Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachel Reeves and David Baines

Tuesday 1st July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Rachel Reeves]

In the spending review, we invested an additional £29 billion every year for day-to-day spending in the national health service, as well as a record uplift in capital spending in the NHS so that there is more money for the equipment to do that vital work, including in cancer treatments, which the hon. Gentleman mentioned. In our first year in office we have delivered 4 million additional appointments in the NHS and reduced waiting lists by 250,000. That is only possible because of the decisions we took in the Budget last year—those included increasing taxes on non-doms, as well as the increase in national insurance contributions—which have gone into funding our national health service.

[David Baines (St Helens North) (Lab)]

St Helens is ranked as the 26th most deprived area nationally, and that poverty has an impact on health and sickness from pre-birth to old age. As a country, we spend more on crisis intervention and less on early intervention after 14 years of the Tories. Will the Chancellor please assure me and people in St Helens North that this Government will do all they can to properly fund councils and health services to help more people live longer, healthier lives?

[Rachel Reeves]

That is a really important point. Our Prime Minister is absolutely committed to early intervention to stop the costs of crisis emerging later on. Later this week, on the anniversary of Labour’s creation of the health service, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care will publish the 10-year health plan, which will focus on ensuring that young people especially, and particularly those in some of our most deprived communities, are not let down and have a healthy start in life. Across the whole of Government, we are determined to achieve that.