NHS and Social Care Commission

Debate between Helen Whately and Caroline Flint

Thursday 28th January 2016 Commons Chamber

[Helen Whately]

The public would rather be given a choice. We will have a debate about Europe in the run-up to the forthcoming referendum, which voters voted for in the election. We should respect voters and put choices to them on which they can take a view.

[Caroline Flint]

I understand some of the hon. Lady’s points and have heard contributions about all aspects of health this afternoon. The central point of the motion is funding. The truth is that no political party in the past 40 or 50 years has put before the electorate a clear framework of what the state will pay out of the pooled funding we get from national insurance and income tax, and what people will add on top based on their income or assets to fund the future of social care. We have never had that proposition because it is not within the mix of a general election. In the bustle and the back and forth, a debate on that has not been allowed to happen. We, as politicians, are to blame.

[Helen Whately]

I agree with the right hon. Lady that it is difficult in our election cycle to think further ahead, but it is not impossible. During the last Parliament, the NHS came up with the “Five Year Forward View”, which at the time was supported by all major political parties. With that experience behind us, it is possible to go ahead and come up with further long-term views. As I said, a debate, rather than aiming for a consensus, would be helpful. That is exactly the sort of thing that think-tanks, researchers and all sorts of organisations can, are and should look into.

I want to highlight the fact that this issue is political. The right hon. Member for North Norfolk mentioned an organisation called NHS Survival. I saw on its website that lots of clinicians are involved with it. It is fabulous that clinicians are involved in this discussion about the future of the NHS. That said, the founder of the organisation was also, according to its website, the person who initiated a petition calling on the Secretary of State for Health to resign. The right hon. Gentleman called on NHS Survival as an example of a body lobbying for a commission, but it is clearly very political. There is no way of taking the politics out of this.