Business of the House

Debate between Lisa Smart and Alan Campbell

Thursday 25th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I certainly pay tribute to Doncaster Rovers for everything that they do, and to other clubs that play an important role in their community. If clubs need to step up a little, I encourage them to look at what Doncaster Rovers are doing. It is not just about what happens on the pitch; it is about the work that they do in the wider community.

[Lisa Smart (Hazel Grove) (LD)]

Some of my youngest constituents have been in touch with me to say that they are really worried about being split up from their friends in their class. They go to Woodley primary school, which faces stretched budgets and a lowering birth rate, so the school is moving to mixed-age classes. Could we have a statement from the Department for Education about Government support for schools moving to mixed-age classes, so that I can raise the concerns of my youngest constituents, who are really worried about what is coming for them in September?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

Many schools, not just those in the hon. Lady’s constituency, are having to come to terms with the falling birth rate and how best to organise services, and it is not an easy thing to do. Should she seek a Westminster Hall debate or an Adjournment debate on the subject, she might hear directly from the relevant Minister about how best the Government can help.

Business of the House

Debate between Lisa Smart and Alan Campbell

Thursday 18th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Lisa Smart (Hazel Grove) (LD)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. It is a pleasure to be here for business questions once again, subbing for my hon. Friend the Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Bobby Dean).

Last week the NHS published the first ever official figures on corridor care, which ripped off the plaster and revealed a scandal that many of us have seen at first hand. In one month, patients across the country were treated in corridors at least 69,000 times, and that is with major trusts such as Birmingham failing to share their figures. The practice has become dangerously normalised across our NHS. We on the Lib Dem Benches believe that amounts to serious and continual negligence, and Ministers should be held to account before a corridor care tribunal of patients, bereaved families and frontline NHS staff.

Behind every one of those numbers is an NHS trust or a hospital starved of resources and capital funds, and a social care system in crisis that leaves hospitals full of people who cannot leave, despite being desperate to do so, because the care package they need is not available. Meanwhile, A&E waiting rooms are heaving with patients waiting to be seen. Nowhere is the crumbling estate behind this crisis clearer than at Stepping Hill hospital in my patch, with its growing £134 million repair backlog. There have been collapsing ceilings, leaking roofs that forced the temporary closure of the intensive care unit, and times when just four of the 14 lifts were working, meaning that anyone using a wheelchair was unable to visit a higher-floor ward and that patients were carried up and down stairs in scoops.

Will the Government therefore make time for an urgent debate on the corridor care crisis and the state of the NHS estate to ensure that patients, including those in my Hazel Grove constituency, are no longer treated in corridors, or left waiting in them for hours for the treatment they deserve?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

Let me be clear: no one should receive care in a corridor. The situation we inherited is unacceptable and undignified, and we are determined to end it. That is why, for the first time, we are publishing the data to show where problems are greatest and to ensure that trusts get the support they need. We are also taking action, investing £450 million to expand urgent and emergency care services. Although there is still a way to go, ambulance response times are now the fastest they have been in five years. The hon. Lady asked for a debate. The Health Bill has just gone into Committee— I think its first sitting is today—so I am sure there will be ample opportunity, both in Committee and when the Bill returns to this House, to debate the matters she raises.

Business of the House

Debate between Lisa Smart and Alan Campbell

Thursday 23rd April 2026 Commons Chamber

[Lisa Smart (Hazel Grove) (LD)]

I am here subbing for my hon. Friend the Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Bobby Dean), who, as has already been mentioned, welcomed his new daughter late last Thursday. I am very pleased to tell the House that mum Gemma and baby Lyla are both doing very well indeed.

Yesterday, the Public Accounts Committee published a report that raises serious concerns about the resilience of the new hospital programme. This project has already been riddled with delays and spiralling costs, and it now faces further risk from a volatile global economy. The Office for National Statistics inflation figures, which were also released yesterday, add to the concerns, as they confirm what many feared: “Trumpflation” is having an effect on our economy. UK prices rose by 3.3% in the 12 months to March, driven largely by the biggest increase in fuel costs for over three years—a direct consequence of Trump’s reckless war in Iran and the effective closure of the strait of Hormuz.

Capital infrastructure projects, such as the new hospital programme, are acutely vulnerable to exactly that kind of supply disruption and inflationary pressure. In my area, Stepping Hill hospital already faces a £130 million repair backlog, crumbling buildings, flooded corridors and years of broken promises. Will the Government make time for a debate on the impact of global economic instability on UK investment and public infrastructure, and on their plan to ensure that patients, including those depending on hospitals such as Stepping Hill, are not left waiting even longer for the facilities they need?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

Let me repeat my best wishes to Gemma and Lyla.

The previous Government’s ambition to deliver 40 new hospitals by 2030 was not achievable; neither was it funded properly. We have conducted a review of the programme and, alongside the record £13.6 billion of capital investment in the NHS last year, we have put the new hospital programme on a sustainable footing and a more realistic timetable. We are keeping delivery on track, responding to changes in healthcare needs, and working closely with the relevant NHS trusts to accelerate progress wherever possible, but the hon. Lady is right to remind us of the potential economic fallout from the volatile international situation.

The Chancellor updated the House earlier this week on the Government’s response to events in the middle east, because the war in Iran will come at a cost. However, the Government have had the right economic plan to keep costs down and, at the same time, to invest in public services, and we will continue to do so. I except that as the situation unfolds, the Chancellor will want to keep the House updated.

Business of the House

Debate between Lisa Smart and Alan Campbell

Thursday 16th April 2026 Commons Chamber

[Lisa Smart (Hazel Grove) (LD)]

Next week sees the funeral of my constituent Bob Humphrey-Taylor. Bob was a pillar of our community, and the driving force behind so many projects across Mellor and Marple, especially those with links to our industrial heritage. He was often dressed as the 18th-century industrialist Samuel Oldknow, and he was the owner of the most remarkable moustache I have ever seen out in the wild. He was a champion of our campaign to seek world heritage site status for our canals, our famous lock flight, and England’s highest aqueduct. May we have a debate in Government time, setting us up for the next round of world heritage site applications? That would be a fitting legacy for Bob and all those who have done so much in my community to celebrate our industrial heritage.

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I join the hon. Lady in paying tribute to Mr Humphrey-Taylor and everyone involved in the work that she talked about. These people are the backbone of our community and we rightly celebrate our industrial heritage, which is so important. I will write to the Secretary of State and find out what the plan is going forward, and I will ensure that the hon. Lady is updated.

Business of the House

Debate between Lisa Smart and Alan Campbell

Thursday 5th March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising the important work of our armed forces. I absolutely join her in wishing all the very best to Stanley and all those involved in the “March in March” fundraiser, and I thank them. We are committed to supporting our brave veterans, and I thank all service personnel, past and present, for their service, as well as everyone involved with the cadets. We are putting greater emphasis on cadets, who do such an important job across our communities.

[Lisa Smart (Hazel Grove) (LD)]

Torkington Park, in my Hazel Grove constituency, is a beautiful place to spend time, but many of my constituents have been contacting me recently with concerns about raw sewage in the stream. They are really concerned about their children and their pets playing in there, and it appears that it is all down to dodgy connections from some housing that has been built going directly into the stream. Can we have a debate in Government time to flush out these issues across our constituencies, and to hold the Environment Agency, the water companies and housing developers properly to account?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I invite the hon. Lady to seek an Adjournment debate because, as she has pointed out, these are often multifaceted problems. Should she be able to secure that, she will be able to set out her case in more detail.

Business of the House

Debate between Lisa Smart and Alan Campbell

Thursday 4th December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I join my hon. Friend in thanking the parliamentary education team for the work they do, not just during UK Parliament Week but throughout the year. It is important that schools like Leasowes can visit this place and see democracy at work. The educational travel subsidy, which is part of this matter and was raised by the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) last week, will be considered at the House of Commons Commission meeting on Monday.

[Lisa Smart (Hazel Grove) (LD)]

I am sure that the Leader of the House shares my alarm at the most recent stats from the Office for National Statistics showing that suicide rates are at their highest since the turn of the century, which bears out what I am hearing from my local mental health trust. Might he have a conversation with a Health Minister and encourage them to come to the Dispatch Box to update the House on the Government’s approach to suicide prevention and, in particular, what more can be done to support the work of those at the coalface, such as the wonderful Stockport Samaritans, as they undertake their lifesaving work?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

I am happy to thank not just Stockport Samaritans, but Samaritans across the country for the fantastic and very difficult work that they do. The question of suicide has been raised frequently in business questions, and it is certainly a key part of the Government’s recently announced men’s health strategy, because, if I am correct, suicide remains the biggest killer of men under 50. I will draw the hon. Lady’s point to the attention of Health Ministers; should she seek a meeting with them further to explore this matter, we will see what we can do.