NHS: Agency Medical Staff Debate
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Lord Patel
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NHS: Agency Medical Staff
Lord Patel Excerpts(1 month, 1 week ago)
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Baroness Merron (Lab)
In the not-too-distant future, the mental health strategy will pull together all of the strands that the noble Baroness and her colleague are concerned with, and she is right to be concerned about them. In all these areas, patient safety comes first. That is the driver as to why we are reducing the use of agency. I agree that the end game in all of this is to increase the numbers of permanent staff, and the forthcoming workforce plan will support us in that.
Lord Patel (CB)
My Lords, can the Minister say in the spring of which year the workforce plan will be published?
Baroness Merron (Lab)
On the basis we have moved beyond spring of this year, I can say that, to ensure the workforce plan reflects the new Government we have, the Secretary of State and my colleague, Minister Karin Smyth MP, the responsible Minister, are working to ensure the workforce plan properly reflects the priorities —so I hope we will not be keeping your Lordships’ House or the noble Lord waiting for too long.