Global Migration Challenge

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Tuesday 19th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

Absolutely. I want to thank my hon. Friend because he has been in dialogue with Ministers on that issue. I would be very happy to meet him. Of course, he understands the principle behind all of this, so I am very happy to discuss that with him further.

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

The Home Secretary asserts that Labour Members do not understand the issue, but she will be aware that a former permanent secretary at the Home Office, Sir David Normington, said last week about her Rwanda policy:

“It’s inhumane, it’s morally reprehensible, it’s probably unlawful and it may well be unworkable”.

How does she come to know better than a former Home Office permanent secretary?

[Priti Patel]

First, I am surprised that the right hon. Lady is using Sir David’s name in vain, given that a former Labour Home Secretary infamously and discourteously described the Home Office leadership and management as “not fit for purpose” during Sir David’s tenure. Things have moved on in terms of the asylum system. Her party and other Opposition Members continuously vote against the new plan for immigration, but they have no plan to deal with these important and difficult issues. It will bring in the reform that our country needs, while making sure that we preserve the efficacy of safe and legal routes for people fleeing persecution to come to our country and get the support they need.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Monday 28th February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

Does the Home Secretary accept that many Members of this House are dismayed that she did not make a statement in the normal way, so that she could have been questioned in the normal way? Does she further accept that that is not just disrespectful to the House of Commons, but it shows a lack of real concern for those desperate people escaping Ukraine?

[Priti Patel]

I completely reject the right hon. Lady’s latter point, and naturally I will always be happy to return to the House and take questions.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Monday 17th January 2022 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

We could rerun the debate on the Nationality and Borders Bill, which I would happily do. This Government are determined not just to reform what is a broken asylum system—we are lifting up every aspect of the dysfunctionality of the system—but to tackle the root causes of illegal migration. In March 2021 the new plan for immigration was published, and we had the Nationality and Borders Bill in this House last autumn. The Opposition seem to be on the wrong side of the argument. They do not really want to support an end to illegal migration or stop the people smugglers.

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

Is there any truth in the reports that the Government want to have asylum seekers processed offshore in countries such as Gambia? Has any such country actually agreed to this? Does the Secretary of State accept that having people processed hundreds or thousands of miles away might meet the letter of our obligations to asylum seekers but certainly does not meet the spirit?

[Priti Patel]

I absolutely disagree with the right hon. Lady’s question. Had she read the new plan for immigration—the policy statement published for the benefit of all Members in March 2021—she would know that this Government are considering all options for outsourcing processing and for removing people with no legal basis to be in our country. I completely recognise that she disagrees with the policies of this Government—[Interruption.] It matters not which countries. We will continue to discuss this with a range of countries, because I, as Home Secretary, and this Government are determined to fix the decades-long problem of a very broken asylum system. Frankly, under successive Labour Governments there were mass failures to remove people with no legal basis to be in the country.

Channel Crossings in Small Boats

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Monday 22nd November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

Let me put my hon. Friend’s mind at ease and at peace: I have done exactly that.

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

The Home Secretary spoke earlier about the importance of viable plans; does she still consider the use of wave machines in the channel to turn back small boats to be a viable plan? Does she still consider the sending of desperate asylum seekers to a third country, such as Albania, to be a viable plan? When will she stop using desperate asylum seekers as pawns in this Government’s culture wars?

[Priti Patel]

I categorically reject that notion and the right hon. Lady’s points. She mentioned wave machines; I have never ever suggested or recommended them. I say that for clarity and on the record for the House. As for the other matters, the right hon. Lady has heard me say this afternoon—I refer her to my earlier comments—that her party objects to changing our asylum system, fixing a broken system and, actually, improving the processing of asylum claims, which would, by the way, be of benefit to the individuals who have come to our country illegally. We want to make sure that we have a differentiated approach so that those people who are in genuine need get the support they need and those who have no legal grounds to be here are removed.

Policing and Prevention of Violence against Women

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Monday 15th March 2021 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. To be very frank, I was quite surprised when I heard that was the position that the Opposition were taking. This is a criminal justice Bill. It will increase sentences for individuals and perpetrators who perpetrate the most horrendous, appalling sexual offences and crimes against women, children and citizens. It is an important Bill, as I have already said. It was key to our manifesto, and the British public voted for it. This Government and our party in government are absolutely determined to strengthen our laws and the criminal justice system so that we can put away those individuals who cause harm to individuals and increase sentences.

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab) [V]]

Our thoughts and prayers are with Sarah Everard’s family. The Home Secretary will be aware that the whole nation was upset by the images of women who had come to a peaceful vigil about violence against women finding themselves wrestled to the ground and handcuffed by police officers. The statement by the Metropolitan police sought to justify what happened on Saturday by talking about

“the overriding need to protect people’s safety”.

Is she aware that some people are puzzled by the idea that you can make people safe by manhandling them and handcuffing them?

In relation to the policing Bill, which the House will be debating later, the Home Secretary herself has made it clear that it is expressly designed to crack down on peaceful protests by groups such as Extinction Rebellion and Black Lives Matter. She described the peaceful protests by Black Lives Matter as “dreadful”. Can she understand why many people in this country believe that giving the police even more powers to crack down on peaceful protest can only lead to more distressing scenes like those the nation witnessed on Saturday at the vigil on Clapham common?

[Priti Patel]

With respect to the right hon. Lady, I urge her not to be so judgmental with regards to the events on Saturday evening until we see the report that comes from Her Majesty’s inspectorate of constabulary. She will have plenty of opportunity to discuss protest and police powers during the passage of the Bill, but I would like to say this: in recent years, we have seen a significant change in protest tactics, which has led to disruption and also to violence and people’s lives being endangered. I look forward to the debate with her on this particular point later on, but she is absolutely wrong in her characterisation of the measures we are introducing.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Monday 23rd March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

I have daily conversations across the entire policing network across the country with regard to the resources that they need at this incredibly challenging time. The Government are, of course, working closely with all partners, including the emergency services, on a range of issues, including suitable PPE and the development of suitable testing. Those are the things that our police officers and police chiefs are asking for right now, and we are working with them to co-ordinate supplies and the policing response.

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

I wish to return to the subject of that category of person under immigration legislation who has no recourse to public funds. Because of the coronavirus epidemic and the consequent shutdown of large parts of the economy, these persons will not be able to work. We welcome the help for workers through bank loans and the benefit system that the Government have brought in, but the category of person to which I refer are not entitled legally to benefits of any kind. I note that the Home Secretary is talking to the Department for Work and Pensions about this matter, but when can she give some assurance to people who are literally facing destitution that this matter will be resolved and that there will be a way of offering them some measure of financial support?

[Priti Patel]

Let me repeat to the right hon. Lady the comment that I made earlier. This is work that is taking place across Government, and not just in the Home Office. We are engaging with the Treasury and with the DWP. It is vital that, at this particular stage and given the really significant challenge that our country finds itself facing, we provide resources and support for people at all levels, and that is something that the entire Government are committed to do. I would be very happy to come back to her on this specific point in due course.

Windrush Lessons Learned Review

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Thursday 19th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

We meet as a House of Commons at a time of unprecedented national crisis—a national crisis that none of us has seen before in our lifetime—but I am sure the Home Secretary will agree that we should not allow the fact that the review has been published at a time of national crisis to mean that the review and its recommendations are buried. The Windrush generation deserve better than that.

As the Home Secretary will know, the recommendations in this review have three main elements: that the Home Office must acknowledge the wrong that has been done; that it must open itself up to external scrutiny; and that it must change its culture, to recognise that migration and wider Home Office policy is about people, and whatever the objective, it should always be rooted in humanity.

The Home Secretary will be aware that the review points out:

“Some ministers and senior officials spoken to in the course of this review do not appear to accept the full extent of the injustice done to the Windrush generation”,

and that they say

“the situation was unforeseen, unforeseeable and therefore unavoidable.”

More than one Member of this House foresaw the consequences of the hostile environment legislation years ago.

The review goes on to say that other Ministers and senior officials

“have expressed the view that the responsibility really lay with the Windrush generation themselves to sort out their status.”

Will the Home Secretary agree that, whichever politicians or officials said those things—Wendy Williams quotes them in the review—they were disgraceful things to say?

The review has many important and detailed recommendations. I cannot touch on them all, but I wish to draw the Home Secretary’s attention to a few. The review wants the Department to publish a comprehensive improvement plan within six months. Is the Home Secretary willing to assure the House that there will be such a plan? The review asks that the Home Office run a programme of reconciliation events with members of the Windrush generation. Does the Home Secretary commit to that?

Very importantly, the review says that the Home Office must look beyond the Caribbean, because persons from all over the Commonwealth who came to this country at that time would have been caught up in the same issues that the Windrush generation were caught up in. In fact, persons from the Caribbean are as anxious as anybody that persons from other parts of the Commonwealth—Africa, south Asia—also get the fairness and justice that they deserve. Is the Home Secretary willing to commit to reviewing data on other Commonwealth cases, as well as those from the Caribbean nations?

Is the Home Secretary willing to commit commission officials to undertake a full review and evaluation of the hostile or compliant environment policy and its measures individually and serially? Such a full review should assess whether they were effective and proportionate. Given the risks inherent in the policy that are set out in the report, the review must be carried out scrupulously, designed in partnership with external experts and published in a timely way.

Sadly, the Home Secretary did not feel able to share a copy of the review with the Opposition Front-Bench team. I have never before been in the situation in which a Home Secretary brought forward a major report of this kind and did not want to share it with the Opposition Front-Bench team—obviously that would have been under complete discretion. As it happens, I had to go into the Home Secretary’s office in Parliament to obtain the copy I have. It is almost as if the Home Secretary did not want full parliamentary scrutiny.

This is a detailed report that deserves detailed scrutiny. It is coming forward at a very difficult time for the nation as a whole, but the Opposition will be coming back to the issues raised in the report, because the Windrush scandal was not just a mistake; it was not just something that happened because people did not read the rules properly. As Wendy Williams points out, it was rooted in the systemic culture of the Home Office and the failure of Ministers to listen to the warnings they were given about what the effects of the hostile environment could be on people perfectly legally entitled to be here.

I have heard the Home Secretary’s apology, but people will believe her apology when they see her genuinely seek to implement the recommendations in this review. My mother was a member of the Windrush generation, so I know that one of the aspects of the Windrush generation was that they really believed they were British. They had no reason not to believe that they were British when they came here with their passports, UK and Colonies.

Let me assure the Home Secretary that, for the Windrush generation, it is not necessarily the money, or the loss, or the inconvenience, or even the tragedy of being deported. It is the insult to people who always believed that they were British, and who came here to rebuild this country, but who, because of the insensitivity and the structural issues in the Home Office, were treated in an utterly disgraceful and humiliating way. The Home Secretary should be assured that we will return to these issues until the Windrush generation gets the justice to which it is entitled.

[Priti Patel]

First of all, let me say in response to the right hon. Lady’s point about the publication of the review that this is an independent review. I received a copy of it yesterday from Wendy Williams and I have, through all the due process in the House, laid the review this morning, in a timely way, in the Vote Office, using all the procedural routes that are normal to this House. I know that the right hon. Lady came to my office and picked up a copy, but copies were also available earlier on this morning—we checked that, and as she knows, I also gave her sight of my statement earlier, prior to coming to the Chamber.

I made a commitment to publish the report as soon as possible. It came to me yesterday, and I have done that, primarily because of the nature of the response and the concerns that this House has consistently and rightly raised when it comes to the Windrush generation. That, in my view, was the right thing to do, and I would not have been able to publish the review any earlier, because obviously it came to me from Wendy Williams yesterday. The timing of the report was decided by Wendy Williams, as the independent reviewer. Let me assure the right hon. Lady that I discussed with Wendy Williams yesterday how I will work with her on the recommendations going forward. I will be doing that over the coming months, in the way in which Wendy has asked and alluded to in the report. I will ensure that this issue continues to get the national prominence that it rightly deserves.

I also think, on that point, that this is the time for us all across this House to come together to right the wrongs. I have made it clear in my statement already that not only will I review Wendy’s recommendations on how the Home Office operates as an organisation, looking closely at, yes, the leadership, the culture, the practices and how it needs to put people before process—I cannot emphasise that enough—but I will also look at how we review policies and cultural change going forward. That is absolutely the right thing to do, but I emphasise that, in many of the measures and recommendations, and in the extent of the review—I have no doubt that when the right hon. Lady has the opportunity she will go through the review and read it, as I have—Wendy Williams is very clear that lessons must be learned at all levels, by all political parties. She describes the set of measures that evolved under Labour, coalition and Conservative Governments, and is clear those are lessons that we should all be learning, as politicians and as society, but also as Members of this House.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Monday 10th February 2020 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

The hon. Lady will be more than aware of the work that we do to provide safe and legal routes for family reunion, and for vulnerable persons and children. She has heard me say that we are fully committed to supporting the most vulnerable children and the principle of family reunion. It is a fact that we are about to negotiate with the European Union. I set out the Government’s position clearly in communications and correspondence with the European Commission at the end of last year, and that is the route we will be pursuing.

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

The Home Secretary will be aware of the conditions that many refugee children endure in refugee camps all over Europe. She will also be aware that the public do not want us to let these children down. Will she confirm that unless law and practice are changed, we run the risk of breaking up families and leaving children abandoned with no relative to care for them?

[Priti Patel]

The right hon. Lady has touched on a very important point, namely the conditions that children and families endure in refugee camps outside the United Kingdom. That could be in Europe, but also in countries outside Europe. It is important that we reflect on the priorities and standards that we, as a country, provide for those refugees through our work in international development and aid. We should not overlook the fact that there are a great deal of associated issues—reunion, the protection and settlement of refugees, and vulnerable children—that come together internationally, but we are leading the way on this in the UK.

--- Later in debate ---

[Priti Patel]

My right hon. Friend is right to point out that through our points-based system we are introducing new routes to attract the brightest and the best. Our fast-track immigration scheme will facilitate entry to the UK for more people with skills, including scientists, researchers and mathematicians. This is just the first phase of our reforms to send a signal that the UK intends to remain at the forefront of research and innovation.

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

Does the Home Secretary appreciate the widespread concern about the Jamaican deportation flight due tomorrow? Is she aware that Stephen Shaw, in his review of detention, suggested that we should not be deporting people who came here as children, but that many of the proposed deportees came here as children and have no memory of Jamaica? Does she accept that these deportations constitute double jeopardy, because the persons have already served an appropriate sentence for their crime? Is she aware that more than 170 Members of Parliament from all political parties have written to the Prime Minister calling for the deportation flight to be halted?

[Priti Patel]

I am sure that the right hon. Lady is aware that under the UK Borders Act 2007 a deportation order must be made in respect of foreign criminals sentenced to 12 months or more in prison. Every person on the flight was convicted of a serious offence and received a custodial sentence of 12 months or more. That means that, under the Act, which was introduced by the Labour Government in 2007, a deportation order must be made.

Major Incident in Essex

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Monday 28th October 2019 Commons Chamber

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

I thank the Home Secretary for advance sight of her statement.

The events in Essex are a tragic loss of life. All death is regrettable, but this was a particularly gruesome and grotesque way to die, and an horrific experience for the first responders. Many of us in the House will have seen the images in our media over the weekend of desperate communities who are frightened that their young people may have been in that lorry. Many of us will have seen the messages from people to their families on the verge of their own suffocation. One woman said:

“I am really, really sorry, Mum and Dad, my trip to a foreign land has failed”.

I would like to thank the Home Secretary for the information about the arrests and about how some progress has been made in identifying the victims. However, as the investigation is ongoing and criminal charges are involved, I will not say more about this specific case.

As the Home Secretary said, people traffickers are particularly ruthless and simply do not care about human life. I was in Lesbos last year looking at the people trafficking from Turkey across the Mediterranean to Greece. The people traffickers not only deliberately took large sums of money off desperate people, but put those people in completely unseaworthy rubber dinghies. They gave people fake lifejackets and did not care that—as inevitably happened—many of them died in the Mediterranean. The people traffickers are greedy, ruthless and unscrupulous, and they have a callous disregard for human life.

I would, however, like to ask the Home Secretary whether the Home Office will be looking at security at some of the small east coast ports. I do not want to pre-empt the police investigation, but it seems that these small ports are being used because there is less security than at ports such as Dover.

I also want to ask the Home Secretary about the current co-operation with the European police, security and justice agencies in investigating this case. Specifically, how closely are our agencies, police forces and National Crime Agency working with Europol in this investigation? Will she also indicate the level of co-operation with the European Migrant Smuggling Centre, which is an agency of Europol? How are our agents benefiting from co-operation with what is the most sophisticated agency of its kind in the world?

Will the Home Secretary further explain how that co-operation can continue under a no-deal Brexit or the Prime Minister’s deal? As things stand, we will lose the current level of co-operation, we will not have realtime access to EU agency databases, and we will lose access to a host of criminal databases and to the European arrest warrant. The House would therefore like to know what plans the Home Secretary has to maintain and, if anything, strengthen that co-operation.

This is a very tragic event. In some ways, it has humanised the issue of people trafficking for many people in this country. Of course we have to bear down on the people traffickers—they are ruthless and have no concern for human life—but we also have to look at issues such as how we make those eastern ports more secure and how we guarantee people the same level of co-operation with EU agencies that we currently have.

[Priti Patel]

I thank the right hon. Lady for her remarks. There are a number of points I would like to make.

First, the right hon. Lady is absolutely right about the first responders. They cannot unsee what they have experienced and seen through this awful crime. Secondly, she is right to recognise the scale of trafficking and the inhumanity—there is no other word that can describe it—of the perpetrators behind not only this crime but modern slavery, people smuggling and human trafficking.

The right hon. Lady specifically asked about checks at eastern ports. Those ports are not as vast as others and do not necessarily have the large amounts of freight coming through. She will have heard me remark in my statement that, with regard to Purfleet, Border Force will obviously now be increasing its presence, but it will also be working with Essex police on targeting and on the response it needs to the incident itself, providing further information about what has happened.

The right hon. Lady asked about security and the drivers in terms of working in co-operation and in partnership with other agencies. Of course, that is exactly what we are doing right now. The National Crime Agency is, rightly, taking the lead on this investigation. As I said in my statement, it is a complicated investigation, and we are working with a number of agencies across the European Union, and with others, because of the routes that have been taken. I have no doubt that, over time, we will hear much more, and a lot more information will come out in due course.

The right hon. Lady specifically asked about Brexit and security co-operation. I would just say to the House that the way in which we can absolutely ensure that we have the strongest possible co-operation is by having a deal. That is exactly the Government’s position and I would like the right hon. Lady and her party to support it.

On co-operation and security tools, there are no boundaries when it comes to our co-operation. The United Kingdom will remain one of the safest countries in the world, as well as a global leader on security.

Major Incident in Essex

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Wednesday 23rd October 2019 Commons Chamber

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

I thank the Home Secretary for early sight of her statement.

Any death under these circumstances is truly appalling. The fact that there are 39 reported deaths in this incident makes it a terrible tragedy—one of the worst of its kind. Each of the 39 will have partners, family and friends who perhaps even now do not know how their loved one died and in what horrible circumstances. I am sure I speak for the whole House when I say that our thoughts, prayers and wishes go out to the bereaved and all the loved ones of the victims.

I commend the emergency services for their work and share with the hon. Member for Thurrock (Jackie Doyle-Price) the horror that these emergency service workers will have seen sights that will live with them forever.

It is important to remember that these 39 poor, unfortunate people are the victims in this; they have been preyed on by the greedy, the unscrupulous and people with a wilful disregard for the lives of others. However, we should take account of the wider context. Nobody leaves their home on such a journey, with so much risk and fear, on a whim. They often do it because they are desperate; they can be the victims of economic privation, war, famine, catastrophic climate change. There are many adverse conditions that people flee from, but we should not lose sight of the fact that these people are victims.

I would like an assurance from the Home Secretary that the co-operation with the EU27 on people trafficking, which is vital to ensure that such events do not happen in the future, will not become harder or be imperilled by our leaving the EU.

It is important to raise the general conditions of refugees and asylum seekers. The Opposition have long argued that the Government should establish safe and legal routes for genuine refugees to make their way here. If they do not, I fear there may be further tragedies like this. When one thinks about the events of this incident, when one thinks about how these people died and how terrifying their deaths must have been, it should remind us that whenever we talk about migration, refugees and asylum, these people are people. There is an obligation on us to ensure that where people are moving legally, we provide safe and legal routes.

[Priti Patel]

I thank the right hon. Lady for her comments and reflections following the tragic incident this morning. She was, of course, right in a number of the points she made, such as about our emergency service workers who are dealing with the incident on the ground. We will work collaboratively with the investigation teams—not just with Essex police, but with the National Crime Agency, Border Force and many others—to further the investigation into this appalling incident.

It is important to emphasise a few other points. This is now a murder investigation. We are still ascertaining various facts, but given the sheer humanity that we all feel following the deaths of 39 individuals in such circumstances, some fundamental points arise: potential links to criminality, and also what we should be doing as a country to make sure we stand by those who really should not be trafficked in any way.

As a country, we lead the world in many of our ways of working internationally, on modern-day slavery and through our own legislation. Fundamentally, there is always the point of international co-operation and collaboration—we must never lose sight of that—whether it is with our EU counterparts, as the right hon. Lady said, or with other international counterparts through the many multilateral forums we work with to prevent upstream migration, illegal human trafficking and all the terrible things we want to stop and prevent. At the end of the day, we must do the right thing as a country and uphold the right kind of values, to ensure that particularly for those who are fleeing war zones, conflicts and some of the most horrendous situations we see in the world, we are able to give people asylum in the right kind of way, which is exactly what we do.

NHS (Essex)

Debate between Diane Abbott and Priti Patel

Tuesday 15th March 2011 Westminster Hall

[Priti Patel (Witham) (Con)]

I am grateful to Mr Speaker for granting me the opportunity in Westminster Hall to draw directly to the Minister’s attention a number of important issues regarding the performance of NHS services in my constituency and in the county of Essex. I suspect that the matters that I shall raise and the constituents’ cases that I shall mention are by no means unique to my constituency or the county. However, the Government are developing the most important and, in my opinion, long-overdue changes to the NHS, and I want to ensure that the problems and challenges faced by my constituents are thoroughly and fully considered.

Throughout the endless reforms and reorganisations undertaken by the previous Government, the health needs of patients were never afforded the same priority as the expanding tick-box bureaucracy suffered by my constituents. One consequence of the waste that was created is that the money put into the health service never achieved the true outcomes that my constituents deserved and needed. That has led in part to my constituents suffering poor patient choice and health care services. However, we cannot change everything about the past.

The Minister, the Government and, most importantly, my constituents want an effective NHS for the British people; it should deliver value for the taxpayer, ensuring that the mistakes of the past are not repeated and that all receive the care and front-line services that are their due. It is therefore essential that as the NHS is reformed, the needs of local communities in my constituency of Witham are not overlooked or ignored. That is why this debate is so timely.

By way of background, I shall give the Minister some details about my constituency and some of the health care challenges faced by my local community and me that are specific to the area, and the nature of current NHS services there. I shall then highlight the excessive and overblown bureaucracy that affects the NHS globally, which demonstrates the scale of taxpayers’ money that is increasingly and wrongly being taken from front-line services. I shall also draw attention to some of the most serious and heart-breaking cases that I have come across in the 10 months since I was elected, which show that the NHS too often fails the most vulnerable. I shall conclude my remarks by putting the case for new NHS services being delivered locally under the Government’s planned reforms.

Witham is a new constituency, so I forgive Members for not knowing much about it. It is not far from the London commuter belt, and lies within the heart of Essex. We have tremendous public transport and road links to London. The ports of Felixstowe, Harwich and Tilbury are not far away, and we have some major industrial towns and centres. It is not surprising, therefore, that Witham has experienced significant population growth in recent years. It is an attractive area to live in.

The three local authority areas in my constituency are Braintree, Colchester and Maldon. Under the previous Government, they were required to build more than 27,000 new homes in the 20 years to 2021, and 60,000 new homes between 2011 and 2031. Throughout Essex, the current population of 1.4 million could easily grow by 14% over the next 20 years. Members will be aware from their own areas that population growth inevitably puts more burdens not only on infrastructure but on the local NHS.

The local plans, particularly those that affect my constituency, unfortunately give no serious consideration to ensuring that the quality and quantity of local health services can keep pace with projected population increases and changing demographics. Although top-down targets are being scrapped by the present Government, the attractiveness and desirability of my constituency inevitably means that more people will move to the area, so we can expect to see a significant increase in the local population. That will put demands on local health services that are already struggling to cope.

It is not simply the sheer quantity of people that NHS services will need to support; they will also need to adapt to the changing demographics of the area. Because our local communities attract young families, we need stronger maternity services and paediatric provision. However, the most significant demographic change will be an acceleration of the number and proportion of residents over the age of 65. In that respect, my constituency and the county of Essex are not unique, as health services across the country are responding to an ageing population. By 2021, the NHS in Essex, along with its partners in local government, will need to accommodate the health needs of 45% more people in the county living beyond the age of 65, and 75% more people living beyond the age of 85.

Some of the most significant increases in Essex are expected to be in the Maldon district, part of which falls within the Witham constituency. It is worth noting that about 10% of the Essex population provides assistance, caring for family, friends or neighbours, with higher than average rates in Maldon, where the number of working-age people available to care for older persons will have nearly halved by 2029. These demographic changes present serious challenges to the front line of the NHS in my constituency and in the county.

I am pleased to report that Essex county council is taking a strong lead in implementing the Government’s reforms to deal with the challenge. It has already established a health and well-being board, and the Department of Health recognises it as an early implementer. I would welcome the Minister’s reassurance that the Government, unlike the Labour party, which has made no commitment to NHS funding to support this work, will continue to increase resources when necessary to support the health needs of my constituency and Essex. I shall emphasise throughout the debate the need for the money to be spent on front-line care, not bureaucracy.

That brings me to NHS bureaucracy in Essex and my constituency, and specifically to our local primary care trusts. The Minister will be aware that the medical needs of my constituents are served by a number of NHS trusts and by the East of England strategic health authority. There is no general hospital in my constituency; local residents usually use the Broomfield hospital run by the Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust, which is based in the neighbouring constituency—that of the Minister of State, Department of Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for Chelmsford (Mr Burns)—or the foundation trust hospital in Colchester for acute care services. Mental health services are provided by the North Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.

My constituents are served by two of the five primary care trusts in Essex. Those who live in the Braintree district council or Maldon district council parts of my constituency fall within the area covered by the Mid Essex NHS trust, whose budget for 2011-12 has increased to just under £520 million. Those who live in the wards covered by Colchester borough council find themselves being dealt with by NHS North East Essex, whose budget for 2011-12 has risen to just under £547 million.

Later, I will give examples of cases in which constituents have faced unacceptable problems with those health trusts. In the meantime, it is worth looking at the obscene levels of bureaucracy, administration and management that have taken hold of those organisations. The number of managers and senior managers employed by the East of England strategic health authority doubled under the previous Government from 1,300 in 1997 to more than 2,700 in 2009. At Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust, more than £10 million is spent annually on 29 senior managers and 79 managers. In the North East Essex PCT and its three predecessor trusts, the proportion of administrative staff rose from 19% to 33% between 2001 and 2009. The number of managers and senior managers increased from 25 to 84.

Finally, Mid Essex PCT, which serves the majority of my constituents, and its four predecessor trusts, saw administration and staffing levels rise from 17% to 33%, and the number of managers go up from 10 to 102. When we consider that those two PCTs were formed from seven predecessor organisations, it is fair to say that the growth in management and administration over eight years is quite shocking. The PCT now spends almost £13 million on management costs alone. That money, which my constituents and I view as hard-pressed taxpayers’ money, has been taken away from essential local medical care to staff a bureaucracy. Mid Essex PCT is also experiencing slippage in progress on its quality, innovation and prevention plan and, as a result, could now miss its year-end target by £2.7 million. On 16 November, the minutes of its remuneration committee, which have not been disclosed fully, indicate that performance bonuses were to be paid to the chief executive and its executive directors.

What concerns me is not just the vast sums of money increasingly flowing into the pockets of bureaucrats and managers, but the way in which the PCT is behaving and functioning since it embarked on its reorganisation. It seems to have no real idea as to what it is reorganising into. That is a cause for alarm. I hope the Minister is aware that last autumn, North Essex PCT and Mid Essex PCT decided to form a cluster with West Essex PCT under a new chief executive. The first I heard of that change was when I received a press release last September. In a massive blaze of glory, it was announced that the chief executive of the strategic health authority would form closer working arrangements with the PCT.

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

The hon. Lady has spoken at some length and with real passion about money being poured into the appointment of bureaucrats and managers. In her mind’s eye, a hospital bureaucrat is a man in a bowler hat with a brief case, but is she aware that many people who are dubbed managers in the health service are actually former senior nurses, such as her colleague, the Minister, who bring much of their clinical background and expertise to bear on their role? Nurses in particular get a little pained when politicians talk about managers and discount the fact that many of them are people with a very solid clinical background.

[Priti Patel]

I recognise that NHS managers have a range of health care backgrounds and bring a number of skills to the table. Of concern to my constituents though is the fact that we are dominated by managers who tend to have administrative rather than clinical backgrounds, and they are making key decisions about patient treatment, and even about medical care and access to drugs. None the less, I thank the hon. Lady for her comments and her valid point.

This brings me to the overall efficiency and effectiveness of the reorganisation. I have been told that reorganisation will lead to a significant step forward in delivering greater efficiency for the people of north Essex. None the less, I constantly have to ask the PCT, “What does this mean? What will this look like? What are the costs of the reorganisation?” I was told last autumn that the PCT could not quantify the cost of reorganisation as the process of reconfiguration had only just started. I have been asking for updates, but as yet, have not received any. Each time I ask anything, I am told that my question cannot be answered “at this time”.

There is far too much uncertainty. I welcome reorganisation, efficiency drives and reductions in management and bureaucracy costs, but there are major implications for front-line services. The language of the PCT is constantly about reorganisation producing greater efficiencies, which I would not dispute, but the PCT still has no detailed plans to show what the greater efficiencies will look like and what the formation of the new cluster will mean for local services.

The merging of back-office functions to save money is to be welcomed and I have no issue with that. In this case, however, I have discovered that there is no forward plan in the form of a route map and details of how things will operate. I have been asking questions for six months, but I have not received any substantial details about the new cluster, the staffing arrangements and what it will all mean for patient choice locally. I have sent written questions to the Secretary of State about the reorganisation but, again, I have not had a response.

Will the Minister examine this reorganisation and ensure that more information is made available to the public so that they have some sense of what kind of decision making is taking place locally within the new cluster and the PCT, and what it will mean to them in terms of access to health care and local services? It appears that many of the decisions have been taken behind closed doors, with very little accountability and transparency. It is in the public interest to know what has transpired within the reorganisation, and what the new arrangements will look like as well as the costs and the benefits.

As the PCT should rightly be beginning its winding-down process prior to its abolition, I would like to hear from the Minister about the redundancy arrangements for senior PCT managers. I am sure that that is a matter that is naturally in their minds right now. In view of the colossal levels of waste caused by PCTs, my constituents will be very disappointed to see PCT chief executives and other senior directors receive golden goodbyes to boost pension pots or huge redundancy pay-outs. In the interests of accountability and transparency, all constituents across the country will be looking, during the NHS reforms, for some encouragement from the Government on that issue.

Before I move on to some individual cases, let me just say that I make no apologies for being critical of NHS bureaucracy. In my limited time as an MP, I have seen endless examples of red tape standing in the way of my constituents getting the best health care that should be available to them. I am overwhelmed by the whole culture of tick-box management that has pervaded my local NHS. It is something with which I have been battling, day in, day out, on behalf of my constituents. It is an alarming state of affairs.

Let me now draw to the Minister’s attention a couple of cases. I have been in touch with the Minister and the Department about the issue of Sativex. There have been two cases in my constituency in which the PCTs have refused to treat patients on the NHS with the drug Sativex despite their doctors’ recommending its use to help with multiple sclerosis. In both cases, the PCTs have been able to afford to pay more to their managers and to spend more on red tape and bureaucracy, but have refused to provide vital medical treatment to my constituents.

First, Mr Shipton from Tollesbury was recommended Sativex by four doctors, to help his condition. Those doctors are medical experts who have been treating him and who are aware of his condition and medical needs. However, last September Mid Essex PCT, acting through officials sitting on its area prescribing committee, thought that it knew best and decided that it would not accept a request for Sativex to be prescribed to Mr Shipton on the NHS. That left him in considerable pain and distress. It then took more than a month for the chief executive of the PCT to respond to my request for copies of minutes of the meeting at which that decision was made. The minutes stated that the PCT declined to prescribe Sativex to Mr Shipton

“due to a lack of evidence of significant long-term benefit. Clinical trials are of very short duration and do not compare with current treatment.”

Despite that, however, Sativex is already licensed—in fact, it was licensed last June—for use to improve symptoms in multiple sclerosis patients with moderate to severe symptoms, clearing the way for the PCT to prescribe it. Indeed, the PCT itself had made 31 previous prescriptions of Sativex in 2009-10.

My constituent, Mr Shipton, ended up sourcing Sativex privately, at the cost of £125 plus VAT per bottle, which is a course of treatment that lasts for only two weeks. Contrary to the conclusions of the area prescribing committee, the drug is having a hugely beneficial effect on Mr Shipton. If the bureaucracy of the PCT had not stood in the way, he could have received that treatment at a much earlier date and he would not have had to endure extreme suffering and pain, as well as what I would describe as an unnecessary bureaucratic process.

I have another constituent, Mr Cross from Tiptree, who has also experienced horrendous problems. In fact, his wife, Mrs Cross, is on the phone to my office on a weekly basis, updating us about the terrible position that her husband is in and the suffering that he is experiencing. He has had horrendous problems receiving a prescription of Sativex, although in this instance the obstacle has been dealing with North Essex PCT. Mr Cross is wheelchair-bound and in terrible pain, experiencing constant spasms. In fact, he has recently been in hospital. Given his condition, any treatment would be a welcome relief for him. There is double suffering for his wife, as it were, because she is now effectively his full-time carer. Once again, getting access to this drug has been terrible. He has had his consultant neurologist battling for him and making his case, and I too have battled for him and made his case. But North Essex PCT, despite issuing 16 prescriptions for Sativex in 2009-10, still refused to prescribe this treatment for Mr Cross and gave him a highly dismissive response.

When I took up Mr Cross’s case from September 2010 onwards, I began a process of constant correspondence with the PCT. All I received were evasive non-responses and the odd reference to Mr Cross’s “medical needs”, which were then just dismissed. I found that totally unacceptable. Mr Cross’s condition has since deteriorated and he has been in hospital again. There needs to be a recognition of the endless stress and strain that this process puts on his own domestic set-up, especially his dear wife who is now his constant carer.

There is a compelling case for action in both of those cases, to press the PCTs to provide this drug. Also, both of my constituents have made the point that they have spent their lives working hard, doing the right thing and contributing to society. They felt that in their hour of need the NHS would be there for them, but now they feel that it has not been there for them. That is unacceptable. Although I appreciate that the Minister cannot intervene in individual cases, I ask her at least to examine these cases if she possibly can.

There are two other cases that I want to touch on briefly. The first is that of my constituent Mrs Emily Wetherilt, and again I would welcome the Minister looking into it. It is another example of a local PCT failing to perform adequately to meet the medical needs of my constituents. Mrs Wetherilt is 96 years old and requires 24-hour care. However, despite her case meeting the published criteria for NHS continuing health care funding, Mid Essex PCT has refused to provide any care whatsoever. So there has been no support for her from the PCT. Mrs Wetherilt’s daughter has taken up this matter directly with the PCT’s panel twice and she has been declined on both occasions. The PCT categorically refuses to look into this matter again, because an appeal had not been lodged within the two-week window that was available to Mrs Wetherilt’s daughter.

Many of us recognise that in cases such as this one, when a constituent’s family is caring for them, the family’s priority is looking after their family member and it is not to follow an appeals process within a two-week window. People become very emotional and providing care takes precedence. That care is the priority. Consequently, the tone and the attitude adopted by the PCT are utterly bureaucratic and deeply unhelpful.

Mrs Wetherilt’s daughter has also offered to work with the PCT to find out whether it is possible for the PCT to part-fund her mother’s care, but that suggestion was dismissed by the PCT without even being addressed. That is another example of the inflexible bureaucracy that fails to put patients’ care and needs first. It is more about the process—ticking boxes and filling in forms—and that is wrong.

I have a final shocking case to highlight. It is one that I have raised previously in the House and it is that of my constituent, 14-year-old Bethanie Thorn. Last October, Bethanie was struck down with a terrible illness and left bed-ridden. She literally went from being a healthy teenager one day to being completely bed-bound two days later. The cause of her symptoms was unknown and she became unable to eat as her condition deteriorated. Nevertheless, she faced lengthy delays to get an MRI scan and the other vital checks that were needed to diagnose her condition.

It was only last November, when I raised this matter on the Floor of the House, that the Secretary of State looked into Bethanie’s case and appointments were made for her to have an MRI scan. People in urgent need of an appointment should not have to rely on the Secretary of State, local newspapers or their constituency MP to raise their case and sort appointments out. It shows how serious this case was that, shortly after her scan and check-up, Bethanie was admitted to hospital and she was only able to return home two months later, at the end of January. Her mother has effectively become her full-time carer and her family have had to battle at every single stage for care, appointments and treatment, which is appalling. I must say that, if Bethanie had received the appointment that she needed straight away, she would probably be in a better state of health today. The Minister will appreciate that this has been terribly distressing for Bethanie and her family.

When the NHS was pressed about this case, the only explanation given for the delays was something described as a “broken pathway”. I have no idea what a “broken pathway” is in NHS management talk, but the case has highlighted just how damaging poor performance and failures in NHS services can be to individuals. This girl’s life has changed beyond all recognition now. This case also demonstrates what can go wrong when there are endless layers of bureaucracy in the NHS; it was unclear throughout whether it was Bethanie’s GP, the PCT or the hospital services who were actually responsible for ensuring that Bethanie received the care that she needed. There was to-ing and fro-ing constantly—there really was.

Like all Conservatives, at the last general election I was absolutely proud to stand on a manifesto commitment to cut the waste and bureaucracy in the NHS, so that we could invest in the front-line services and give more powers to doctors and patients. I want to reiterate that in my short tenure—10 months—as a Member of Parliament, all I have seen are examples of how bureaucracy has got in the way. If nothing else, I will continue to battle to get the services for my constituents, in the face of adversity—that is, in the face of bureaucracy.

I welcome the measures that have been announced by the Government about the reforms and plans for the NHS. The purpose of mentioning these cases now is to highlight the fact that in Essex we have seen more of the non-medical side of the NHS in action locally than we have of the medical side, which shows the need for reform of patients’ treatment.

Finally, I want to draw attention to the fact that there is some hope for my constituents. That is the hope that they have placed in Government legislation to reform the NHS. As the Minister will recall from Health questions last week, Witham town is the most urban part of my constituency and Witham town council and others have put forward a very strong case for there to be more health care specialist services in our town. Although Colchester, Braintree and Chelmsford all have significant health facilities, including general hospitals and community hospitals, there is nothing for the people of Witham in our town, and there is nothing for the people from the surrounding villages. That gives the impression locally that there is a two-tier health system.

I mentioned at the start of my remarks that the Witham area includes some pockets of serious deprivation and has a growing population. Unfortunately, the PCT has not taken enough action to close the gap created by the changing demographics and local needs. Maltings Lane is a new housing development in Witham town. It has evolved over a number of years, and many more new homes and other facilities will be built there over the next 10 years, but it was begun with no plans whatsoever for additional health care services. That issue needs to be addressed in the long run, and I hope that the Minister can help my town council, along with our district and county councils, to work with the PCT and the forthcoming GP consortia to develop additional local services that seek to meet local needs. The issue is one of supply and demand, and there is a crying need but no provision.

As a starting point, the town council, to its credit, is working cross-party locally with all our councillors, and has put together a list of services that Witham needs, including an additional surgery, an out-of-hours walk-in clinic, minor injury, oncology and out-patient clinics and a diversity of medical-testing facilities. By adding some of those services to Witham and the surrounding communities, we will naturally see real benefits in the form of health care provision, choice and diversity, and we will enjoy the convenience of more local NHS services.

I am conscious that I have spoken for a considerable time and that many other Members wish to speak, so I shall conclude by saying that although I could raise many more health-related issues, I hope that I have given the Minister a real insight into the challenges that we face in Mid Essex, where we are surrounded by a lot of health activity but have had this bureaucracy that has stifled both the delivery of front-line care to patients, and the choice aspect of health care provision locally. I thank the Minister and colleagues for their patience in listening to my remarks, and I look forward to the Minister’s response.

--- Later in debate ---

[Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington) (Lab)]

The hon. Member for Witham (Priti Patel) is to be congratulated on obtaining the debate. Many of my constituents move to Essex as a kind of upward trajectory, so I listened with great interest to what she had to say about a part of the world with which I am not as familiar as I probably should be. The week after the Lib Dems have turned savagely against the Conservative-led coalition’s health care policies—the British Medical Association is debating them today and, as we know, doctors are very worried about what is proposed—hon. Members will expect me to touch on the health reforms generally and how they will affect the people of Essex.

I listened with some sympathy to the complaints of the hon. Member for Witham about bureaucracy. As I have been a Member of Parliament for 20 years, I have tangled with more bureaucrats than I care to remember. However, I always like to stop short of sounding as if I am dismissing people who work for the health service as a whole. My mother was a nurse. She was one of that generation of West Indian women who helped to build the health service after the war. We have to remember that however frustrating it is as Members of Parliament or even as members of the community to deal with bureaucrats in the health service or elsewhere, there are thousands and thousands of people without whom the health service could not work or function. They will tell us that they have survived more reorganisations than they care to remember. They are still there, getting their heads down and trying to provide a service for our constituents.

The hon. Member for Witham made an important point about the proportion of elderly people in our population. We do not have time to deal with that matter fully, but people are living longer and they are suffering from ailments such as Alzheimer’s and other things. Elderly people make up an increasing proportion of the population. A few weeks ago, I went to a nursing conference and a senior nurse said to me that, when she was on the wards, the mean age of elderly patients was about 80. The mean age of elderly patients is now 90 or 100. Elderly people now pose very different problems from those that the elderly posed a few years ago. It is important that we consider the question of how we secure high-quality care—I am reminded of that awful ombudsman report that was published a few weeks ago—how we pay for it and how health care interconnects with the issues of public health and social care. I hope that we will have a chance to return to those matters.

I remind the hon. Lady that, despite her letters to bureaucrats and her undoubted frustrations on behalf of her constituents, when my party left office, satisfaction with the health service was the highest it has ever been. Hon. Members can say that the population was deluded on that, but I do not think that that is correct. We are talking about massive MORI polls. People’s satisfaction was higher than ever. There had also been massive levels of investment, not least in Essex. She will be aware of the new unit at Colchester general hospital, which includes an updated children’s ward. It is fully open and operational, and that £20 million project marks the biggest investment in the hospital’s facilities since it opened in 1985.

Apart from general frustration with bureaucracy, there are specific issues in relation to health care in Essex that are worth mentioning in this short debate. The hon. Lady mentioned Broomfield hospital. She will be aware that, just a few weeks ago, it was highlighted that although the hospital takes more than £1 million a year in car parking charges, its car parks still lose money because it is spending £1.2 million on running costs, including on CCTV, attendants and capital investment—they must be extremely well paid attendants. We also know that the hospital’s move into its £148 million PFI wing was delayed twice before finally opening in late 2010. The opening day was pushed back because staff were trapped in faulty lifts. We also know that the same hospital spent £400,000 on art for its new wing, which was commissioned as part of the development and funded through PFI. PFI is expensive enough—we may debate that at another time. To spend the money on art, when we know how ridiculously expensive PFI can be, seems quite strange.

There have been all sorts of care warnings about hospitals in Essex, such as Queen’s hospital in Romford. We know that the Romford project will be the first of a number of pilot reviews of PFI contracts to see if the costs can be brought down, and anyone who cares about the health service must welcome that. We know that the Braintree community hospital has defended itself after paying out nearly £20 million in damages for clinical negligence. If we are focusing on bureaucracy, we have to focus on how those things happen. We know that the Southend University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, with which hon. Members will be familiar, has had to respond to concerns about safety, which were raised by the Care Quality Commission. We know that the West Essex primary care trust risks not being able to give an 18-week referral-to-treatment time. We know that NHS South West Essex has a very large overspend—its deficit has been improved, but it still has an overspend—in relation not to bureaucrats, but to acute hospital activity.

We also know, which I find alarming, that the Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is now trying to make savings by allowing waiting lists to extend. That implies a 14-week wait on first appointment, which is why an hon. Member on the Government side said that, when ordinary residents and voters are told that money on the health service is being ring-fenced, it rings rather hollow. Up and down the country, not just in Essex, they can see waiting times lengthening, and new hospitals and new health care facilities that have been promised being delayed. It is for the Government, who have made much of their protection of health care spending, to explain that. The real issue is this. The hon. Member for Witham spoke glowingly about the reforms, but sadly I have news for her. She seems to believe that those reforms will help with the issues that she has raised. As she would know, however, if she had followed the Health Committee, there is a real challenge involved in trying to introduce those reforms, whatever we think of them, while at the same trying to achieve unprecedented savings in health care. The Health Committee doubts whether that can be done.

No one argues with the notion that GPs could have a lot to offer in the commissioning of care, but as the president of the Royal College of General Practitioners has said, there are other ways to do that without subjecting the health service to a top-down reorganisation. I do not want to be unpleasant, but the Government promised, all through their time in opposition, that they would not subject the health service to any top-down reorganisations.

[Priti Patel]

Will the hon. Lady give way?

[Ms Abbott]

Time is against me, because I want to give the Minister plenty of time to respond. That is what we were promised—no more top-down reorganisations. As for waste of money, one problem with letting all those PCT bureaucrats go is that they have to be paid redundancy. The hon. Lady said that she hopes that they will not be paid big redundancy packages. I am afraid that they will be, and many will be re-employed. GPs will be less accountable to patients and the danger that many people, including GPs, see is that the big American health maintenance organisations will be able to get inside and act as commissioners for GPs, who, after all, joined the health service to heal and not to be managers.

I feel sorry for Government Back Benchers. They believe that the issues that they find so challenging about bureaucracy, cuts and patient accountability will be solved by the reorganisation. I can say with complete confidence that, if anything, the reorganisation, which is too fast and at the wrong time, will make those problems worse. It gives me no pleasure to say that, but anyone who has analysed the so-called reforms can see that they are a car crash in slow motion.