Oral Answers to Questions

Catherine West Excerpts

Wednesday 15th June 2016 Commons Chamber

[Catherine West (Hornsey and Wood Green) (Lab)]

The North Middlesex hospital accident and emergency unit is in complete meltdown. Will the Prime Minister commit to taking swift action to tackle this crisis?

[The Prime Minister]

I understand that this is a very busy accident and emergency unit: it received more than 13,600 patients through its doors in April alone. It manages, however, to carry out 40,000 operations and more than 62,000 diagnostic tests every year, and since 2010 the trust has recruited 120 more doctors and 280 more nurses, but the Health Secretary will continue to monitor the matter closely. This brings us back, however, to the core argument today: if we remain in, we will have a stronger economy, and then, yes, we will have to take the proceeds of that growth and continue to put them into the NHS, as I have always done as Prime Minister.

Oral Answers to Questions

Catherine West Excerpts

Wednesday 1st July 2015 Commons Chamber

[Catherine West (Hornsey and Wood Green) (Lab)]

2. What funding is provided to local authorities with low rates of voter registration to improve rates.

[The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Mr Oliver Letwin)]

May I begin by wishing the hon. Member for Caerphilly (Wayne David), who is sitting on the Opposition Front Bench, many happy returns on his birthday?

In answer to the question, as well as giving more than £50 million to enable local authorities to carry forward the individual electoral registration system, we have also given more than £10 million to enable them to take proactive steps to increase voter registration.

[Catherine West]

What actions will be taken against local authorities that have coasting rates of registration—those that have registered fewer than 98% of eligible voters?

[Mr Letwin]

I am happy to tell the hon. Lady that the Minister for constitutional reform—my hon. Friend the Member for Weston-super-Mare (John Penrose)—is proactively stepping in to try to ensure that those local authorities do take further action. The Electoral Commission has also reported on this, and we are keen to see that every local authority ensures right away that it no longer has large groups of people who are unregistered and that it cleans its register.