Oral Answers to Questions

Baroness Chapman of Darlington Excerpts

Tuesday 8th March 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

We are finalising the design of the future cancer drugs fund from April, and we will publish shortly. The interim cancer drugs fund is designed to support new effective medicines, based on clinical panels’ assessments of the needs of individual patients.

[Mrs Jenny Chapman (Darlington) (Lab)]

Today is international women’s day, so let me pass on the good wishes of the women of Darlington to the Secretary of State.

[Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd) (Lab)]

All of them.

[Mrs Chapman]

Indeed. However, what does the Secretary of State have to say to those women when they are angry and concerned at the proposal from the County Durham and Darlington foundation trust to move their maternity services from Darlington to Durham, 20 miles away?

[Mr Lansley]

I would be grateful if the hon. Lady conveyed my very best wishes to the women of Darlington on international women’s day and said to them that I know from my visits to the north-east that a general practice-led commissioning pathfinder consortium has come together in their area. It is with that consortium and their local authority that they should look at which services they think should be provided in their area, and they will have the power to make that happen.