Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jeremy Hunt and Julian Sturdy

Tuesday 13th January 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hunt]

I am aware of the problems with that deal, signed back in 2005, which is now consuming 17% of the trust’s income. It would like to spend that income on more doctors and nurses, but it cannot because of the shockingly bad deal signed. I would be happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss what is possible in the current circumstances.

[Julian Sturdy]

There are many causes of the pressure on A and E, and in more rural areas direct access to services can be difficult and costly. As such, will the Secretary of State consider investing further money in new technologies that could drive a revolution in health care facilities, and if such opportunities present themselves, may I promote York and north Yorkshire as an ideal testing ground for these technologies, given its ageing population and rurality?

[Mr Hunt]

I remember my hon. Friend’s campaigning on superfast broadband in north Yorkshire from my last portfolio. He is absolutely right that technology has a big role to play. That is why a year and a half ago the Prime Minister announced plans to expand weekend and evening GP appointments through the use of technology, which is already helping 5.5 million people and by March will be helping 7.5 million people. We must absolutely consider this as a solution.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jeremy Hunt and Julian Sturdy

Tuesday 25th February 2014 Commons Chamber

[Julian Sturdy (York Outer) (Con)]

T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.

[The Secretary of State for Health (Mr Jeremy Hunt)]

I would like to thank Public Health England and the NHS emergency services for their extraordinary work during the recent floods, and say that this House is proud of their dedication and commitment to help those in great need. Since the previous Health questions, we have also had the first anniversary of the Francis report on Mid Staffs. As a result, I am proud that the Government have taken significant steps to restore compassionate care to all parts of our NHS, with a regulator now free from political interference, failing hospitals being turned round, and more nurses, midwives and health visitors in our NHS than at any time since 1948.

[Julian Sturdy]

The family of my eight-year-old constituent Ben Foy have been fighting for more than two years for the funding of sodium oxybate—a drug that his doctors feel could help him cope with narcolepsy and cataplexy. This is a particularly distressing condition for Ben and his family, but sadly, after all this time there is still complete confusion as to who has responsibility for Ben’s commissioning request. Will the Secretary of State look into the matter and clear up that confusion?

[Mr Hunt]

I reassure my hon. Friend that I have looked into Ben Foy’s case, and NHS England has confirmed that it is responsible for commissioning his care. The particular drug that my hon. Friend mentioned is not recommended by the manufacturer for use by children and adolescents, but I am happy to arrange for him to meet NHS England and get to the bottom of the issue.

Children’s Heart Surgery

Debate between Jeremy Hunt and Julian Sturdy

Wednesday 12th June 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hunt]

I thank my hon. Friend, and I am sure that that lesson will be learned.

[Julian Sturdy (York Outer) (Con)]

I very much welcome the Secretary of State’s statement, as will concerned families across my constituency of York Outer, and across the county of Yorkshire. Will he ensure that the new review recognises that units where paediatric and maternity services are located on a single site offer the optimal patient experience?

[Mr Hunt]

I think we need to be guided by the clinical evidence in that respect, but I urge my hon. Friend and his constituents, if they have a strong representation to make in that respect, to make it to the review when it re-proceeds.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jeremy Hunt and Julian Sturdy

Tuesday 11th June 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hunt]

The right hon. Gentleman really cannot have it both ways. The budget for public health is also decided by an independent body, and we gave everyone a real-terms increase and then used any remaining money to even out the differences, to get everyone as close as possible to the independent formula. But if we are talking about spending, I think the right hon. Gentleman needs to say precisely whether he stands by his assertion that Governments should cut spending on the NHS by £600 million—[Interruption.] He says he has never said it before, but actually, up till now he has always said that it was irresponsible for the Government to increase spending in real terms. We have increased it; we have increased it by £600 million. He needs to come clean on whether he still wants to cut the NHS budget.

[Julian Sturdy (York Outer) (Con)]

Given that age is the main driver for an individual’s health care needs, why has not age been given more weighting in the funding formula in the past? I urge the Secretary of State to request NHS England to give as much weighting as possible to age in any future funding formula.

[Mr Hunt]

I recognise that my hon. Friend has campaigned on that issue a great deal, and I have great sympathy, because areas with high age profiles do have much greater needs for the NHS. That obviously must be weighted against things like social deprivation, which also have an impact. It is right for these things to be decided independently, which they are. The question is how we get closest to those independent allocations, and I know that that is preoccupying NHS England at the moment.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jeremy Hunt and Julian Sturdy

Tuesday 26th February 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hunt]

My hon. Friend makes an important point, and he will be pleased to learn that the Government are more than doubling the amount of money that we put into dementia research. We need to catalyse the private sector companies because although they know that the size of their potential market of people with dementia is huge, they have been frustrated in their attempts to find the breakthrough medicine that we urgently need. We need to use the research to excite their interest and keep them focused on this truly tragic disease.

[Julian Sturdy (York Outer) (Con)]

8. What steps his Department plans to take to improve dementia diagnosis rates and to reduce regional variations in such diagnoses.

[The Secretary of State for Health (Mr Jeremy Hunt)]

There are unacceptable variations in the level of dementia diagnosis across the country, and we are committed to driving significant improvements. We have asked local areas, through the NHS mandate, to make measurable progress in improving dementia diagnosis over the next two years.

[Julian Sturdy]

In North Yorkshire and York, only 43% of those suffering from dementia receive a diagnosis. Given the ageing population in the county, that means that about 7,000 people with dementia remain undiagnosed. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the clinical commissioning groups have a large role to play in the delivery of dementia services, and will he tell us what support those groups will get?

[Mr Hunt]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. It is a tragedy for those 7,000 people and their families that they are not getting a diagnosis. With a diagnosis, medicines and drugs could have a big impact and stave off the condition for between one in three and one in four people, and support services could also be put in place for carers. We need a massive transformation, and we need to make it much easier for people to get a diagnosis. We need much better understanding among GPs, as I mentioned earlier, and among hospitals as well, given that 25% of all in-patients have dementia.