Primary and Community Care

Lord Kamall Excerpts

Thursday 5th June 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Kamall (Con)]

My Lords, we on these Benches welcome the Government’s stated commitment to innovation in primary care and the commitment to continue the rollout of community diagnostic centres, which were started by the previous Government. However, unfortunately, last year the Patients Association highlighted barriers to the rollout of point-of-care diagnostics, particularly in rural areas. Is the Minister aware of those concerns, and what plans does the department have to tackle those barriers?

[Baroness Merron (Lab)]

Our commitment to moving towards a neighbourhood health service obviously allows for attention to be given to different circumstances, including in rural areas. It will mean that more care can be delivered locally and that problems can be spotted earlier, including any problems with rollout. We will shortly provide details of a national neighbourhood health implementation programme. We liaise with various groups, including the Patients Association, and I am grateful for their input and for flagging up any difficulties, which we absolutely seek to resolve.