acute and mental health trusts—that have charges and do not allow concessions to patients who need to access services. As a Government, we want to see greater clarity and consistency for patients and their friends and relatives about which groups of patients and members of staff should receive concessions and get a fairer deal when it comes to car parking. It is exactly for those reasons that we published the principles that will underpin the guidance that will be published in February or March next year about how we deliver fairer car parking charges, of which all trusts will be expected to be mindful.

I want briefly to outline some of the key points in that guidance. We want to see concessions, including free or reduced charges or caps for the following groups: disabled people, frequent out-patient attenders, visitors with relatives who are gravely ill, visitors to relatives who have an extended stay in hospital, and staff working shifts that mean that public transport cannot be used. Other concessions—for example, for volunteers or staff who car share—should be considered locally. The list I have given is not exhaustive—we will return to it as part of the guidance we produce early next year—but it is important that we have much greater consistency and clarity from all hospitals about which groups should receive parking concessions and free parking when that is appropriate.

[Mr Frank Field]

It is quite clear that the Government have a model in mind of the minimum standards that hospitals should subscribe to, which is welcome. Will the next round of consultations that the Government undertake with hospital trusts outline what will happen to those that pay scant regard to what the Government are suggesting?

[Dr Poulter]

It is exactly because a small minority of hospital sites have no concessions at the moment, which is unacceptable and not fair to patients—I outlined 40 such sites that I am aware of in acute and mental health trusts—that we brought forward the principles and are refreshing the guidance. We need to see hospitals respond to that guidance. Powers are already available to the CQC and the chief inspector of hospitals for the CQC to take action, if appropriate, if there is behaviour in a hospital that makes it prohibitive for patients to receive treatment. However, we also need to look at what other measures we can introduce against trusts that still show disregard for the guidelines, to make it clear that doing so is no longer acceptable. For example, mechanisms are available to us when we give finance to trusts to ensure greater conditionality on that finance in future.

That is something we would certainly look at seriously as a mechanism for enforcing better behaviour, but I am hopeful, thanks to the fact that we will have refreshed guidance and that many patient groups are championing this issue at the local level. My right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton and Cheam made the point articulately that patient action locally meant that St Helier hospital, which was one of the worst offenders for car parking charges and disregarding the rights of patients and staff, has reformed its ways. Patient action has led to improvements. A number of mechanisms are already in place and, with the guidelines, I am sure we will get to a much better place across all trusts. However, if necessary, we have other measures, when we are giving finance to trusts, to put levers in place.

[Mr Frank Field]

Does the inspector have powers to instruct the groups that will probably pay scant attention to the guidelines to make the changes that the whole House wants?

[Dr Poulter]

If concerns are raised as part of a care quality inspection that patients are receiving substandard care or not receiving the quality of care that they should be as a result of being unable to access services, there would of course be a role for the chief inspector of hospitals and the CQC to raise that as part of their inspection report. I am sure the chief inspector will bear that in mind for the 40 hospital sites that at the moment do not have concessions for those who are very unwell or who are disabled. I am sure that those trusts, which will be listening keenly to this debate, will bear that in mind and will want to take action, hopefully before the refreshed guidance is produced.

I know that time is pressing and I do not wish to detain the House much further, but I want quickly to outline a few of the other measures that are in place as part of the principles that will underpin the guidance, which hopefully will reassure right hon. and hon. Members that the Government have taken appropriate steps to address these issues.

Staff parking is an important issue. I probably speak as the only Member—currently, at least—who, as a practising hospital doctor, has genuine, first-hand experience of this issue. It is important to look after our front-line staff. Car parking in hospitals should not be allocated according to staff seniority or because someone happens to be a senior manager; it should be allocated according to the needs of staff and the type of care and shift patterns they provide. That is made very clear in the principles underpinning the guidance to be published.

On payments for hospital parking, our principles say that trusts should consider pay-on-exit or similar schemes, whereby drivers pay only for the time they have used, and fines should be imposed only where they are reasonable and should be waived when overstaying is beyond the driver’s control. Details of charges, concessions and penalties should be well publicised, including at car park entrances, wherever payment is made, including inside the hospital. The issue has been raised of the sharp practice sometimes carried out by the management of car parks in hospitals, and we have made it clear in the principles underpinning the guidance that those practices are unacceptable.

Finally, on contracted-out car parking—another issue raised in the debate—NHS organisations remain responsible for the actions of private contractors who run car parks on their behalf. NHS organisations are expected to act against rogue contractors in line with the relevant codes of practice, where applicable. Contracts should not be let out on any basis that incentivises fines—for example, income from penalties only. This Government expect hospitals to take action against contractors who behave irresponsibly, short-change people and behave badly towards patients, their relatives and staff.

I hope that I have reassured the House, particularly those who brought this debate before us today, that this Government take the issue very seriously and believe that unacceptable behaviour by hospitals and unacceptable hospital car parking charges will become things of the past.