Oral Answers to Questions

Luke Taylor Excerpts

Wednesday 1st July 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

Our commitment to space in the defence investment plan reflects how we are preparing our armed forces for the conflicts of the future. When I see apprentices working in our defence industries, I see this investment creating more opportunities in many constituencies, including in my hon. Friend’s. It underlines exactly what our investment delivers: 60,000 new jobs, investing in British skills, promoting our brilliant industries abroad and driving growth in the UK.

[Luke Taylor (Sutton and Cheam) (LD)]

Q10. On Monday, with colleagues, I wrote to the Health Minister following the news that women’s health and maternity services may be relocated away from St Helier hospital due to building safety concerns. Yesterday we heard Baroness Amos’s review state: “Poorly maintained buildings…affect how safe people feel, how effectively staff can work, and whether care can be delivered in a way that is private, respectful and reliable.”It has been reported today that the Department of Health and Social Care’s capital budget will be cut by more than half a billion pounds over this Parliament to fund the DIP, which puts the new hospital programme timeline in doubt. Will the Prime Minister arrange for the Health Secretary to visit St Helier hospital with me to see its condition and hopefully agree to bring forward the build of the new Sutton specialist emergency care hospital—build it today, not in 2034—to ensure safe and modern healthcare and maternity facilities for my constituents?

[The Prime Minister]

In relation to the hon. Gentleman’s hospital, he knows that those decisions are taken at a local level, based on expert advice. We are committed to prioritising women’s health as we reform the NHS, including through our women’s health strategy. In his area alone we are investing £57 million to transform care. That is money we provided at the Budget. He actually voted against it, along with the rest of the Lib Dems. They cannot complain about the lack of investment and then, when we put the money forward, vote against it. That, again, is very Lib Dem.