Oral Answers to Questions

John Bercow Excerpts

Tuesday 8th May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

Order. It is very good to welcome back to the Chamber the right hon. Member for Leicester East (Keith Vaz).

[Keith Vaz (Leicester East) (Lab)]

3. Whether he plans to include information on mental health in the national diabetes audit.

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

Some young people are mothers and do have mental health problems, upon which important matter the hon. Member for Faversham and Mid Kent (Helen Whately) has Question 19, which, sadly, will not be reached. If she wishes to give the House the benefit of her thoughts now, she is most welcome to do so, but it is not obligatory. [Interruption.] We will get her in later.

[Wera Hobhouse (Bath) (LD)]

Given that children of mothers with perinatal health problems are at much higher risk of developing mental health problems themselves, why does the Government’s Green Paper on mental health not address prevention in respect of perinatal health?

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

I call Karen Lee. No? The hon. Lady is a most confusing individual.

[Karen Lee (Lincoln) (Lab)]

I wanted to ask a supplementary to the question about Boston.

[Mr Speaker]

Oh, well, blurt it out.

[Karen Lee (Lincoln) (Lab)]

23. Lincoln’s walk-in centre closed a few weeks ago and Boston’s paediatric department is threatened with closure. Does the Minister agree that cuts and privatisation in our NHS are damaging staff recruitment, retention and morale? [Interruption.] Ministers can shake their heads, but it is true: there are not enough doctors at Boston, which affects A&E and wider care delivery.

--- Later in debate ---

[Steve Brine]

That goes to the heart of why we are reforming the dental contracts. Our 73 high street dental practices are continuing to test the preventive focused clinical approach to a new remuneration practice. [Interruption.] Someone on the Opposition Front Bench has just said “when” from a sedentary position. It will be when we have got it right.

[Mr Speaker]

The hon. Member for Tonbridge and Malling (Tom Tugendhat) has beetled into the Chamber like a perspiring postman just in time. It is very good to see the fellow.

[Tom Tugendhat (Tonbridge and Malling) (Con)]

11. What steps he is taking to increase the capacity and availability of GP services.

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

I call Eddie Hughes. Get in there, man.

[Eddie Hughes (Walsall North) (Con)]

T9. I hope the Minister will join me in congratulating the mayor of Walsall, Marco Longhi, whose mayoralty has raised a significant sum to support WPH Counselling and Education Services, which provides adolescent mental care and counselling in Walsall.

--- Later in debate ---

[Jackie Doyle-Price]

I thank my hon. Friend for her question and her continued industry on these matters. As she mentioned, the Green Paper outlined plans to set up a new national strategic partnership focused on improving the mental health of 16 to 25-year-olds. That partnership is likely to support and build on sector-led initiatives in higher education, such as Universities UK’s #stepchange project, whose launch I attended in September. The strategy calls on higher education leaders to adopt mental health as a strategic priority, to take a whole-university approach to mental health and to embed it across policies, courses and practices. [Interruption.]

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The hon. Member for Wigan (Lisa Nandy) need not worry; her Zebedee-like qualities will always make her visible. I am saving her for later. We will hear from her shortly.

[Keith Vaz (Leicester East) (Lab)]

T4. There is a clear connection between obesity and type 2 diabetes. Will the Secretary of State confirm that that issue will be addressed in the national diabetes prevention programme?

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

Patience rewarded. I call Thelma Walker.

[Thelma Walker (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

Does the Minister agree that eating a nutritionally balanced meal can reduce snacking between meals and therefore help to reduce childhood obesity? If so, will he speak to his colleagues in the Department for Education and ask them to ensure that the 6,400 children in Kirklees who are set to lose out on a well balance nutritious free school meal do not?

--- Later in debate ---

[Steve Brine]

The pharmacy integration fund is a great success. It needed to be ramped up and it is being ramped up. Pharmacists, working within general practice, are making a great difference to the multidisciplinary team within primary care.

[Mr Speaker]

I feel sure that “ramped up” is the technical term.

[Chris Elmore (Ogmore) (Lab)]

The Secretary of State will be aware that the hon. Member for Hazel Grove (Mr Wragg) and I set up an all-party group on the impact of social media on the mental health of children. With all the work the Secretary of State has done to date on that, I wonder whether he and his ministerial team will agree to engage with the all-party group’s inquiry and look at how we find solutions to these problems, including mental health.

[Mr Hunt]

I would be delighted to do so.

[Mr Speaker]

Splendid. I call Chris Skidmore.

[Chris Skidmore (Kingswood) (Con)]

Several of my constituents have contacted me to welcome the Government’s recent announcement of additional investment for prostate cancer funding. Will the Minister update the House on what the money is and what it will be spent on?

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Mr Speaker]

I have been enjoying listening to my colleagues so much that I inadvertently lost track of time, but it seems only right that the final question should go to the Chair of the Health Committee—I call Dr Sarah Wollaston.

[Dr Sarah Wollaston (Totnes) (Con)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. Will the Secretary of State commit to publishing the progress report on sugar reduction and the next steps strategy on the reformulation programme, so that the Health Committee can examine that when Public Health England appears before us on 22 May?