Hospice Funding
Simon Jupp Excerpts(6 days, 15 hours ago)
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Paul Holmes (Eastleigh) (Con)
I congratulate my hon. Friends the Members for Hastings and Rye (Sally-Ann Hart) and for Darlington (Peter Gibson) on their hard work to secure the debate, and on their work on the all-party parliamentary group. I led a Westminster Hall debate on this subject on 14 June 2023. I am pleased that we are having this debate, but disappointed that no further progress has been made on the problems we expressed then, given the problems that hon. Members are expressing this evening.
As has been said, the hospice sector does a remarkable job and plays a pivotal role in our health system, providing care and the support needed to those who watch their loved ones pass away, and wonderful care in those weeks until that point. That happened to me and many of my dear friends upon the passing of my office manager Sue Hall on 30 March 2023. She passed away at the age of 57 from lymphoma, leaving her husband Jerry and her daughters Phoebe and Rosie. She was cared for fabulously by the team at Mountbatten hospice in my constituency. The family and I were able to count on the support of the fantastic staff at that hospice, who not only provided the best care that Sue wanted, needed and deserved, but gave us the wraparound support during and after that period.
Like many hospices, Mountbatten provides 24/7 in-patient and community domiciliary care to Southampton and large parts of Hampshire. It supports around 1,000 families every day. Demand for its services is expected to rise by 40% in the next 18 months. It costs £11.5 million to run every year and relies on fundraising, which equates to around 70% of its total budget. NHS contracting represents around 30% of services delivered. However, the funding models in place are inadequate, with the ICB giving only a 2.4% uplift in the contracting of services, when the real rise in costs requires an 8% uplift. For 2025-26, the Hampshire ICB has once again said that there will be no uplift, which means that Mountbatten will need to find an extra £750,000 just to provide the same services that it does today.
Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
Strengthening our local hospices takes pressure off our NHS. My hon. Friend makes a good point that the benefits of fairer funding are plain to see, yet some hospices get no public funding at all from the local NHS. One such hospice is Sidmouth Hospice at Home in my constituency. Dr Sarah Wollaston, formerly of this place and chair of the NHS Devon ICB, still needs to provide a detailed idea of what funding Sidmouth Hospice at Home can get. It does not receive a penny from the NHS in Devon. That is wrong. Does my hon. Friend agree that it cannot be right that some hospice services and charities get funded from integrated care boards—something we should be proud of—while others get nothing at all?
Paul Holmes
I agree. In Hampshire we are lucky that 30% of Mountbatten’s services are contracted by the NHS. The ICB—which is in special measures, as my hon. Friend the Member for Isle of Wight (Bob Seely) said—is not doing a good enough job of providing those services. If a hospice wants to explore getting some of that funding from the national health service, it should be allowed to do so, while recognising the independence of spirit of many hospices that choose to go their own way. My hon. Friend is right to raise the work of the hospice in his constituency, and I hope that it will be able to acquire some ICB funding.
It will cost Mountbatten an extra £750,000 just to provide the same services, while the number of people it supports will rise by 200%. The Minister will say that this Government awarded another £1.5 billion for hospice services through ICBs. That is entirely welcome, and I congratulated her on her announcement in my debate last year. But I say now what I said in that debate: the ICBs are not passing on the money for the purposes set out. ICBs—particularly mine in Hampshire—are riding roughshod over the Government’s wishes and are exacerbating a problem in a system that already fails to take into account the varying nature of needs across different parts of the country.
My hon. Friend the Member for Isle of Wight (Bob Seely) and I had a meeting last week with representatives from our ICB. I asked how much of that £1.5 billion had been awarded to the Hampshire ICB. They could not give an answer. I asked how much of that was allocated to hospices in the region. They could not give an answer. I say what I said last June to the Minister, who is doing an excellent job: that money was very welcome but I hope we can look at a better way of holding ICBs to account, to ensure that when the Government put hard-pressed money into our health system, ICBs deliver it to the frontline services for which it was intended. That is no different in Hampshire. The leadership of Hampshire ICB needs to look at that seriously.
Mountbatten also has to compete with the NHS for its workforce. It rightly chooses to pay and award its staff along the same pay guidelines as NHS staff. This year, that represented a 4.8% rise in costs, and will represent a further 5% next year. Again, I thank the Government for awarding an extra £450,000 to Mountbatten, but that will still leave a deficit of £1 million overall this year. It is right that it chooses to pay its staff adequately, but that will mean Mountbatten will have to lay off some of its workforce, harming outcomes for families in my constituency. That will be the case in the rest of the UK if other hospices have the same problem.
The funding instability—which in my case I blame on the ICB, which is leading a review into hospice care—seems entirely one-sided. It will end up costing the NHS more money, as hospitals will pick up the burden of care, and beds will be used by people who should be in hospices. We all know the impact that energy bills and covid had on the sector.
I do not mean to sound depressing to the House, but we must continue to look at this issue. The Government’s investment is extremely welcome, but we need more. I would like to hear from the Minister how the Government and the NHS nationally intend to work together to provide a sustainable long-term funding settlement for hospice care, while retaining that independence that hon. Members have outlined. We need the Minister to review how much money ICBs are passing on to hospices, and to take a stronger line in reviewing the role of ICBs and holding them to account if they are not giving that money to the frontline.
The Government, the hospice sector and the ICBs have a clear choice: a sustainable funding model for our hospices, or more pressure on an already stretched national health service. The hospice staff I have met care and want to deliver on the challenge that many of our constituents face across the United Kingdom, but they need a level playing field in order to provide that care. Let us help them do that and improve hospice care.
Hospice Funding: Devon
Simon Jupp Excerpts(3 months, 1 week ago)
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Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
I am delighted to have secured today’s important Adjournment debate on hospice funding in Devon. I welcome the Minister and colleagues to the debate.
A few years ago, at a dinner hosted by the Rotary Club of Exeter, I was sat between the Bishop of Exeter and Dr John Searle, the founder of Hospiscare, a brilliant local independent charity providing specialist care to people across our county. I must confess that it was a surreal experience for this 30-something-year-old from Devon who is more comfortable in a pub than at black tie dinners. They both spoke to me about local hospice services and the good work they do in Devon. Dr John Searle sadly passed away last year, and I pay tribute to his work, his compassion and his determination. Our society would be so much better off if we had more people like John, and I will always treasure the conversation we enjoyed.
Hospice services in Devon provide incredible support and comfort to those suffering from a terminal or long-term, life-limiting condition. Patients often have multiple conditions and complex needs, and often require a high level of support. As the Member for East Devon, I am acutely aware of the work and impact of hospices locally. Several charities provide hospice services across East Devon, and I want to pay tribute to the ones based in my constituency, Sidmouth Hospice at Home and Hospiscare. Sidmouth Hospice at Home has a day centre in Sidford, with a 24/7 specialist nursing team working with local NHS dementia services teams who benefit from the use of their building. I live in Sidmouth—they do us proud.
Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)
On that point, will the hon. Gentleman give way?
Simon Jupp
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his point. One of the points he raised with me earlier, when he told me he was going to intervene on me, was about fundraising, and that has been really difficult since covid for all sorts of reasons.
Across the rest of my part of Devon, Hospiscare runs hospices at High View Gardens in Exmouth and Searle House in Exeter, and it has run has fantastic clinical nurse specialist teams in Budleigh Salterton, Exmouth and further afield in neighbouring constituencies. Hospiscare is the biggest of the local charities, and it supports 2,500 people each year. However, these charities need dedicated teams and a lot of funding to support many thousands of patients.
Funding matters even more because we know that Devon’s population is ageing and growing. In Devon, there are proportionately more older people than the national average. More than 25% of the total population in the Devon County Council area is aged over 65, compared with less than one in five of the total England population, and 14% of these people are 85 and over. By 2040, Devon’s population aged between 65 and 84 is predicted to increase to 225,000, which is a 27% rise, and the 85-plus population will nearly double to 56,000. Hospices across our county are therefore playing an increasingly key role.
Kevin Foster (Torbay) (Con)
My hon. Friend is right to highlight the future challenges for hospices. Would he agree that plans such as those coming forward for Rowcroft Hospice in my own constituency to very much integrate and provide both nursing and sheltered accommodation, alongside the hospice services they will continue to provide, show a way to generate additional income, while not conflicting with their core purpose?
Simon Jupp
I completely agree with my hon. Friend. These services are dynamic and they are working, and the people of Torbay are well served.
I was reminded of the increasing importance of hospices by Dr Timothy Dudgeon, a constituent of mine from Ottery St Mary. He first approached me two years ago, and we met at one of my regular surgeries in Exmouth shortly afterwards. His plea was simple: Hospiscare, one of the charities I have mentioned, needs fairer funding from the NHS in Devon to cope with growing demand. I fully agree with him, but here we are two years later because the NHS simply is not listening.
I have raised the matter through meetings, letters and everything else to the NHS Devon integrated care board, and I am taking my call to the Floor of this House because I want the chair of the ICB, Dr Sarah Wollaston, formerly of this place, to realise that I am not letting this unfair deal for Devon’s hospices go without challenge. The issue here is obvious to all, and the solution is simply common sense, which is something we ought to try a little more often.
Hospices across our country and county are facing a perfect storm: income from fundraising is falling while costs and demand for their services are rising. Hospiscare in Devon has told me that it is facing a £2.5 million deficit in the next financial year. Meanwhile, Sidmouth Hospice at Home has told me that its average case load has risen by over 50% in the last year alone. Amid this perfect storm, I have been calling on the NHS Devon ICB to increase its funding for all of our hospices.
ICBs are responsible for determining the level of funding for palliative and end-of-life care in their area. This is devolution, and I support it. The Government do not decide how funding is spent; local organisations should know their area best and where to send their money. However, I question the situation in Devon. If the ICB needs more money to achieve fairer hospice funding, I would bang down the door of any Minister to help them, if asked, but they have not asked, and we have faced a wall of silence.
That was, intriguingly, until a couple of hours ago, when I received a letter from the NHS Devon ICB. It is intriguing timing, do we not think, given that it did not reply to previous letters I sent last year? Now it has finally responded to one of my letters from November. The NHS Devon ICB says that it is
“working on plans to move towards more equitable NHS funding”,
starting in the next financial year. I am sure colleagues here will be pressing for more details about that.
The wall of silence we have all faced in Devon is why I have launched a campaign and a petition on my website to put pressure on the ICB to increase funding to our local hospices, which residents across my constituency of East Devon and beyond are supporting. I first raised this with NHS Devon ICB two years ago after I met with Dr Timothy Dudgeon. I really hope the Minister can support my message to the ICB and its chair Dr Sarah Wollaston. Our message is crystal clear: there needs to be a fairer deal. Hospiscare is funded for 18% of its costs from NHS Devon ICB compared with the national average of 37% from ICBs across England. Sidmouth Hospice at Home receives no funding from the NHS in Devon at all, and that puts it in a small minority in the country receiving no money from a local NHS body. That simply cannot be right.
Richard Foord (Tiverton and Honiton) (LD)
I am grateful to the hon. Member both for giving way and for securing the debate this evening which is a really significant one. I know from the Seaton and District Hospital League of Friends where there is the Seaton Hospice at Home facility that the palliative care nurses who work there are amazing people, and they help people to die in a very dignified fashion. Given that we have such fantastic people who work for such organisations as Hospice at Home in Seaton and Sidmouth, does the hon. Gentleman agree that they ought to continue to have a physical location in which to work from, as they do currently at Seaton Hospital? Does he also agree that the Minister might do well to talk to NHS Property Services so they can continue to have that facility at Seaton Hospital?
Simon Jupp
The hon. Gentleman makes a very good point about Seaton Hospice at Home, and it does a fantastic job for the residents of Seaton and the surrounding area. He also makes a good point about Seaton Hospital, which of course we face challenges with locally, as he knows all too well as the Member for Tiverton and Honiton. It is important to recognise that NHS Property Services is an arm’s length body. Having said that, recent meetings with one of the Ministers who has sponsorship of NHS Property Services has shed some light on the attempt to make sure that that building of Seaton Hospital is protected for future generations.
But I want to speak about somewhere else in Devon briefly. My hon. Friend the Member for North Devon (Selaine Saxby) cannot be here, but I am told North Devon Hospice has been trying to get its hospice at home service commissioned for a decade. The ICB agrees that it should be but will still not fund the service, which saves North Devon District Hospital £2.7 million through avoided admissions. Similarly, my hon. Friend the Member for South West Devon (Sir Gary Streeter) and the hon. Member for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport (Luke Pollard) have raised the same issues with St Luke’s Hospice in Plymouth. This is plainly unfair; now must be the time to strengthen our hospices, give them fairer funding and help them take pressure off the NHS.
Martin Docherty-Hughes (West Dunbartonshire) (SNP)
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for introducing this Adjournment debate. The threats faced by the charitable palliative care sector in East Devon are emulated in my own constituency in Scotland. I have two of the largest hospices in Scotland, St Margaret of Scotland Hospice in Whitecrook and the children’s hospice in Ballach, and the big challenge is how to be taken seriously by NHS managerial structures. There are vibrant and committed palliative care structures in these two charities, but sometimes the biggest challenge is them being taken seriously by community health partnerships in my area or integrated care boards in the hon. Gentleman’s area.
Simon Jupp
The hon. Gentleman has hit the nail on the head; he is absolutely right. Now must be the time to strengthen our hospices, give them fairer funding, and help them take pressure off the NHS. Hospiscare has calculated that its services save between two and three hospital admissions every day. These are patients the local NHS will have to cover if the hospice has to cut its services. Sidmouth Hospice at Home has calculated that it is saving the NHS locally more than 1,300 nights of hospital stays through preventing admission, shortening stay lengths and speeding up discharges. Is that not what we want?
The benefits of fairer funding are plain to see. Strengthening our local hospices takes pressure off our NHS, but without fairer funding, and given the perfect storm of less fundraising income, more costs and more demand, there is a real risk they may have to cut vital services. That includes in-patient beds and specialist community nursing provision. This cannot be allowed to happen. That is why I urge the NHS in Devon to listen to the case I have made today and the Minister to back my call. It is high time for fairer funding for our brilliant hospices in Devon.
Seaton Community Hospital
Simon Jupp Excerpts(5 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Richard Foord
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his intervention. His anecdotes about what that hospital has done for his family and community are absolutely the same sort of thing as I hear from constituents every time I speak to them.
Seaton Hospital was built in 1988 to provide better local access to medical care and treatment for people across the Axe valley. It serves people not only in Seaton but in Colyton, Colyford, Beer, Axmouth and other villages dotted around the east Devon countryside. Originally, the plan was that people would not have to travel so far for their treatment. Given that the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital is perhaps 30 miles away—20 miles at least—people felt that acute provision was on their doorsteps, which is what they wanted.
Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
The hon. Member is making a stand for a community hospital used by people in both our constituencies, and I congratulate him on having secured the debate. I live less than 10 miles from Seaton Hospital. So many residents raised funds to build the wing, which first opened back in 1991. Does the hon. Member agree that it would be so wrong for local residents to have to pay twice for a building that they helped to fundraise for and build?
Richard Foord
The hon. Member makes an excellent point. It is exactly right that Seaton Community Hospital was built by local people. Let me expand on that important point, because a lot of people have talked to me about this and I want to relay to the House the feelings they have spoken to me about at recent local community meetings.
The hospital was built over two storeys and updated in 1990 with an acute wing, which was funded not just 50% by the local community but 100% by local donations. The important thing to note is that the construction would not have been possible at all were it not for the contributions by local individuals. For example, the Seaton & District Hospital League of Friends had a scheme called “Be a brick: donate to Seaton Hospital”. People could make a small contribution—whatever they could afford—and get a little brick as a memento to demonstrate that they had contributed to Seaton Community Hospital. The charity is still a vocal champion of the hospital to this day. The project would not have happened had it not been for the generosity of the local people. What comes with that is a sense of ownership that I cannot really stress enough. There is a really strong feeling that the hospital does not belong to some amorphous NHS: it is their hospital. They paid for it, they were treated in it and it belongs to them.
Several weeks ago, I was contacted by the League of Friends charity after it learned from the Devon NHS that the plan is to hand over the two-storey wing from the Devon NHS to NHS Property Services. The charity was concerned that this could lead, eventually, to the selling off of the hospital wing, and even to its demolition. As soon as I heard that, alarm bells were set ringing for me. It is clear that Devon’s integrated care board is keen to wash its hands of the facility as quickly as it can. In essence, the facility is in special measures, and in a financially dire place. The wing is costing the Devon NHS about £300,000 a year, billed by NHS Property Services.
I was not all that familiar with NHS Property Services a year ago. I had heard of it, but I was under the impression that it was just another division of the NHS. I looked into it a bit further, and I found that it is responsible for the maintenance and support of most local NHS facilities. I was surprised to find that it is a Government-owned company, legally owned by one shareholder. The single shareholder for NHS Property Services is the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. As of today, the hon. Member for Louth and Horncastle can congratulate herself on taking on NHS Property Services as her new holding. How can it be the case that a hospital built with the generous support of local people is now owned directly by NHS Property Services, rather than those local people?
In 2016, the Government transferred that facility over to NHS Property Services and implemented a consolidated charging policy to levy charges for rent, maintenance and service charges. Some of those charges are extortionate. We are talking about £300,000 a year, which is £247 a square metre. On paper, it might seem prudent to organise the NHS with some commercial expertise in charge of some of these facilities. However, we have to bear it in mind that the people running NHS Property Services are not necessarily thinking about it through the lens of health and social care; they are thinking about how they can maximise the utility of space and make savings to put money back into budgets.
That is worrying, because what I am hearing is that the offer being made to NHS Devon is, “If you wash your hands of this facility, you will receive 50% of the proceeds of the sale”—that will be to the NHS Devon integrated care board—“and 50% of the proceeds will go back into central coffers, back to Whitehall and back into the very large pot that is the NHS.” The House can imagine what that is like for an individual constituent in my part of east Devon, who has contributed perhaps tens or hundreds of pounds—as much as they could afford—in decades gone by, perhaps through a direct debit or regular payment, to maintain the facility. To hear that those decades of investment will be put back into a big pool in London, a long way away, is pretty sickening.
There has been an understandable backlash from people right across my corner of Devon. I have been to a couple of public meetings in recent weeks since the news broke. At Colyford Memorial Hall a couple of weeks ago, there were more than 200 people. It is a cliché to say there was standing room only, but there was no standing room—there was a long queue of people outside in the rain wanting to get into the meeting. People had one overriding feeling that they wanted to convey to me, and that they wanted me to convey to the Minister and to others gathered here this evening: they created this hospital and they are deeply offended by the idea that it might be taken away. What put salt into those wounds was the idea that that should happen with zero public consultation.
NHS Dentists: South-West England
Simon Jupp Excerpts(11 months, 1 week ago)
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Chris Loder
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his short and succinct intervention, as ever. He is absolutely right and confirms that this issue needs to be addressed across the United Kingdom, not just in the south-west. I am delighted that he has attended this debate on dentistry in south-west England.
The south-west region was recently rated fifth out of seven for adult NHS dental coverage, with only 35% of adults covered by access to essential dental services, which is below the national average. Dorset fares slightly better, but adults in my constituency and those immediately neighbouring it also experience below the national average coverage for an NHS dentist.
The inequality is also affecting children, whom I am particularly concerned about. Although they are faring better than adults, with a coverage rate of 46% in both Dorset and the south-west, that is still below the national average for access to NHS dental services. Without those services, almost one third of five-year-olds are suffering from tooth decay, which is the most common reason why children aged between five and nine are admitted to hospital. Tooth decay is mostly preventable, so its effects serve to demonstrate what a lack of access to NHS dentistry is doing to our children.
Why are we faced with this difficulty? Why is dentistry in England, and particularly the south-west, under such pressure? Although the answer is multifaceted, I believe the reason is primarily threefold: first, the National Health Service Act 2006 and the subsequent dental contract; secondly, the lack of institutional services and the knock-on effects; and finally, the NHS backlog following the covid-19 pandemic.
The National Health Service Act 2006 set out the provisions for agreement between NHS England and dental practices in relation to services that would be provided and the renumeration for those services. Before the Act became law, the National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee both produced reports to the then Government on reforming NHS dentistry, which raised concerns about the 2006 changes. Those concerns included the urgent need to change the incentive mechanism for dentists to increase their commitments to NHS dentistry, the difficulty for patients in better-off areas in accessing public health services, and the difficulty for those in more deprived areas in accessing any services at all.
The reports also raised concerns that there would be a shortage of NHS dentists, a glut of people who would be left without access to NHS dentistry, and no guarantees that the reformed contract would be enough to commit dentists to the NHS rather than private practice.
Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
My constituents in East Devon regularly contact me about difficulties getting NHS dentist appointments in places such as Sidmouth, Budleigh Salterton and Exmouth. Problems with recruitment and contracts have been compounded by the pandemic, but that excuse will not wash forever. Does my hon. Friend agree that additional reforms of the NHS dental system cannot come soon enough for the south-west?
Chris Loder
I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention. I wholly agree with him that reforms are needed urgently, which is the main point I will be sharing with the Minister towards the end of my contribution. It is clear that some of the measures from the 2006 Act do not go far enough. In many cases, they actually deter NHS dentistry provision.
Many of these issues are evident up and down the country today. Discussions with my own integrated care board in West Dorset—which, as of 1 April this year, has taken delegated responsibility for commissioning dental services from NHS England—have confirmed to me that the dental contract signed in 2006 is simply not fit for purpose. It actually restricts the ability of the board to respond to the current situation. That is because the terms and structure of the contract make it incredibly difficult for the integrated care board to attract new dentists to work in Dorset. I am sure that other integrated care boards across the south-west share that problem. The ability to attract new dental talent, especially those who are working on NHS contracts, is further hindered by our specific circumstances in Dorset. We do not have adequate training infrastructure.
Recovering Access to Primary Care
Simon Jupp Excerpts(11 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Steve Barclay
The hon. Member is right to recognise the importance of access to medical records. It is a key part of the functionality that we are delivering through the NHS app. He is correct that that is focused on England and not on Northern Ireland, but I am very happy for us to have discussions with him and his colleagues in Northern Ireland on any shared practice.
Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
Today’s welcome announcement will help patients get prescriptions directly from hard-working, resilient but sometimes overstretched pharmacies, freeing up GP appointments. Will my right hon. Friend outline how pharmacies in my constituency of East Devon will be able to access funding and support to deliver this?
Urgent and Emergency Care Recovery Plan
Simon Jupp Excerpts(1 year, 2 months ago)
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Steve Barclay
First, the hon. Gentleman is right to recognise the work that the staff have been doing. He mentioned a family member; when I made a statement earlier in January, I recognised that there has been huge pressure on the system. We saw the flu numbers and the spike in cases. On the two-year waits, the point is simply that there has been pressure on services—the pandemic impacts—across the United Kingdom, but the two-year wait is far worse in Wales, whereas we have cleared it in England. On recruitment and retention, we are bringing forward the workforce plan. The fact is that we are recruiting more nurses, but it is about meeting demand pressure as well.
Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
There is no doubt that the 5,000 extra beds will help the NHS to provide the best possible patient care. Community hospitals across East Devon and NHS Nightingale Hospital Exeter can play their part, too. Does my right hon. Friend agree that community hospitals can play a key role in helping to cut waiting lists?
Steve Barclay
Community hospitals are key to tackling the issue of delayed discharge. Community settings have been a bit of a Cinderella in the past. The data on community settings tends to be weaker than it is in other parts of the NHS. Alongside domiciliary care and making better use of residential care capacity, the third element for discharge is to look at how we use community step-down in a much more constructive way. One key issue there is to have wraparound services so that people do not simply get transferred to a community setting, but that it is a staging post before getting to the home, which is where most patients want to be.
Oral Answers to Questions
Simon Jupp Excerpts(2 years ago)
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Gillian Keegan
Actually, according to Skills for Care data from 2020-21, the majority of care workers were paid above the national living wage in that year. Most care workers are employed by private sector providers who set their terms and conditions. However, we have committed £1.36 billion to the market sustainability and fair cost fund, which will support local authorities to move towards paying providers a fair cost of care. We hope that will lead to better sustainability and better staff.
Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
At Prime Minister’s questions, I raised a local campaign for a specialist menopause clinic in Devon. I am pleased the Minister agreed to meet me. Will my hon. Friend encourage local NHS leaders to fund specialist menopause centres?
Maria Caulfield
The Government recognise that menopause services need to improve, which is why menopause is a priority area in our women’s health strategy. We recognise such services are often best provided in primary care, but that some women need specialist services. We are looking at that in our women’s health strategy and the menopause taskforce.
Health and Social Care
Simon Jupp Excerpts(2 years, 4 months ago)
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Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
People in East Devon will warmly welcome the £700-million investment in our NHS. Will my hon. Friend outline when patients in Devon will know how that money will improve local services?
Edward Argar
I am grateful to my hon. Friend. This money is being allocated to the regions, then to individual trusts. A large amount of that money has already been allocated to specific projects that have been announced today. The rest of the money, when allocated to local systems, will then be allocated by that local system—the people who know their area best.
Covid Vaccine Passports
Simon Jupp Excerpts(2 years, 7 months ago)
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Nadhim Zahawi
If the hon. Lady will forgive me, I wish to reiterate that what she said is inaccurate in the sense of the vaccines not preventing infection. Sixty per cent. of people who are double-vaccinated will not be infected and therefore cannot spread the virus, but 40% can. This is an important measure. We have a duty of care to those most vulnerable in care homes in ensuring that the staff are double-jabbed, and they have until 11 November to do that.
Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
Make no mistake: vaccine passports will create a two-tier society with the hospitality industry having to police an unethical policy that will hammer its recovery. Given the Government’s own words that we need to live with this virus, will my hon. Friend confirm how long vaccine passports will be in place—if passed by this House?
Nadhim Zahawi
We will set out in detail in due course exactly how the vaccine pass will work for domestic use: for example, in nightclubs.
NHS Update
Simon Jupp Excerpts(2 years, 9 months ago)
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Simon Jupp (East Devon) (Con)
I thank the Minister for her updates. On another matter, I am receiving emails from East Devon constituents concerned that their first, second or both jabs have not been registered properly and do not appear on the NHS app. It is putting their holiday plans in doubt. From September, they may not be able to access some venues when covid passports could be introduced, although not with my support. The papers are filled with similar stories from across the country. Not only will covid passports create a two-tier society but it also appears to be a system that is based on sometimes inaccurate data. Is this really a good idea, Minister?
Helen Whately
Well, I welcome the fact that so many of my hon. Friend’s constituents have received their vaccination. Where there are problems with the data, I am sure he will know that the vaccines Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Stratford-on-Avon (Nadhim Zahawi) is very assiduous on these specific matters. I will raise with him the examples. It may well be that the Minister will get directly in touch with my hon. Friend and resolve the situation.