Oral Answers to Questions

Dan Poulter Excerpts

Tuesday 25th November 2014 Commons Chamber

[Kerry McCarthy (Bristol East) (Lab)]

2. What recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of provision of student health services.

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

All patients are eligible to register with local primary medical care services, and that includes students who are moving away from home and starting university.

[Kerry McCarthy]

I do not think that the Minister has entirely engaged with the question. Those who run the student health services at Bristol university are warning that young people’s health is very much overlooked and underfunded—particularly mental health, which accounts for a quarter of all consultations. They are being hit by the GP funding changes and by cuts in public health spending on sexual health advice, and they have had to introduce their own meningitis vaccination programme because the Government have not introduced one. What support can the Minister give specifically to student health services?

[Dr Poulter]

I certainly remember being actively encouraged to register with a local GP when I was a student at Bristol university, and I understand that that continues today. As for the important question of children’s and young people’s mental health, the children’s mental health and well-being taskforce is looking at the mental health and well-being of students. Student Minds is involved in the process, and that in particular will help to inform the work of the taskforce in improving access to students with mental ill health.

[Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)]

Students do register with a practice in their university cities, but I was told recently by one of my constituents that she had experienced difficulty in gaining access to timely health care as a temporary resident when she was back at home. What options are available to ensure that students remain registered in the place where they are likely still to be spending half the year?

[Dr Poulter]

We recommend that all students register with university services, or with a GP in their university areas, but if patients are away from the GP with whom they are registered for more than 24 hours and less than three months—and that would include students—they can see a GP in the area where they are staying as temporary residents. GPs should be aware of that entitlement.

[Keith Vaz (Leicester East) (Lab)]

Students with long-term illnesses such as diabetes find it extremely difficult to manage their conditions, and there is evidence that a number of students are skipping their insulin injections. What further steps can be taken to make them aware of the necessity for them to take that important medication?

[Dr Poulter]

This is an incredibly important area of health care. How do we support young people through periods of transition? We know that people with long-term illnesses may struggle particularly, and diabetes and epilepsy are two of the conditions that have been identified. NHS England is currently examining transitional care tariffs to support people during the transition between children’s and adult health services, and educational support is part of that ongoing work.

[Oliver Colvile (Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport) (Con)]

My right hon. Friend the Minister for Universities, Science and Cities recently announced that there would be no cap on the number of students wishing to study pharmacy. Does my hon. Friend agree that Plymouth university should now press ahead with the setting up of a pharmacy school given that it is the Peninsula medical school?

[Dr Poulter]

My hon. Friend makes an important point. I visited the Peninsula medical school and his local university to highlight some of their excellent work in training medical and dental students. I believe that there is ample scope to expand provision to train other health care professionals in what is becoming an outstanding medical and health care training facility.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Philip Hollobone (Kettering) (Con)]

4. How many patient episodes there were at Kettering General Hospital in (a) 2010 and (b) the last year for which figures are available; and what assessment he has made of the reasons for the change in the number of such episodes.

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

In 2012-13 there were 85,497 in-patient finished consultant episodes at Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, compared to 84,602 in 2011-12. There has also been an increase in the number of accident and emergency attendances, from 76,099 in 2010-11 to 84,055 in 2012-13. That increase is largely attributable to a high demand for services from a growing, ageing population.

[Mr Hollobone]

Kettering general hospital serves one of the areas with the fastest population growth and greatest ageing in the whole country. Today’s report from the Care Quality Commission shows that, while the hospital has some of the most caring staff in the whole of the NHS, many areas of the hospital require considerable improvement. Will the Minister ensure that future NHS funding decisions are better targeted at areas such as Kettering which have such costly demographics?

[Dr Poulter]

My hon. Friend will be aware that the NHS funding formula is set independently, free from political interference. It is reviewed annually. I should like to reassure him that the Nene and Corby clinical commissioning groups have both received higher than real terms growth in their funding allocations and will do so again next year, to move them closer to their target allocations.

[Andy Sawford (Corby) (Lab/Co-op)]

I have been working closely with the hon. Member for Kettering (Mr Hollobone) in recent years on a campaign to support the hospital. We recognise the issues that the CQC has raised, and we support the journey that the hospital is taking towards improvement. When the hon. Gentleman and I come to see the Minister in a few months’ time, will he look favourably on our bid for £20 million of funding to improve our accident and emergency department, whose physical environment has been described by experts as being among the worst in the country?

[Dr Poulter]

I am looking forward to that meeting in the new year. I should like to reassure the hon. Gentleman and my hon. Friend that the Department has provided a total of £5 million of temporary public dividend capital funding and a further £1 million of emergency capital to the trust in the past three months, so support is going into the delivery of high-quality services.

[Norman Baker (Lewes) (LD)]

5. What recent assessment he has made of the potential medicinal benefits of cannabis.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr David Crausby (Bolton North East) (Lab)]

10. How many (a) NHS trusts and (b) foundation trusts are forecasting a deficit.

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

Thirty-three NHS trusts and 60 foundation trusts are forecasting an end-of-year financial deficit, with the remaining 65 NHS trusts and 87 foundation trusts forecasting an end-of-year surplus.

[Mr Crausby]

Earlier this year, Monitor announced that the number of trusts in financial breach had nearly doubled over the previous 12 months. How confident is the Minister that the number will not double again next year?

[Dr Poulter]

I am very confident that the measures already in place to drive efficiencies in the NHS are on course to save £20 billion during this Parliament. Many of those efficiencies are being delivered by improved procurement practice at a trust level. The Government have also invested £15 billion during this Parliament, which is a real-terms increase of £5 billion in NHS funding to support trusts.

[Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)]

The Government have invested hugely in the NHS in Harlow, including millions of pounds to our accident and emergency unit. However, for historical reasons the Princess Alexandra hospital has financial difficulties. Will my hon. Friend look at this and see what the Government can do to help?

[Dr Poulter]

Of course. As my hon. Friend is aware, every local health area—every clinical commissioning group—is receiving an increase in the funding available to it year on year. I would be happy to meet him to discuss the matter further, if that would be helpful.

[Mr Gareth Thomas (Harrow West) (Lab/Co-op)]

As the Minister knows, North West London Hospitals is one of the NHS trusts that is in deficit. It has seen the accident and emergency departments at two nearby hospitals close, and its hospital board estimates that an additional 123 beds are necessary. Will the Minister meet me to discuss the problems of its historical deficit and the need for additional funding to make sure that those 123 medical beds are provided?

[Dr Poulter]

I can reassure the hon. Gentleman that, in the words of the medical directors of all the hospitals affected, there is a very high level of clinical support for the programme across north-west London, and the changes will save many lives each year and significantly improve the services that are available to local patients. I hope that is reassuring to the hon. Gentleman and to local patients.

[John Stevenson (Carlisle) (Con)]

Running a deficit can demonstrate short-term problems which, once resolved, will allow a trust to return to balance. Does my hon. Friend agree that there must be flexibility in the system, particularly for trusts such as North Cumbria, which have been in special measures?

[Dr Poulter]

It is absolutely right that trusts such as North Cumbria need to face up to challenges when those affect the quality of patient care, and that the focus of Care Quality Commission inspections and special measures is to drive up standards of care. It is also important that we continue to invest and support trusts where we can. That is why we are pleased to be increasing the NHS budget by £15 billion during this Parliament.

[Sir Gerald Kaufman (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

Is the Minister aware that the Manchester primary care trust ought not to be incurring a deficit because it does not spend sufficient of its money and resources on investigating cases referred to it and on responding to hon. Members such as myself when they write to it over a period of months? Will he look into this incompetence and examine similar behaviour, or lack of it, by the Care Quality Commission?

[Dr Poulter]

It is very important that the NHS faces up to the situation when things have gone wrong so that it can put them right for the benefit of patients in future. If the right hon. Gentleman has concerns about his local NHS not investigating complaints that he has raised with it on behalf of his constituents who are patients of the local trust, I am very happy to investigate those issues for him if he would like to write to me about them, and see what I can do to ensure that he gets the answers that he and his local patients deserve.

[Douglas Carswell (Clacton) (UKIP)]

I understand that pretty much every hospital in Essex faces a yawning deficit, including Colchester hospital. Can the Minister guarantee that we can address the deficit without having to dramatically and radically reconfigure local services in Essex?

[Dr Poulter]

It is important to outline that for the first time this Government have put in place, via section 42 financial agreements with trusts where there is a requirement for interim financial support, measures that will ensure that trusts are held to account for delivering efficiencies—for example, reducing agency staffing costs, improving procurement practice, more efficient estate use and land disposal, and pay restraint of very senior managers. I am therefore confident that the local NHS can continue to deliver efficiencies to direct money to front-line care.

[Eric Ollerenshaw (Lancaster and Fleetwood) (Con)]

11. Whether it remains the policy of the cancer drugs fund to provide drugs which NICE has rejected for general use in the NHS.

--- Later in debate ---

[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

T3. My constituent Corron Sparrow was left lying in the road for two hours with a compound fracture of his leg despite a call from a policeman to the North East Ambulance Service pleading for help. Eventually the service responded by sending an ill-equipped St John Ambulance team who then had to call for professional assistance. There are many more failures. It is now three weeks since I wrote to the chief executive, Yvonne Ormston, asking for an inquiry into this, but she has not even acknowledged my letter. Will the Minister intervene and tell the North East Ambulance Service that it cannot just ignore these matters?

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

I am very sorry to hear about the difficulties experienced by the hon. Gentleman’s constituents, and of course I am happy to look into those and do what I can to help him with that. However, I would also like to make it clear on the record that because this Government have put £15 billion more into the NHS during this Parliament, we are making sure that we are keeping services running efficiently through the winter for the benefit of patients.

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir Alan Beith (Berwick-upon-Tweed) (LD)]

T9. Do Ministers agree that the patient transport guidance should be interpreted with an understanding of rural needs, rather than telling my elderly constituents to report to a hospital 60 miles away and to get three buses there and three back that do not connect with each other in order to have treatment or consultation?

[Dr Poulter]

It is particularly important in rural areas that patients with complex medical needs who have difficulties mobilising or who perhaps do not have access to a car are supported by the local NHS to access the services they need. There is provision for local hospitals, as well as for CCGs, to give financial assistance to support patients in accessing services and to give them lifts to hospitals, as appropriate.

[Mr Ben Bradshaw (Exeter) (Lab)]

T10. When I asked the Prime Minister two weeks ago about the financial crisis facing Devon NHS, he seemed completely unaware of it, so could the Health Secretary please explain why Devon NHS faces an unprecedented £430 million deficit and what he is doing to stop the rationing, cuts and total withdrawal of some services that is now being proposed?

--- Later in debate ---

[Charlotte Leslie (Bristol North West) (Con)]

One of the key challenges in improving access to GPs is improving recruitment of GPs. Will the Secretary of State work with the Royal College of General Practitioners and other medical groups to see whether there might be merit in introducing a mandatory stint of working in a GP surgery for junior doctors?

[Dr Poulter]

I am sure that my hon. Friend will welcome the fact that there are now just over 1,000 more GPs working in the NHS and training than when we came into government, but there is more we need to do. We have committed to delivering 5,000 more GPs for the NHS, and part of that work will be working with the Royal College of General Practitioners to ensure that we can support return-to-practice initiatives for GPs who have taken career breaks.

[Several hon. Members]

rose—