Oral Answers to Questions

John Bercow Excerpts

Tuesday 10th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[The Secretary of State for Health (Mr Jeremy Hunt)]

rose—

[Mr Speaker]

Go ahead.

[Mr Hunt]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. I like to wait until you give me the word.

[Mr Speaker]

If the Secretary of State needs encouragement I am happy to give it to him.

[Mr Hunt]

I am most grateful for any encouragement I can get.

The NHS needs to change its culture to be much more open to whistleblowers. That is why we have banned gagging orders in contracts and funded a whistleblowing helpline and website, and why we are working with brave whistleblowers, such as Helene Donnelly from Mid Staffs, to reform the training of NHS clinicians to make it easier.

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[Dr Poulter]

I am afraid that the distance between the real world out there for patients and the Labour Government’s record is very clear. Under the Labour Government’s record on general practice, 20% of patients were routinely unable to get a GP appointment within 48 hours, and a quarter of patients who wanted to book an appointment more than 48 hours in advance could not get one. That was what happened under Labour; that is Labour’s commitment to general practice and GP patients. Under this Government, we are making sure that there is equality of finance per patient according to patient need, and that is how health care decisions should be made.

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I encourage the Minister to learn to provide more succinct answers. They are always too long.

[Stuart Andrew (Pudsey) (Con)]

12. What the planned timetable is for his Department’s congenital heart disease review.

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[Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley) (Con)]

T3. The fears of the people of the Ribble valley that the old Clitheroe hospital would be closed and not replaced were allayed when the new hospital was built. It recently opened with 32 in-patient beds, radiology, diagnostics and other facilities. Will the Secretary of State come to Clitheroe to have a look at this brand-spanking-new hospital, which is being welcomed by the local community, and to say thank you to the staff there for all they do? If he does so, I promise to take him for a pint of healthy real ale afterwards in the Campaign for Real Ale pub of the year in Pendleton in the Ribble valley, to celebrate the opening of the new hospital.

[Mr Speaker]

What a generous fellow the hon. Gentleman is!

[Mr Hunt]

Well, I must say that that sounds like a pretty irresistible offer, and I will give it careful consideration. Local community hospitals have an important role to play in our NHS because of the high standard of compassionate care that they deliver, and because they are easy for relatives to get to. I am delighted to see my hon. Friend campaigning for his local hospital, and delighted that it is doing so well.

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[Several hon. Members]

rose—

[Mr Speaker]

Order. We are very pressed for time, but I want to accommodate a couple of remaining colleagues.

[Barry Gardiner (Brent North) (Lab)]

I am grateful, Mr Speaker. In Brent we have the highest incidence of TB and of type 2 diabetes in the country. We have just received a cut of £450 million in the money allocated to the CCG. The Secretary of State says that this is fair, but my constituents want to know whether it is in accordance with need.

[Jane Ellison]

The hon. Gentleman is right to draw attention to the problem of TB in London. As a London Member myself, I know what he is talking about. I encourage him to participate in the current consultation on Public Health England’s comprehensive TB strategy. It is a very important document which marks a step change in the way we confront the problem. That will help us to allocate resources to need and to address serious problems.

[Mr Speaker]

Last but not least, I call Sir Kevin Barron.

[Kevin Barron (Rother Valley) (Lab)]

Will the Minister give us an update on the proposed licensing of e-cigarettes by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency? Does her Department believe that e-cigarettes could be used in smoking cessation programmes?