GP Funding: South-west England

Adam Dance Excerpts

Wednesday 25th June 2025 Westminster Hall

[Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dame Siobhain. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Newton Abbot (Martin Wrigley) for securing this important debate.

GPs are the front door of our health service, particularly in rural constituencies such as Yeovil and many others in the south-west. Despite their hard work, GPs in Yeovil are stretched thin because the necessary funding and support simply are not there. Everyone deserves access to safe and accessible local healthcare, and all of our constituents should be able to see a GP within a week. Unfortunately, 23% of patients in Somerset are waiting more than 14 days for an appointment, and over 7% are waiting more than 28 days. I have heard from too many constituents who have waited that long or even longer, which is also not good enough.

We need to ensure that everyone has the right to see a GP within seven days, or within 24 hours in urgent cases, and we need more GPs to deliver that. We should also ensure that everyone aged over 70 or with a long-term health condition has access to a named GP. Many of my residents and constituents are concerned that they do not know who their GP is, or that they do not have access to a named GP. They find it concerning that they regularly have to see different GPs or locums.

Many of our GP surgeries are struggling with their buildings. As I have previously said, I am grateful to have received confirmation from the Minister that Crewkerne health centre and Church View medical centre in Neroche are set to receive a share of the £102 million to deliver upgrades to their practices, but other surgeries are seriously struggling and feel overwhelmed and overlooked. Ariel Healthcare in Chard urgently needs funding and support to upgrade its services to help local residents with urgent needs.

We cannot support our GPs in isolation. We desperately need to improve public transport in the south west so that people can get to their appointments. The cancellation of the No. 11 bus service in Yeovil highlights that issue, and residents, particularly those who are vulnerable, now struggle to access Preston Grove medical centre and Hendford Lodge surgery.

We also urgently need to fix NHS dentistry, because people are forced to go to their GP or hospital for help. Can the Minister provide a clear timeline and costed proposals for fixing the NHS dental contract? The British Dental Association has only had scoping meetings so far, so I hope the Minister and the Government will push that.

We also need to increase investment in public health. Somerset is 11th from the bottom in public health grant allocation despite having a growing public health crisis, particularly around addiction. I was a public health cabinet member for two years and we had only £100,000 to push dental health. It is just not good enough.

On average, we are £13.6 million short across the country, and public health desperately needs reforming. I hope the Minister takes on board our calls to ensure that GPs in the south-west get the funding they deserve and desperately need to support our residents. Without our fantastic GPs, there is no future for our NHS.

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[Jess Brown-Fuller (Chichester) (LD)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dame Siobhain. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Newton Abbot (Martin Wrigley) for securing today’s important and timely debate. He is a tireless advocate for his local community, and I commend him for shining a spotlight on GP funding and the broader state of healthcare in the south-west. He spoke about the funding model for GPs, which is complex, obscure and outdated, and does not account for rurality.

As the Liberal Democrat spokesperson for hospitals and primary care, I hear all too often from my constituents and from people across the country who are struggling to access the care they need. Our NHS is the pride of the nation, but years of underfunding and mismanagement under the last Conservative Government have left services in crisis.

Nowhere is that more apparent than in general practice, with patients facing increasingly long waits to see a GP, as highlighted by my hon. Friend’s statistics. In 2019, the average GP had 1,900 patients on their books; today, they have 2,400, and some people cannot get an appointment at all. People rightly tell me that they are not included in the Government’s waiting list statistics because they have not managed to get on a waiting list in the first place—or even speak to a doctor.

Those are not isolated complaints. I am sure many hon. Members will recognise those concerns from their own constituency surgeries, or from spending a morning with their local GP, as my hon. Friend the Member for Mid Dorset and North Poole (Vikki Slade) described. We also need to be honest about the scale of the problem. In 2024 alone, more than 2 million people in the south-west waited over 28 days for a GP appointment, and that pattern is repeated across the country. Chichester is not in the south-west, but nearly 30% of patients in my constituency had to wait more than two weeks, and around 8% waited more than a month. That is not acceptable.

The hon. Member for St Austell and Newquay (Noah Law) made an important point about tourism. The population of my coastal communities such as Selsey, Pagham and the Witterings doubles over the summer months with holidaymakers, which can put additional stress on primary care services.

My hon. Friend the Member for South Cotswolds (Dr Savage) made an important point about the role that planning and ICBs play. Too often, developers come forward with large site proposals that include a GP surgery on the site. However, unless they have buy-in from the ICB, so often those GP surgeries that have been specifically designed for that purpose sit empty without a GP practice to go into them.

My hon. Friend also spoke about her village of Sherston. It might not be the centre of my universe—that is my little rural village of Westbourne—but both Sherston and Westbourne face the exact same problems. My village of Westbourne is about to lose its rural surgery; we are waiting for the ICB’s final decision. Residents of Westbourne do not have a public transport link to the GP that they are being asked to go to, across the border in Emsworth.

The Liberal Democrats believe that everyone should have the ability to live a healthy and fulfilling life, which means they must have timely and local access to healthcare, whether that is from a GP, a dentist, a pharmacist or a mental health professional. We must invest in early access to community care, in order to relieve the burden on hospitals and fix the social care crisis that leaves too many people stuck in hospital beds waiting for help that never comes.

Research by the House of Commons Library that was commissioned by the Liberal Democrats found that funding for GP practices was cut by £350 million in real terms between 2019 and 2024. Those cuts have hit communities hard, and the impact is being felt not only by patients but by the hard-working professionals trying to keep the system going. GPs who I speak to are burnt out and overburdened, and GPs in general are leaving the profession in record numbers. The result is a vicious cycle, with fewer staff, longer waits and growing public frustration. I know some incredible GPs, and New Zealand is really lucky to have them, but I would rather they were here. Despite a 2019 Conservative pledge to hire 6,000 more GPs, by the general election last year there were 500 fewer GPs than when that pledge was made. In fact, the UK has 16% fewer qualified GPs per capita than comparable high-income countries.

It does not have to be that way. Healthcare is not a luxury. It is a fundamental right and not a privilege. Everyone should be able to see a GP when they need to, and that is why the Liberal Democrats are calling for a legal right to see a GP within seven days, or within 24 hours if the situation is urgent. To make this a reality, we are calling for the recruitment of 8,000 more GPs. We would achieve that by supporting junior doctors to specialise in general practice and by introducing new schemes to help experienced GPs to return to the workforce.

As my hon. Friend the Member for Yeovil (Adam Dance) said, we also believe that everyone over 70 and those with long-term conditions should have access to a named GP. Such continuity of care is not only vital for building trust and supporting staff morale; it also improves health outcomes and saves money in the long term. As my hon. Friend the Member for Oxford West and Abingdon (Layla Moran), who is the Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee, has said, continuity of care is key. Patients who have had the same GP for more than 15 years have a 25% lower chance of dying compared with patients who change GPs regularly. Continuity of care builds trust, improves outcomes and reduces hospital admissions. It is good for patients, good for staff and good for the system as a whole.

We must also address the broader picture. Community pharmacies are closing at an alarming rate when they should be playing a bigger role in delivering frontline care. Fairer and more sustainable funding is needed to keep these services open, to relieve pressure on GPs. I am a big fan of Pharmacy First and I know that the Minister is, too; I have heard him talk about his passion for it. But pharmacists in my constituency tell me that with the regular increase in targets, they are struggling to keep up.

[Adam Dance]

I spent an evening with one of my local pharmacists, and it was so shocking that people were coming 20 or 30 miles to his pharmacy, because it was the only one open near my village of South Petherton. He was struggling so much because he could not get the medication that people needed, despite the fact that they were travelling so far to try and get medication from him. Does my hon. Friend agree that that is just not good enough and that the Government need to support pharmacies a lot more?

[Jess Brown-Fuller]

I am sure the Minister will talk about the hub and spoke model that the Government are championing, but my hon. Friend is right about the difficulties in rural areas especially. Many constituents have talked to me about the distance they are having to travel to get basic medication that means they can function, go to work the next day or get their children to school.

This is why we have been calling for a fairer and more sustainable long-term funding model for community pharmacies. They play a vital role in relieving pressure on GPs, yet they are being squeezed out of existence. Since 2017, 1,200 pharmacies have shut their doors. Community Pharmacy England has warned of real-terms funding cuts of at least 25% since 2015, leaving the network on the brink of collapse.

This is not just a failing system; it is a broken one. This Labour Government have a responsibility to act. They were elected on a promise of change, but that change must begin with fixing our NHS. I am sure the Minister will celebrate the budget increase, but as my hon. Friend the Member for Melksham and Devizes (Brian Mathew) said, this has been swallowed by the increased costs and national insurance contributions. That is why the Liberal Democrats tabled an amendment to exempt healthcare services from the NICs rise, which the Government chose not to accept.

General practice is the front door to our health system. If we do not invest properly in GP services, everything else suffers. We must not let that door remain closed to so many. As my hon. Friend the Member for Newton Abbot rightly said, we do not have to accept broken systems—we can fix them, and now is the time to prove that we will. Will the Minister commit to the Liberal Democrat proposal of a legal right for patients to see a GP within seven days, or within 24 hours in urgent cases? Does he agree that everyone over 70 and those with long-term health conditions should have access to a named GP?

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[Stephen Kinnock]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention and for that fun fact. I will come on to it a bit later in my speech, but the £102 million primary care utilisation fund will make a major contribution to upgrading the creaking primary care estate. He is right to identify that as a major challenge. It is also major drain on productivity. We must ensure that our GPs have the tools at their disposal to do the work they need to do.

[Adam Dance]

Will the Minister visit Ariel Healthcare in Chard in Somerset, where the building is really not fit for purpose, and meet the GPs to talk about their concerns?

[Stephen Kinnock]

I am impressed by the way the hon. Gentleman did that and I congratulate him on it. If he would care to write to me to set that out, I will have a look at it and get back to him.

I want to take this opportunity to briefly outline what we have done since July 2024, and what we intend to do, to ensure that GP funding and services in the south-west are fit for purpose and capable of meeting the needs of the local population. In February, we concluded the annual consultation between the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England and the general practitioners committee of the British Medical Association. For the first time in four years, GPC England voted in favour of the GP contract package, which illustrates the progress we are making to rebuild our relationship with the profession.

The 2025-26 contract is already improving services for patients and making progress towards the Government’s health mission. It supports the three key shifts the Government want to achieve: from analogue to digital; from sickness to prevention; and from hospital to community care. Patients across the country can expect online GP services to be available throughout the day, and better continuity of care for those who would benefit most. Patients can also expect a stronger focus on prevention, in particular to tackle the biggest killers, such as cardiovascular disease.

In 2025-26, we are investing an additional £889 million into the core GP contract to fix the front door of the NHS. Despite the difficult financial situation this nation faces, we are backing our health workers with above-inflation pay rises for the second year running. We are accepting the Doctors and Dentists Review Body’s recommendation of a 4% uplift to the pay element of the GP contract on a consolidated basis.

NHS Funding: South-west

Adam Dance Excerpts

Wednesday 11th June 2025 Westminster Hall

[Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Huq, and I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Torbay (Steve Darling) for securing this vital debate.

I start by thanking the amazing NHS staff across Yeovil. The NHS makes me so proud to be British, but our NHS in Somerset has been left on its knees, particularly Yeovil hospital. First, we had the closure of the hyper-acute stroke unit and now we have had the temporary closure of the maternity services. As I have said before, I am worried that the decisions made to protect patient safety in Yeovil may undermine it. That is why we continue to push for the safe reopening of maternity services as soon as possible. It is also why I will soon submit a second call-in request on the decision to close the hyper-acute stroke unit at Yeovil. I again urge the Minister to join local health leaders in committing to fund and maintain a general district hospital in Yeovil.

Without enough properly supported and funded staff, the NHS cannot function. That is partly why Yeovil hospital is in the state it is in. What steps is the Department taking to encourage people to work in the NHS in the south-west, and what future guidance and support will the NHS in Somerset get to maintain staff, and to improve working culture and staff mental health?

Our GP practices and our dentistry desperately need support, too. I am really pleased to have received confirmation from the Minister that Crewkerne health centre and Church View medical centre in Neroche are set to receive a share of the £102 million for GPs to deliver upgrades to their practices. It is a shame that our other practices have not been so successful.

More must be done. The Government must get on with fixing the NHS dental contract and I am worried about the implications of the cuts and mergers faced by the ICBs. Although we are taking steps in the right direction, more must be done to fund our NHS, so that people in Yeovil get the safe and local healthcare they deserve.

[Several hon. Members rose—]

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Adam Dance Excerpts

Tuesday 10th June 2025 Westminster Hall

[Freddie van Mierlo (Henley and Thame) (LD)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered support for people with ADHD.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Jardine, and I thank the Minister for being here for the debate.

Allow me to take Members through what ADHD diagnosis and treatment looks like in Oxfordshire. Say a 14 or 15-year-old boy is exhibiting symptoms of ADHD. They find themselves easily distracted at school. Their high energy levels are coming through in all the wrong ways; they talk noisily through class and find it hard to sit still.

[Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)]

I thank my hon. Friend for securing this vital debate. Does he agree that one fantastic way to support young people with ADHD and their teachers is to have universal screening for neurodiverse conditions at primary school and to increase teacher training on such conditions?

[Freddie van Mierlo]

My hon. Friend has been a fantastic advocate for people with neurodiverse conditions and I wholeheartedly endorse his suggestion.

Imagine a young girl who works hard to mask her symptoms just to get through the day. Her GP refers her to child and adolescent mental health services, but the waiting list is so long that the service is functionally irrelevant. She knows that by the time she gets seen, she will be 18 and so kicked out of CAMHS and into adult mental health services. But since February 2024, Oxford Health’s waiting list for adult assessment has been closed. It is a dead end—there is no service. For all intents and purposes, the NHS does not exist. In Oxfordshire, there were 2,385 on the waiting list in March, while capacity is 26 assessments a month. That means the waiting list is seven and a half years long. It is no wonder the list is closed and has become meaningless.

But suppose you are one of the lucky ones with a diagnosis and a treatment plan: guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence dictate that there should be an annual review of your condition. Your GP is told to continue to prescribe controlled medication, but then says they will do so only until your next annual review by a specialist. However, specialist reviews are not a commissioned service in Oxfordshire, so once someone hits this limit, their GP stops prescribing and their symptoms immediately worsen.

In July 2024, I started working on such a case—one of the first in my inbox. A constituent warned me that she was leaving CAMHS and would have no access to care. After her case was escalated to Oxford Health, it was negotiated with her GP that primary care would continue to prescribe until her next review was due. I had hoped that would buy us enough time to find a solution. In February, I was told by the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West integrated care board that it would decide on reopening waiting lists for young people aged 18 to 25 in March. That would allow reviews for that cohort to take place again.

Yeovil Hospital: Maternity Unit

Adam Dance Excerpts

Tuesday 3rd June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)]

I start by thanking the fantastic staff at Yeovil district hospital’s maternity unit and paediatric staff across the country for their hard work. I also thank the Minister for Secondary Care for coming to the Chamber this evening to respond to the issues raised, which are important for Yeovil and South Somerset.

In January, the Care Quality Commission inspected paediatric services at Yeovil district hospital. It issued a section 29A notice because it assessed that the hospital failed to meet regulations relating to staffing and governance, and therefore required significant improvement. On Monday 12 May, the hospital trust decided to temporarily close the special care baby unit at YDH from 19 May, initially for six months. That means that the hospital will also be unable to safely provide care during labour and birth at the maternity unit, meaning that the unit is effectively closed. Care of pregnant people due to give birth will now be transferred to Musgrove Park in Taunton, Dorchester county hospital, the Royal united hospital in Bath or Salisbury hospital.

[Rachel Gilmour (Tiverton and Minehead) (LD)]

I am sure that my hon. Friend knows about the problems that we have had at Tiverton district hospital. I was lucky enough to have had my three sons at the old Tiverton hospital. I am sure that people not being able to go to Yeovil hospital to give birth will push down—literally—into Tiverton hospital, but I remind my hon. Friend that there was an incident a couple of years ago when one of my constituents delivered her fifth child in a pub car park, because Tiverton hospital did not have the capacity to take her in. Does he agree that the closure of maternity services at Yeovil hospital impacts not just Dorset and Somerset, but the hospital in my constituency?

[Adam Dance]

I agree with my hon. Friend and I will come to that point later in my remarks.

In letters and at meetings, I have directly asked senior leaders at the trust for reassurance that the service will reopen after six months, but they have been unable to give it. My No. 1 priority is my constituents’ health and safety. I appreciate that the decision was difficult and that patient safety was at its heart. The safety of mothers and their babies must come first, but the way in which the decision was reached and implemented has been disgraceful. It has created huge fear and anger in Yeovil and may put people’s health at risk.

The hospital trust’s leadership team says that high levels of sickness among senior hospital staff caused gaps in the rota, but I have been informed that those staff are off sick because of work-related stress that was reportedly caused by a lack of support, a toxic work culture and bullying from management. That is not good enough. Clinicians have been working desperately hard to provide quality care and have been trying to work alongside management to improve the service, but they have found management to be unsupportive. It seems that the real issue is about management and about supporting and retaining staff.

After the CQC inspection, it was up to the hospital trust to plan a clear response and to ensure safe maternity services at Yeovil hospital. Despite money apparently not being a problem, there was a lacklustre attempt at recruitment and locums were brought in. The hospital leadership team waited until the last minute to reach a decision, and closed the maternity unit with little or no consultation with staff, patients and stakeholders, such as Somerset council and MPs like me. It is an insult that the hard-working staff knew about the closure only six days before it was due to happen. Some of them were told on Teams and others found out on social media—that is not how to treat staff.

It is a disgrace that expectant parents were given such short notice and that the hospital trust did not provide them with advanced and detailed information about the temporary closure. Yeovil hospital charity has been fundraising over the last few months for the maternity unit. It had already raised £2,000 and was due to have another huge fundraiser this month. The charity does great work for the hospital, but it too was left in the dark, which is not good enough.

It is especially worrying that a decision made to protect people may put their health at risk. Many expectant parents have told me about their fears about capacity at other hospitals and about travel times to Taunton, Dorchester or Bath. Last year there were approximately 1,300 births at Yeovil hospital. Most of the patients who would have been cared for at Yeovil hospital will go to Musgrove Park in Taunton, where staff have already raised concerns about not having enough capacity to manage their own patient numbers.

[Sir Ashley Fox (Bridgwater) (Con)]

I am grateful to the hon. Member for securing this important debate. Many women in my constituency choose to give birth in Musgrove Park hospital, and with the closure at Yeovil—where, as he said, 1,200 babies are born each year—there is a grave concern about whether Taunton will have the capacity to cope. In fact, mothers across Somerset will suffer as a result of this closure.

[Adam Dance]

I agree with the hon. Gentleman, and I will come on to that point now.

In September last year, reports described Musgrove Park’s maternity unit as “traumatic, super-hot and overcrowded”. Measures such as extra beds are being put in place. Expecting that overstretched service safely to take on extra cases from Yeovil is not realistic and risks putting even more pressure on the hard-working staff, who are already at breaking point. I am also concerned that the staff in Dorchester and Bath will be put under serious pressure and that, despite their best efforts, services may suffer there too.

I am particularly worried about mothers who are at high risk or who may expect complications at birth. Many parents in my constituency who experienced complications during the birth of their children, such as Louise and Rob, have told me that their children are alive because of the tireless work and dedication of the team at Yeovil and that their children may not have survived if they had been forced to travel to Taunton, Dorchester or Bath, which are 45 minutes from most of my constituents on a good day. Experts have told me they are worried that emergencies such as late pregnancy per vaginal bleeds require immediate medical attention and can cause death for mothers and babies in the worst-case scenario.

It is not just parents and paediatrics who are at risk; I am seriously concerned about the knock-on effects on Yeovil’s emergency department, which will potentially put more strain on the hospital and on patient care. Sadly, other constituents who were hoping to have children have told me that they are now reconsidering because of the stress and risks posed by potentially not having proper maternity services in Yeovil.

While I appreciate that this is a local issue, trust in the hospital leadership has broken down. I believe that central Government have a duty of care to the people of Yeovil and that they can take steps to help. I ask the Minister urgently to undertake a review of the decision-making process at the Somerset NHS foundation trust on the closure of maternity services.

[Anna Sabine (Frome and East Somerset) (LD)]

My hon. Friend mentions the Somerset NHS foundation trust, which made a decision recently to reduce the number of beds and associated staff at Frome community hospital. Does he agree that those decisions really need wide consultation, allowing for boundaries and relationships with hospitals such as the RUH, as well as proper consultation with staff and the community before they are undertaken?

[Adam Dance]

I totally agree; it really is just not good enough. [Interruption.] I hope the Minister is listening.

I urge the Department of Health and Social Care to do all it can to maintain and support NHS Somerset in ensuring the return of safe maternity services to Yeovil district hospital. Just as with the closure of its hyper-acute stroke unit, many worry that this is a sign that Yeovil district hospital will be turned into a cottage hospital. As such, I also ask the Minister to join NHS Somerset integrated care board in committing to maintaining a fully functioning district general hospital in Yeovil that provides safe, high-quality and sustainable services.

However, Yeovil is not alone in this: we face a crisis in maternity services, particularly in rural areas. The CQC has raised safety concerns about a lack of training, limited engagement with communities, inadequate risk assessments and poor management and culture among senior leadership. The CQC national review of maternity services in England for 2022-24 found that 47% of maternity services were rated as requiring improvement for safety. As of May 2025, 56% of maternity units in the south-west had an overall rating of “requires improvement” or “inadequate”.

Given that, can the Minister detail the Government’s plans for funding and improving the provision, management and staffing of maternity services in hospital trusts that cover large rural geographies? Can she provide a timeline for implementing those plans? I again urge her and the Secretary of State to meet with hon. Members from Somerset and Dorset to further discuss this issue and to come to Yeovil and talk to those impacted by this decision.

In conclusion, the closure of Yeovil district hospital’s maternity unit, initially for six months, was done for the right reasons, but it was done disgracefully. People in Yeovil are not just worried; they are scared and angry. We care deeply about supporting our fantastic NHS staff and the lifesaving work that they do. Hundreds of people joined me at a rally outside the hospital on the day that the maternity service closed, and many more have written to me. Nearly 6,000 people already have signed petitions calling for the safe return of Yeovil’s maternity unit. We will campaign tirelessly to ensure that we can restore local maternity services in Yeovil safely. I hope that the Minister will join us in that battle, because everyone deserves access to safe, local maternity care, regardless of where they live.

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[The Minister for Secondary Care (Karin Smyth)]

I thank the hon. Member for Yeovil (Adam Dance) for securing this important debate about the temporary closure of maternity services at Yeovil district hospital. I know, having given birth to three myself, that choosing where to give birth and the planning of that journey, as has been outlined, is incredibly important for women. We are determined that all women are given choice over their care and are listened to and supported with compassion. The hon. Member is an advocate for the Yeovil community, and I welcome his representations, ensuring that his constituents’ voices are heard. That is an important role for Members of Parliament.

I will start by acknowledging the concerns that hon. Members have raised on their constituents’ behalf, both in their letter and in this debate, and I hope I can update them on the relevant issues as they stand. In preparing for this debate, I have met the trust and Somerset ICB, and I am grateful for their time and briefing on these issues.

As hon. Members know, the trust cannot safely staff the paediatric service as well as the special care baby unit. This means that it has taken the difficult decision to close the special care baby unit, which also means that it cannot safely provide maternity services—I think that point was acknowledged by the hon. Member for Yeovil.

The hon. Member is concerned about the process followed by Somerset NHS foundation trust in coming to this decision, particularly about it not having consulted the local council, MPs or other stakeholders. He also identified concerns about the information going to staff. In some situations, such as this one, NHS providers may need to make a temporary service change due to a risk to the safety or welfare of patients or staff. Legislation allows them to do so without consulting the scrutiny committee beforehand, provided that that service change is needed for safety or welfare reasons. I understand that the trust briefed Somerset county council’s health overview and scrutiny committee on 15 May, and has committed to further updating the committee in October. The trust has had one-to-one conversations with affected women and families to help them with alternative plans, which have been supported by Somerset Maternity and Neonatal Voices Partnership.

[Adam Dance]

Does the Minister agree that the timescale given to our NHS staff, and telling them on Teams or not telling them at all—with them finding out on social media—is not the right way to treat them? Imagine how that makes those staff feel.

[Karin Smyth]

I am not aware of the operational details of how the decision was communicated, but I am happy to come back to that. As I have said, when decisions are made for reasons of safety—which is of primary importance—sometimes staff will not be able to be consulted in the usual way. Of course, some staff will not be working at a given time, or may be on holiday, and organisations have to take particular measures to inform staff. I appreciate that that is very disruptive and personally distressing for staff who have been working in a unit and need to know where to go, but emergency situations sometimes necessitate things not being done as robustly as might be desired.

Local leaders have assured me that this closure is not intended to be permanent—that is very important for hon. Members and their constituents to understand. The trust is committed to reviewing the position in three and six months, and following the three-month review, Somerset ICB will provide an update in September. Finally, once a decision is made, any permanent change would need to be based on clear evidence of better outcomes for patients.

On the wider issue that has been raised this evening, as hon. Members will be aware, the Government’s position is that changes to NHS services should always be locally led and clinically evidenced. Any decision about the next steps for the neonatal and maternity services at Yeovil hospital should be taken by the local NHS, with support from the Care Quality Commission. I understand that work is currently under way to mitigate the impact of the closure and move towards safe operation of services. The NHS England South West regional team is working with the trust and the ICB to mitigate the risk of the closure and ensure that the wider systems work together to provide safe services. The trust is working closely with neighbouring hospitals in Bath, Salisbury, Poole, Dorchester and Exeter to ensure sufficient capacity, which should provide assurance to local people.

Regional team clinical leaders have attended a rapid quality review meeting with ICB and trust clinical leaders, and work continues on mitigating the risks that have been identified. I have been assured that Somerset ICB will monitor progress against improvement plans, formally noting any new or emerging risks and actions required. It will also be monitoring the impact on Musgrove Park maternity unit. I understand that Somerset NHS foundation trust and Somerset ICB have also written to the hon. Member for Yeovil since the closure and that there is due to be a call with local MPs tomorrow. I think that is good progress; as I said to representatives of the trust when I met them, I commend that way of operating with local Members of Parliament. I hope it is helpful in having detailed conversations locally to reassure hon. Members and—more importantly, if I may say so —their constituents at what I appreciate is a really difficult time for women who are either due to give birth, or are thinking about starting a family.

We are committed to tackling staffing challenges that the NHS faces, such as this one. For the maternity workforce, NHS England is undertaking a programme of targeted retention work for midwives. This includes a midwife retention self-assessment tool, a mentoring scheme, strengthened advice and support on pensions, and flexible retirement options.

NHS England has also invested in unit-based retention leaders, who focus on retention and give pastoral support to midwives. This initiative, alongside investment in workforce capacity, has seen a reduction in the number of vacancies and in leaver and turnover rates. Maternity care remains a top priority for providers, as is demonstrated in the planning guidance, in which the NHS was instructed to improve safety in maternity and neonatal services as a priority.

I know that there is concern in Somerset more widely about how this change will affect services in the local area. Let me reassure Members that NHS Somerset is committed to investing in local services for both hospitals there. That includes a commitment to a fully functioning district general hospital in Yeovil. The Yeovil diagnostic centre, which is due to open later this year, will be a modern, three-storey, state-of-the-art centre based at Yeovil district hospital. It will have the capacity to deliver an additional 70,000 diagnostic tests and out-patient appointments each year and to be open seven days a week, providing radiology, endoscopy and cardiology services, audiology tests and out-patient appointments.

I thank the hon. Member for Yeovil again for raising this important issue. I know that he and his colleagues will keep a close eye on progress. I hope that I have responded to his immediate concerns tonight, and I will of course write to him and other Members shortly in response to their letter of 19 May.

Access to Dentistry: Somerset

Adam Dance Excerpts

Tuesday 1st April 2025 Westminster Hall

[Anna Sabine]

I was not actually aware that we had those facilities there, and I am happy to know more about them. Yes, I would certainly join any call for more dentistry skills to be brought into the Somerset area.

The Health Secretary made a point of meeting the British Dental Association on his first day in office, but the BDA tells me that there has been little follow-up. Could the Minister confirm whether the Government have now entered into formal negotiations to reform the dental contract? If they have not, when do they expect to do so? I am sure the Minister will rightly highlight in his reply the roll-out of the 700,000 extra urgent appointments.

[Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)]

The 700,000 new urgent dental appointments cover only a third of the need for urgent care, and are being funded by simply recycling underspends in an already stretched budget. Does my hon. Friend agree that what we actually need in Somerset is new money to invest in NHS dentistry, as promised at the election?

[Anna Sabine]

I totally agree. I was coming on to say something similar: the roll-out of the 700,000 extra urgent appointments is a positive start, but it covers less than a third of the need for urgent care appointments. The Government must put more money into dentistry so that people can get the help they need.

Accessibility of Radiotherapy

Adam Dance Excerpts

Tuesday 4th February 2025 Westminster Hall

[Tim Farron]

The hon. Member makes wonderful points, and it is absolutely right that in every corner of the United Kingdom we need to ensure that we have the staffing, the kit and the level of technology to meet need close enough to where people live for people to be kept safe and treated in a convenient way.

In Westmorland, we successfully campaigned to bring chemotherapy, greater amounts of surgery and a new diagnostic hub to Kendal. All of that is welcome, and all of that has saved lives. I am unbelievably grateful to all those in our communities who campaigned alongside us, and to the wonderful NHS professionals who deliver and run those services, but the failure of successive Governments, including the one I was a part of, and NHS management to take the people of Westmorland out of the radiotherapy desert is utterly inexcusable given the multiple opportunities to do so over the last 30 or so years.

So my first ask of the Minister is that he takes a personal interest in the call for a satellite radiotherapy unit at the Westmorland general hospital in Kendal, and that he meets with me and with oncologists, commissioners and patients, to kickstart that bid.

[Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)]

Does my hon. Friend agree that we must also do more to help local groups providing clinical and non-clinical support for radiotherapy patients after treatment, such as the Macmillan radiotherapy late effects service and the Cancer Connect group in my constituency of Yeovil?

[Tim Farron]

My hon. Friend makes a great point and does a great service to his community by standing up for those groups who support people after cancer, and their families. I know that personally in my own family, so I congratulate him on making a really important point.

My second ask—the Minister should be delighted to hear that I only have two—is that he separately meets with the all-party group on radiotherapy and the leading fantastic clinicians who support us, to look at how the Government and NHS England can turn the tide on radiotherapy nationwide, because the problems of access do not just affect Westmorland; they affect the whole country.

Although in Westmorland our issue is unacceptable distance from services, the problem across the country is that we lack sufficient capacity, lack up-to-date technology, and lack an effective workforce plan. Britain is behind our neighbours on the number of radiotherapy machines, and we are behind our neighbours in how advanced that machinery is. In France, for example, there are twice as many linear accelerators per head as we have in the United Kingdom. Across the OECD, roughly 9% of cancer budgets are spent on radiotherapy; in the UK we spend a paltry 5%. One in two of us will have cancer at some point, and one in two people with cancer should have radiotherapy—to be precise, 53% of us should—yet only 35% of cancer patients in the UK had radiotherapy as their primary treatment. In fact, the regional variation in access to radiotherapy ranges from the lowest of only 29.8%—by the way, that is in my constituency—up to 50%.

There are shocking variations based on tumour type, too. Only 11% of lung cancer patients in some regions receive radiotherapy, compared with 43% in other regions. Only 18% of rectal cancer patients receive radiotherapy in some areas, compared with 62% in others. People’s chances of surviving should not depend on their postcode. Inadequate and inequitable radiotherapy capacity is costing lives. Over the past decade, more than 500,000 patients have waited more than two months for their first cancer treatment. Yet the chilling reality is that for every four weeks of delay in treatment we have a 10% reduction in our chances of surviving.

The Royal College of Radiologists reminds us that in 2024 only 38% of patients starting radiotherapy did so within two months of an urgent referral for cancer. The national target is 85%. Let us compare that with other forms of cancer treatment: 68% of patients had surgery for their cancer in that time, and 64% started chemotherapy within that two months. That means that over 10,000 patients requiring radiotherapy received their treatment after the recommended timeframe. In 2023 some 92% of cancer centres reported delays in patients starting radiotherapy. That is one of the main reasons why the UK is near the bottom of the OECD cancer outcome rankings, which is a sanitised way of saying that people with cancer in Britain are more likely to die sooner than in other equivalent countries. So longer journeys mean shorter lives, and longer waiting times also mean shorter lives.

Community Pharmacies: Devon and the South-west

Adam Dance Excerpts

Tuesday 17th December 2024 Westminster Hall

[Rachel Gilmour]

I will of course do that.

[Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)]

I congratulate you on securing this vital debate. In my constituency of Yeovil, pharmacies provide vital services, including more than 6,700 prescriptions per month—not quite as many as in your constituency, Rachel.

[Mr Clive Betts (in the Chair)]

Order. “You” and “your” refer to the Chair.

[Adam Dance]

Sorry, Mr Betts. Since the launch of the Pharmacy First service this year, it is estimated that pharmacies in Yeovil have saved at least 556 GP appointments. However, a lack of investment and the rise in national insurance contributions threaten the amazing work done by pharmacies in Yeovil and across the country. I understand from the response I received to a parliamentary question—

[Mr Clive Betts (in the Chair)]

Order. Interventions should be brief and to the point for hon. Members to respond to. They should not be another speech.

[Adam Dance]

Will my hon. Friend join me in urging the Minister to provide a clear timeline for the consultation to start?

[Rachel Gilmour]

I thank my hon. Friend for his not particularly concise, but erudite, intervention.

I will turn briefly to the funding model of pharmacies. Some 90% of a pharmacy’s income is derived directly from NHS funding, but when it comes to how that funding is allocated, the system is broken. Community pharmacies across the UK dispense more than 1.1 billion items a year and deal with shortage issues on a daily basis. The Department of Health and Social Care sets reimbursement prices in our system, but due to the reimbursement prices being so low and pharmacies being unable to compete on the international stage, the global market is now a safer bet for pharmaceutical companies than the UK. That means that people in the UK sometimes are not able to get the right medication due to shortages and that even when the DHSC puts together a price concession and allows for a greater reimbursement rate to allow UK pharmacies to compete for those life-aiding medications, there are extraordinary pressures on the NHS and the taxpayer. The realities of the funding model mean that community pharmacies are trying to push up water uphill using tools riddled with holes—in other words, sieves.

Income Tax (Charge)

Adam Dance Excerpts

Tuesday 5th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)]

I congratulate the hon. Members for Broxtowe (Juliet Campbell) and for Sunderland Central (Lewis Atkinson) on their fantastic maiden speeches.

On this of all days, I thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, and your team, as well as all those who make Parliament work for the people and keep us safe. I hope our friends in the United States of America appreciate the task they have before them today, not only for America but for the rest of the world, to provide leadership in promoting opportunity and fairness for all, a theme to which I will return.

I thank my predecessor, Marcus Fysh, for his nine years of service to our community. While we certainly had our differences, I know we share a deep appreciation for the privilege of representing the place we proudly call home. When I arrived at Parliament, a member of staff greeted me with, “You’re the new Member for Yeovil, aren’t you?”. “Yes,” I nervously replied, and was promptly told, “You’ve got big boots to fill!” It was a proud moment, and one that I will strive to live up to.

My maiden speech would not be complete without acknowledging the influence of one person in particular: the right honourable Paddy Ashdown, who inspired me, and so many others across the country and the world. He, alongside David Laws, encouraged me to campaign to save South Petherton youth club when cuts threatened to close it. From there, my journey into public service began, first on the parish council, where I became chair at the age of 20, followed by the district council then Somerset county council.

I say to young people everywhere, “Don’t let the system put you down.” They should not let anyone tell them that if they have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or dyslexia—I have both—they need to find suitable work, as they will not make anything of their lives otherwise. With good teachers—I had several excellent ones, including one who is in the Gallery—I have made it up through the political system, to the top representative role for around 100,000 people in my constituency. If I can make it, so can everyone else.

As lead member for public health, equality and diversity at Somerset council, I campaigned for our local health services, fighting to resolve the crisis caused by Conservative mismanagement. I am glad to see the new Government have used this Budget to begin reinvestment in our NHS, starting to reform our national and local health services, which is desperately needed, but that is just the tip of the iceberg.

The constituency of Yeovil is rich in history and ambition, and comprises the towns of Yeovil, Chard, Crewkerne, South Petherton, Ilminster and many surrounding parishes. Built on agriculture and the gloving industry, the area has evolved into a hub of engineering excellence, with Petters engines, which created Westland and now Leonardo, at its engineering heart. I am pleased to have received written confirmation from the Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry, the right hon. Member for Liverpool Garston (Maria Eagle), that Leonardo UK, as the sole remaining bidder, will be put forward to the next stage in the procurement process for the New Medium Helicopter. The previous Government delayed this project for decades.

Last month, I had the privilege of opening the single site logistics hub in Yeovil, a joint investment of £30 million by Kuehne + Nagel and Leonardo with much more to come. Government backing for this fantastic product could see export orders flow, which this country desperately needs. Last week, the Chancellor’s announcement of a £1 billion package for Ministry of Defence procurement—some of which is for the south-west— puts in place the necessary funding to make that a reality.

The Yeovil constituency is not just about helicopters. Chard is home to Numatic, the birthplace of Henry—everyone’s favourite vacuum cleaner—and his friends. John Stringfellow flew the first powered aircraft over Chard in 1848. In 1979, the Woodscrew Supply Company started in Yeovil, which became Screwfix in 1992, the year in which I was born. Last Friday, I visited the headquarters of Screwfix, which now has more than 900 stores nationally.

In 1986, a Lynx aircraft set a helicopter air-speed record of just over 250 mph, which remains unbeaten today. HMS Victory proudly went into battle with sails made in Crewkerne and ropes crafted in West Coker.

Finally, I wish to honour Miss Marion Wright, a less-known daughter of Yeovil, who set sail for a new life in America in 1912. Daughter of Thomas Wright, a farmer, she was carer for her three stepsisters. On 10 April 1912, she stepped aboard the Titanic as a second-class passenger. Just days earlier, the great liner had set out on her sea trials, which were designed to test the ship’s capacity in readiness for her journey ahead. Those trials confirmed her strengths, but did not prepare her for the real challenges and unseen dangers ahead. The trials could not account for the class disparity aboard, where first-class passengers were guaranteed life boats, but those in third class, below deck, fought for survival. Marion Wright was one of the lucky ones, surviving and making that new life in America. She went on to marry Arthur Woolacott, who was likely to have been a draftsman for Petter engines when he lived in the UK. The couple enjoyed a long marriage of 53 years, raising three sons and welcoming eight grandchildren.

Today, the United Kingdom faces its own sea trials. The icebergs on the horizon are clear: desperate inequality; the housing crisis; and, ironically, climate change. The class disparity, which doomed so many on that most famous ship in history, continues to manifest itself in our society today. Access to opportunity is still often determined not by talent or hard work, but by wealth and privilege. Too many are left behind, clawing for their chance to succeed.

Our nation is built on a rich history of achievement, resilience, ambition and hope, but, for too many, that is not enough. At the time, the Titanic was a marvel of engineering, the height of ambition, and, as some would say, a ticket to a new life. Today, she is a powerful reminder that, if not prepared, even the greatest and most advanced of ideas do not serve the needs of the most vulnerable. We must learn the lessons from history. We must unlock the gates of division and ensure that everyone, regardless of their background, has a fair shot at success. Failure risks allowing our nation to sail blindly towards disaster, missing the repeated warnings of inequality and division. We can instead act with the foresight that was lacking all those years ago and ensure that our great country, as well as our friends in America today, can chart a course towards opportunity and fairness for all.

[Luke Myer (Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland) (Lab)]

On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker.