Oral Answers to Questions
Claire Hughes Excerpts(1 week, 2 days ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Jo Stevens
The Welsh Government have no plans to close any hospitals. I will not be taking any lectures from the Conservatives, with their fictitious plan to build 40 new hospitals in England. The hospitals do not exist; the money did not exist—they are not happening.
Claire Hughes (Bangor Aberconwy) (Lab)
Will the Secretary of State outline how she and her colleagues are working with the Welsh Government to improve health outcomes for people in Wales?
Jo Stevens
We are working in a spirit of genuine collaboration with the Welsh Government to do everything possible to cut waiting lists and build an NHS fit for the future in both England and Wales—a marked change from previous UK Governments, who were obstructive and hostile to the Welsh Government. We are sharing best practice, and the Welsh Government have established a ministerial advisory group to plan NHS reforms that will improve performance and reduce waiting lists. The group will draw on expertise from the NHS in both Wales and England.
Oral Answers to Questions
Claire Hughes Excerpts(4 months, 3 weeks ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Claire Hughes (Bangor Aberconwy) (Lab)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Dame Nia Griffith)
This Government’s No. 1 mission is to kick-start economic growth across the United Kingdom. Wales can be at the forefront of that mission, with renewable energy, advanced manufacturing, our vibrant creative sector, fintech and the life sciences each offering huge opportunities to create jobs and drive growth.
Dame Nia Griffith
I welcome my hon. Friend to his place, and am very sorry to hear about the recent redundancies at Swansea University. Only last week, the Secretary of State and I met with Professor Paul Boyle, vice-chancellor of Swansea University and chair of Universities Wales, to discuss the challenges facing Welsh institutions and ways of supporting the higher education sector in Wales. We recognise that Welsh universities, including Swansea, have a huge contribution to make, both to our mission of growth in the economy and within their local regions. Colleagues at all levels in the UK and Welsh Governments are working closely together to safeguard those universities’ potential amid the difficult economic circumstances we have inherited.
Claire Hughes
As has already been said, passengers on the north Wales coast are being let down by the poor performance of Avanti. This issue is affecting passengers and businesses, and hampering economic growth in my constituency of Bangor Aberconwy. What specific discussions has the Secretary of State had with our right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport on this issue?
Dame Nia Griffith
I welcome my hon. Friend to her place. As she quite rightly says, transport plays an essential role in driving economic growth across Wales. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State met the Transport Secretary last week to discuss rail connectivity, including the performance of Avanti. As the Secretary of State has set out, the Government are clear that the performance of Avanti has not been good enough, with too many cancellations and delays. So Ministers and officials are now holding regular performance reviews with Avanti and Network Rail, and monitoring Avanti West Coast compliance with its contractual obligations, with the aim of securing better services for her constituents.