Health and Social Care Committee

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Thursday 28th February 2019 Westminster Hall

[Dr Williams]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his advice and input at the start of the inquiry, and for the work that he has done as the chair of the all-party group, which is about the first 1,001 days—what is a day between friends? The economic case is exceptionally strong, and I am sure that the Minister has heard him make it eloquently. We all need to work together to make sure that we put the case to the Treasury. Ultimately, those spending decisions will have to be made in the comprehensive spending review; that feels like an opportune time.

The hon. Gentleman suggested that we ensure that there is a timeframe, that the commitment is not open-ended, and that local authorities have plans within a short time. We learned in our inquiry that local authorities are often left to just get on with it. The Committee felt that there was a need for much more central control and measurement, and for more accountability by central Government.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I congratulate the hon. Member for Stockton South (Dr Williams) on setting the scene so very well, and I thank the Chair of the Committee, the hon. Member for Totnes (Dr Wollaston), and the other members of the Committee for all that they have done to produce what I regard as a very helpful and significant publication.

The Government do not provide financial or practical help for parents of multiples. That needs to change. If someone is blessed with twins, triplets or more, they are on their own. What consideration did the Committee give to addressing this issue, as we have many concerns in this Chamber about the two-child tax credit limit?

Secondly, each year thousands of parents are forced to go back to work when their baby is still critically ill, as provisions for maternity and paternity leave are inadequate. Again, what consideration did the Committee give to combating this? It is not unreasonable to extend statutory leave and pay for parents whose baby is admitted to neonatal care by a week for every week that their baby stays in hospital. I will just explain that, because I may have rushed through it as quickly as I can, in my usual quick way. The parent of a baby who is premature, and whose peers at four months are rolling over, will be told by a health visitor not to worry, as their baby is not considered to be four months old. However, the fact is that when it comes to wages and money, that baby is considered to be that age, and the cost is £2,256 per family, so there is a financial strain.

Thirdly and lastly, nearly three quarters of multiple birth families get no discount on their childcare costs, and for triplets those costs can be as high as £2,500 per month. It is quite clear that that is not sustainable; unfortunately, it usually rings the death knell for someone’s career. What consideration was given to that issue in this report?

[Dr Williams]

I thank the hon. Member for so eloquently making the case on an issue that we did not look at specifically in the report; we did not look at multiple-child families. However, we made some comments in a more general way.

I will make two points in response. The first is that providing services to families is not enough. The whole environment in which they live, including the poverty that many families find themselves living in, is probably as important as the provision of services. The second point, which we make in the report, is that we should consider the impact on the early years in all policies as a principle—as a “health in all policies” principle—and we should particularly consider the impact of all policies on the developing brain of children. We state that very clearly as a recommendation in our report.