National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation

Debate between James Murray and Layla Moran

Tuesday 30th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)]

I call the Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee.

[Layla Moran (Oxford West and Abingdon) (LD)]

I, too, thank Baroness Amos, her team and, most especially, the families who so bravely gave the evidence that has formed this report. Further to the conversation about accountability, the Secretary of State will have noticed that some families are concerned that the commissioner is just one person, and that there is too much for them to do. Can he make clear that the buck stops with him and, indeed, the PM, and that he will not let go of this? The commissioner will report every six months to the Health and Social Care Committee—we welcome that—and once a year to Parliament. Further to that, will he personally commit that the Secretary of State will seek permission from Mr Speaker to make a statement to the House once a year, so that they can be held personally accountable for the progress made too?

[James Murray]

In describing the role of the commissioner, the hon. Lady is right to emphasise that it cannot all be on one person. The commissioner is a vital role, and it being on a statutory basis will give the position real weight within the system to hold the system to account and help the Government to ensure the implementation of the comprehensive national action plan. But she is right to say that accountability has to include the Secretary of State and the Prime Minister, because it is a duty that we all hold as MPs, that the Government hold and that I hold as Secretary of State, and the Prime Minister ultimately holds that responsibility too.

It is not in any sense intended to be a passing of responsibility to a commissioner. The commissioner role is being established to support the effectiveness of the work we are seeking to do as a Government to implement the national action plan, but crucially, when accountable politicians are taking decisions, the commissioner will be a voice for women in the system. I have heard so many times that women’s voices are not being heard in the healthcare system, particularly when things go wrong and women have concerns in maternity services. This commissioner will be a way of making sure those voices are right at the heart of decision making.

Nottingham Maternity and Neonatal Services

Debate between James Murray and Layla Moran

Wednesday 24th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

I call the Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee.

[Layla Moran (Oxford West and Abingdon) (LD)]

I, too, pay tribute to those families who came forward with their stories, but also to the thousands, if not tens of thousands, of families across the country who are hearing these stories today and are triggered because it reminds them of their own, including in my area in Oxfordshire.

What struck me most about the report was the section on leadership and culture, and how when midwives and members of staff raised the alarm, they did not have access to the board, and board members were not curious enough to ask the right questions. I am also struck that in the Secretary of State’s answers—he is right to point to the national recommendations that are yet to come; our understanding is they are coming next week—he failed to mention whether there will be any pot of money to ensure that any recommendations that need double-running in order to happen quickly will have the necessary resources. Can he assure the House not only that will his taskforce seek to implement these recommendations, but that he will ensure that the money exists for staffing, training and buildings so that they are implemented as quickly as possible, so that we do not have to sit here crying on these Benches on behalf of our constituents any more?

[James Murray]

I thank the hon. Lady for her comments. She speaks about funding, which is of course a very important part of the response that we need to have to the failings in maternity care. We are investing £25 million, as I am sure she is aware, in tackling the causes of maternal death, to enhance bereavement facilities and to improve triage facilities, as well as £145 million through the estates safety fund to address safety risks in the maternity and neonatal estate. For me, this is not just about funding; this is also about culture, exactly as she says. When there is a culture of mothers and midwives not being listened to, and of the board, in this case, commissioning reviews and then ignoring them, that is where the problem lies. That is what we need to change. There is no single lever we can pull, no single change we need to make; we need to ensure that, from top to bottom, maternity services are overhauled in order to be fit for the future.

Pathways Study: Puberty Suppression

Debate between James Murray and Layla Moran

Monday 22nd June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)]

I call the Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee.

[Layla Moran (Oxford West and Abingdon) (LD)]

I welcome the statement and this approach. I thank the MHRA for engaging with the Committee when we asked it specific questions about this. It told us that the role of the regulator is to ensure that participants in any clinical trial are kept safe and are exposed to medicine only if there is a reasonable expectation of a positive effect, and that is what was foremost in its mind. It also reassured us that if it had not felt 100% assured, it would have not allowed the trial to go forward.

There was a lot of disquiet about the iterative process that the trial has gone through—that it was stopped, paused and then started again. Could the Secretary of State outline for the House how usual or unusual that is? What support can the NHS offer those families who might have hoped to be part of the trail but now find themselves excluded from it?

[James Murray]

I am sure that the hon. Lady will agree that this is now one of the most heavily scrutinised clinical trials in this country in recent history, and rightly so—it is right that it is so heavily scrutinised and that we all seek assurances about the safeguards in place. It is right that, as Health Secretary, I made sure that I got those detailed safeguards before coming to the House to set out the Government’s position today.

The hon. Lady asked how usual it is for the MHRA to work with the sponsors of trials. My understanding is that the MHRA routinely works with trial sponsors to iterate the protocols in relation to those trials. Because this trial involves children and young people, for me, the bar should be exceptionally high, to ensure that those safeguards are in place. That is why, although my starting principle is that clinical evidence is the right way to approach such a matter, I wanted that extra reassurance. That is why I asked for the most detailed possible assurances from my clinical advisers, to ensure that those robust safeguards are in place in the way the trial is now designed.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between James Murray and Layla Moran

Tuesday 9th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Layla Moran (Oxford West and Abingdon) (LD)]

The Health and Social Care Committee’s most recent report into healthy ageing highlights the unacceptable 20-year gap in healthy life expectancy between the most and least deprived areas of the country. It also points out that physical activity can be as effective, if not more effective, in treating the ailments of older life than pharmaceutical intervention. That is why we recommend that the Government target the least active groups to narrow that gap and embed activity into clinical practice.

I welcome the Secretary of State to his place. We are yet to have our first conversation, so let us have our first meeting, in which we might discuss this issue and more, as well as how to embed tackling inequalities into the whole of the national health service.

[James Murray]

I look forward to working constructively with the hon. Lady in her role as the Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee. She is absolutely right to point to the importance of embedding prevention and healthier lifestyles in the way that we approach healthcare in this country. Although we talk a lot and passionately about the NHS, health is not just about the NHS; so many determinants of health start long before people access the NHS. In our 10-year health plan, there is a huge focus on tackling obesity, smoking and ensuring that people have more active and healthier lifestyles, because that is the way to reduce pressure on the NHS and ensure that people across the country live healthier lives.