Richard Burgon
Main Page: Richard Burgon (Labour - Leeds East)Department Debates - View all Richard Burgon's debates with the Department of Health and Social Care
(1 day, 15 hours ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
John Milne
I thank my hon. Friend and fellow Sussex MP for her intervention, and I very much agree with her. Donna is a midwife herself, and she has been personally involved with the families in Sussex.
Richard Burgon (Leeds East) (Lab)
The points that the hon. Member is making about the choice of people to oversee the review or inquiry reflect the points made to me by two of my constituents, Amarjit and Mandip, who would have their daughter with them today were it not for failures at the Leeds general infirmary. The point they made to me is that they want any review or inquiry to be clearly and demonstrably independent from the people who had a role in running the Leeds teaching hospitals NHS trust in the past. Does he agree with me and my constituents on this point, and does he share my hope and trust that the Secretary of State will weigh that request very heavily before he meets the families?
John Milne
I thank the hon. Member for his intervention, and yes, that sounds like a very similar situation. As I have said, this is all about trust.
I understand that concerns have been raised about Donna’s workload and the risk of relying too heavily on one person, but Donna has indicated that she is willing to participate. I am sure that she would not say so unless she were confident that she could give this task the care and attention it needs. Unless we restore trust, we risk further harm, further delays and further grief, which none of us wishes to see.