Francis Report: Update and Response

Glyn Davies Excerpts

Wednesday 11th February 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hunt]

I know geography is a big issue, and the driving distance between Morecambe bay and Lancaster is a big challenge for the trust. I will look closely at that report, and I think Members in all parts of this House would welcome a commitment to avoiding scaremongering about local hospital services in the run-up to the election.

[Glyn Davies (Montgomeryshire) (Con)]

I represent a constituency in Wales, and look with some envy at the commitment to openness and transparency on both sides of this Chamber, and indeed the commitment to transparency and openness throughout the NHS in England following the Francis report and the Keogh review. What discussions can my right hon. Friend initiate, perhaps with the Opposition, to introduce the same level of transparency and openness in Wales so that my constituents in Montgomeryshire can also benefit?

[Mr Hunt]

I think it is very simple—there is a lot of agreement between us about what needs to happen. I recognise that the shadow Secretary of State is not personally responsible for what happens in Wales, but his party is, and a Keogh review of high mortality hospitals, a chief inspector of hospitals for Wales and a commitment to the whistleblowing measures announced today would do a lot to allay the concerns of my hon. Friend’s constituents that the lessons about openness are not being learned across the border.