Health Bill

Liz Twist Excerpts

2nd reading
Monday 1st June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Liz Twist (Blaydon and Consett) (Lab)]

First of all, I very much welcome the Bill. It has been designed to deliver and work with our 10-year plan in that bigger picture.

I will touch on three issues raised with me by my constituents in Blaydon and Consett. The first is the single patient record. Of course it makes absolute sense for everyone to be able to access up-to-date records when a patient is admitted. I think of the groups I have worked with who have rare conditions, for example, who find that when they are taken into a different hospital, the doctors there are unable to access the records of their specialist treatment. That is the first thing, although there is also a good deal of concern among my constituents and others about how that will be managed and brought about, and how the data will be handled and the contracts awarded.

The second issue I wish to raise is Healthwatch. I understand that the Government’s real intention, through the Bill, is to strengthen the patient voice and the ability to raise issues, but there is real concern that an organisation inside the Department of Health and Social Care will not provide that independence. Will the Minister commit to looking again at how that independence can be built in and linked with the ability to pull the levers that Ministers have talked about, in order to make a real difference for patients? It is about getting that balance right.

Finally, I want to talk about parity of esteem for mental health services. As we move from treatment to prevention services, we need to use this legislation to reinforce parity of esteem for mental health services, including in the ability to access them. We need to build in preventive measures and access to those mental health services. I would just like to comment on the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Worthing West (Dr Cooper) about building public health issues into the overall health framework. We need to look at re-establishing that public mental health function within DHSC under the new arrangements, and indeed within ICBs. We need also to link this to our mental health strategy, which we are expecting in the very near future. I welcome the Bill greatly and look forward to seeing those issues addressed in Committee.