Health Bill

Vikki Slade Excerpts

2nd reading
Monday 1st June 2026 Commons Chamber

[James Murray]

I am going to make some progress, because, Madam Deputy Speaker, you have asked me and looked at me several times, suggesting that that is what I should do.

I mentioned the changes that the Bill makes to HSSIB and the CQC, but the functions of Healthwatch England—I spoke about that earlier—will move to a new patient experience directorate within the Department of Health and Social Care. The functions of local healthwatch groups will be incorporated into ICBs and local authorities. That approach brings the voices of patients closer to decision makers, so that people have a direct impact on the services they receive. Of course, the changes will neither fix everything at the stroke of a pen, nor take effect overnight, but rather than the voices of patients being kept at arm’s length, the Bill puts them where they should be: right at the heart of the NHS.

[Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)]

The Secretary of State has not talked about the role of the governors of hospital trusts, which also appear to be abolished by the Bill. With the creation of mega-ICBs, the removal of healthwatch, and the removal of governors, I am worried that the voice of the local community is reducing rather than increasing.

[James Murray]

The principle behind the changes to local healthwatch organisations is to bring the voice of patients closer to those who are planning and delivering services. Whether through ICBs or local authorities for health and care, it is an important principle to ensure that feedback is followed by action, and that people can have an influence on the design and delivery of health and social care at an earlier stage in the process.

Health Bill

Vikki Slade Excerpts

Report stage
Monday 7th September 2026 Commons Chamber

[Tom Gordon]

I completely agree with the hon. Gentleman. My hon. Friend the Member for Westmorland and Lonsdale (Tim Farron), who is not here, is campaigning tirelessly on radiotherapy and radiography. The point I was making about those health inequalities is that regions such as Yorkshire have a high incidence of cancer and of poorer outcomes, so we need to close that funding gap to close those inequalities.

New clauses 61 and 93, both in my name, pertain to NHS dentistry, and I have also added my name to and support many other new clauses. New clause 61 would have made sure that there is adequate provision of dental appointments in Harrogate and Knaresborough. Over the last two years in my constituency and across North Yorkshire as a whole, the number of people with access to an NHS dentist appointment is down from 50% to just 37%. When this arises in casework and at surgeries, the issue is often precipitated by those who work in A&E telling me traumatic stories of people reaching A&E as a result of emergency dental care or the lack of it. In particular, we have heard some harrowing stories from local children about their inability to focus in school. New clause 93 would require the Secretary of State to publish before Parliament a regular report on the state of NHS dentistry, including that unmet need, and also to pay particular attention to workforce capacity and distribution.

[Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)]

In Dorset, we have lost 44 dentists in the last five years, and there has not been a single new contract for 10 years. Is my hon. Friend suggesting that his new plan would reverse that by enabling us to see exactly where the gaps are in the system?