SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME?

PROFILING THE NEXT GENERATION OF HEALTH ADVOCATES IN PARLIAMENT

#MakingPerfectSenseofHealth | @MHPHealth 1 Shape of Things to Come?

FOREWORD PETE DIGGER MANAGING DIRECTOR, ENGINE | MHP

The General Election result of “A diminished Official Opposition December 2019 has effectively put means that backbench voices an end to the uncertainty around the are likely to be more influential UK’s departure from the European than ever.” Union. However, the exodus of a large As a result of the arithmetic in the House number of established backbench of Commons, the last Parliament was parliamentarians and likely changes characterised by stasis for the NHS, even to the structure of government despite May’s injection of cash and the present a new and uncharted development of the Long Term Plan. environment for those looking to There was no primary legislation, with action engage with policymakers. playing out in the corridors of NHS , the Department and HM Treasury. Things will Nowhere is that more the case than in be different this time: December’s Queen’s healthcare, where a number of high-profile Speech contained five bills within health and MPs including former Health Committee Chair social care, with the most significant legislative Dr Sarah Wollaston and APPG for Cancer proposals proposed by NHS England still to Chair Nic Dakin are no longer in post. come. A sizable working Conservative majority means much of this will enter into law. However However, while the loss of those expert the opportunities for scrutiny and amendments voices in health and care is notable, there during the passage of any piece of legislation are many potential advocates among the gives Parliament a renewed sense of new intake of MPs. A diminished Official importance for the healthcare community. Opposition means that backbench voices are likely to be more influential than ever. Those We hope you find this briefing useful as entering the House of Commons for the first you finalise your engagement programmes time include doctors, nurses, pharmacists, for 2020. bioinformaticians, life sciences analysts, Happy reading! pharmaceutical industry professionals and even a former dolphin trainer. This briefing highlights those new MPs who have a background in areas of relevance to our sector and who, in many cases, could go on to be potential champions of healthcare issues.

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CANDIDATES & CONSTITUENCIES

Amy Callaghan Ian Levy SNP, East Dunbartonshire Con, Blyth Valley

Dr Con, Penrith and the Border

Katherine Fletcher Con, Con,

Paula Barker Miriam Cates Lab, Wavertree Con, Penistone & Stocksbridge

Dr James Davies Olivia Blake Con, Vale of Clwyd Lab, Hallam

Carla Lockhart Dr DUP, Upper Bann Con, Bosworth

Paul Bristow Con, Peterborough Con, Anthony Browne Con, Cambridgeshire Con, Ynys Môn South Sarah Owen Dr Keiran Mullan Lab, Luton North Con, and Dean Russell Con, Watford Con, North Feryal Clark Taiwo Owatemi Lab, Enfield North Lab, North West Munira Wilson Lib Dem, Twickenham Con, North

Dr Con, Runnymede and Weybridge Con,

Elliot Colburn Con, Carshalton and Wallington

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CAROLINE ANSELL CONSERVATIVES, EASTBOURNE (MAJORITY: 2,904)

A coastal resort town in the south of England, Cancer Eastbourne has historically been a Lib Dem/ In addition to her work on bowel cancer screening, Conservative marginal. In 2015, Caroline Ansell won Ms Ansell has spoken widely about her son, who was the seat for the Conservatives from Liberal Democrat diagnosed at the age of five with a brain tumour and . However, Mr Lloyd won the seat back treated at Great Ormond Street Hospital. A self-declared from Ms Ansell at the 2017 General Election, but Ms NHS “frequent flyer”, Ms Ansell has declared that the Ansell has now retaken it. The constituency is covered “NHS is written into [her] political DNA”. by Eastbourne, Hailsham and Seaford CCG. Carers First elected in 2015, Ms Ansell served in Parliament for Given Ms Ansell’s experience caring for her son, she has only two years before losing her seat. Ms Ansell made unsurprisingly been vocal on caring, citing statistics that her maiden speech as part of a debate on health and suggest one in ten people in the Eastbourne constituency social care, stating that “health was her top priority”. is a carer and pledging to make this a key priority for In her time in Parliament, Ms Ansell supported a number her as an MP. Ms Answell also states that she is working of healthcare causes, including championing an increase to build an awareness of dementia, with a new wave of in the uptake rate of bowel cancer screening. Dementia Friends programmes.

SARAH ATHERTON CONSERVATIVES, WREXHAM (MAJORITY: 2,131)

Wrexham in North has been a Labour seat After a career in the military, Sarah Atherton trained as since 1935, with serving the seat since a nurse, becoming a District Nurse before moving into 2001. In the 2019 election, the Conservatives took social services representing elderly people and mental the historically Labour-voting seat for the first time. health. She has most recently been in small business, The constituency is covered by the Betsi Cadwaladr running a micro-brewery in Wrexham. Within healthcare, University Health Board. Ms Atherton has said that she would use her experience of working in the social care sector to raise awareness of young people’s mental health issues and also meeting the needs of older generations – such as addressing issues in housing, health, social support and care.

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PAULA BARKER LABOUR, LIVERPOOL WAVERTREE (MAJORITY: 27,085)

Liverpool Wavertree was the constituency of Ms Barker was a regional convenor for the UNISON , the former Labour MP who defected union, working as a secretary of the Halton branch in from the party to join Change UK, before joining the Widnes. Her predecessor as the North West regional Liberal Democrats later in 2019. Wavertree is solidly convenor was , Labour’s Shadow Labour, with the Party’s majority never dipping Education Secretary. In her role working for UNISON, the below 5,000 since its formation. The seat is country’s public service union, which counts nearly half covered by Liverpool CCG. a million NHS workers among its members, Ms Barker was prominent in speaking up for hospital workers’ rights, including joining the picket line to support striking agency workers at the Liverpool Women’s Hospital.

The NHS Barker has also criticised ’s handling of the NHS, writing in her UNISON blog that he is “paper[ing] over the cracks of a health service which is starved of funding and beset by privatisation and outsourcing.”

OLIVIA BLAKE LABOUR, SHEFFIELD HALLAM (MAJORITY: 712)

A hotly contested marginal constituency, Olivia Blake studied biomedical science at university Sheffield Hallam returned its first Labour MP in its before taking a role working for the NHS in Sheffield. history at the 2017 General Election, with Jared Ms Blake has also focused on workforce and pay issues, O’Mara unseating former Liberal Democrat leader including Chairing the University of Sheffield’s Living in one of the most significant upsets of Wage campaign. the election. O’Mara was embroiled in a number of Ms Blake serves as a Non-Executive Director on high-profile controversies upon entering Parliament, the Board of Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS culminating in his expulsion from the Labour Party Foundation Trust and has worked with Healthwatch and his arrest on suspicion of expenses fraud. Sheffield in order to raise the issue of inclusive The seat is covered by Sheffield CCG. commissioning and procurement and supply chain partnerships.

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P A U L BRISTOW CONSERVATIVES, PETERBOROUGH (MAJORITY: 2,580)

Prior to the election, Peterborough was one the previously worked in political consulting, country’s closest marginal constituencies, with the running his own agency which has a focus on delivering seat having changed hands several times between public affairs for medical device companies, and was Labour and the Conservatives over the past forty years. the Chair of the Association of Professional Political Earlier in 2019, a by-election to replace Labour’s Fiona Consultants, the APPC. In politics, Mr Bristow was Onasanya, who was recalled after being found guilty previously a councillor in Hammersmith and Fulham for perverting the course of justice for lying to avoid between 2006 and 2010. He contested Peterborough’s prosecution for speeding, returned Labour MP Lisa 2019 by-election, finishing third behind the Labour Forbes with a slim majority of 683. However, the 2019 victor and the Party. election has once more returned a Conservative MP. In 2017, Mr Bristow authored an article for the The seat is covered by NHS Cambridgeshire Conservative Home website, entitled “The NHS needs and Peterborough CCG. more money”, in which he called for spending on the health service and on social care to rise consistently beyond the average level for EU and OECD countries. He particularly highlighted the issues with recruitment and retention of staff, arguing for a restructuring of NHS job titles to eliminate the ‘junior doctor’ title.

ANTHONY BROWNE CONSERVATIVES, CAMBRIDGESHIRE SOUTH (MAJORITY: 2,904)

Covering the outskirts of Cambridge, as well as a The NHS number of university buildings and colleges, the In 2001, Mr Browne wrote an article for The Observer South Cambridgeshire constituency has been held entitled ‘Why the NHS is bad for us’. Arguing that the by the Conservatives since its creation in 1997. health service frequently ignores individual patient The constituency is covered by Cambridge and experiences and choices, he suggested that “the very Peterborough CCG, and is served by a number of structure of the NHS ensures that we will never spend leading hospitals, including Addenbrooke’s. enough on health in this country, and it will ensure that Until 2010 the seat was represented by former far too many patients get appalling treatment”. He also Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley. stated that “the NHS is the last of the communist-style command-economy state organisations” and should A prominent journalist who has held a number of move towards a combined public and private model. roles, most notably as the former Health Editor of The Observer, Anthony Browne has written Public health extensively on health and care. An article authored by Mr Browne in The Spectator in 2002 has proven controversial. In it, he wrote that public health would be better served by restricting the movement of HIV-positive migrants to the UK, arguing that “the Government’s policy of mass migration… is letting in too many germs”.

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AMY CALLAGHAN SNP, EAST DUNBARTONSHIRE (MAJORITY: 149)

East Dunbartonshire has switched hands between the Amy Callaghan enters Parliament as the new MP for Liberal Democrats and the SNP since 2005. The 2019 East Dunbartonshire, after unseating leader of the Liberal election saw the then Liberal Democrats’ leader Jo Democrats Jo Swinson by 149 votes. Diagnosed with skin Swinson lose her constituency of East Dunbartonshire cancer aged 19 in 2011, Ms Callaghan has since worked by 149 votes to the SNP’s Amy Callaghan. The seat is on a collaborative project with Teenage Cancer Trust, covered by East Dunbartonshire Health & Social CLIC Sergeant and Children with Cancer UK, to produce Care Partnership Board. a British Medical Journal paper, which she hopes will give medical professions an understanding of the damage cancer does to mental health.

MIRIAM CATES CONSERVATIVES, PENISTONE & STOCKSBRIDGE (MAJORITY: 7,210)

Miriam Cates’ victory in Penistone & Stocksbridge Miriam Cates enters Parliament as the new MP for sees the Conservatives take the seat from Labour Penistone & Stocksbridge, outside Sheffield. A trained who had controlled the seat throughout the 2000s geneticist who worked before politics as a science and 2010s. Ms Cates replaces former Labour, Change teacher, Ms Cates is also the co-owner of a technology UK and Lib Dem MP Angela Smith, and represents consultancy firm, Donate Technologies, which has the first South Yorkshire Conservative since 1992. developed a paid-app for Foodbanks to use.

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FERYAL CLARK LABOUR, ENFIELD NORTH (MAJORITY: 6,492)

For many years Enfield North was represented by Feryal Clark studied Bioinformatics at the University of , who was a member of the Labour Party, Exeter and has since worked in Diagnostic Biochemistry but left as part of a series of defections in February and Diagnostic Virology in several London hospitals. 2019 to form Group for Change. Since 2006, Ms Clark served as a Councillor for Hoxton The constituency is covered by Enfield CCG and East and Shoreditch on Hackney Council, and prior to was retained comfortably by Labour in 2019. election was Deputy Mayor. She was a Cabinet Member for the Hackney Council Health, Social Care, Leisure and Parks Committee. Ms Clark is the first Kurdish MP for the Labour Party.

Ms Clark states that she has spent the last 14 years fighting the “privatisation of the NHS” and will continue this fight on the national scale as an MP. She has also been a keen advocate of cycling in Hackney and is committed to tackling air pollution.

ELLIOT COLBURN CONSERVATIVES, CARSHALTON AND WALLINGTON (MAJORITY: 629)

The Greater London seat of Carshalton and Elliot Colburn was employed by the NHS across South Wallington was first created in 1983. Until 1997, West London as a Public Affairs Officer since August the seat was considered a Conservative stronghold, 2018 where he worked on delivering the planned when Tom Brake overturned a 10,000 majority to improvements at St Helier Hospital. He was also a local win the seat for the Liberal Democrats for the first councillor in the London Borough of Sutton since May time. The constituency voted by a margin of 56 per 2018. Mr Colburn sat on the council’s people and scrutiny cent to leave the European Union. This Eurosceptic committees, and also acted as a substitute on the voter base, coupled with a strong performance from Strategy and Resources Committee. the Conservatives in recent elections, helped the Conservative candidate Elliot Colburn to break 22-years of uninterrupted Liberal Democrat control. The constituency is covered by Sutton CCG.

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VIRGINIA CROSBIE CONSERVATIVES, YNYS MÔN (MAJORITY: 1,968)

Ynys Môn had been held by the Labour Party since Virginia Crosbie, the new Conservative MP, is a high- 2001, when took the constituency from profile Party activist and Director of the Women2Win . Prior to that, the Welsh bellwether network launched by to focus on returning seat had regularly changed hands between Labour, more female candidates to Westminster. Ms Crosbie the Conservatives and Plaid Cymru. Albert Owen cites a varied career, including working in banking, announced he would be standing down prior to the training dolphins and holding roles in the pharmaceutical 2019 General Election. The seat is covered by the industry. Most notably, Ms Crosbie, who has a degree in Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. Microbiology, worked at GlaxoWellcome before moving into finance as a pharmaceutical industry analyst for UBS and HSBC.

In her spare time, Ms Crosbie has chaired the charity Save the Baby Unit, which campaigns for the maintenance of the Recurrent Miscarriage Unit, assisting the research programme carried out by the Imperial College Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

DR JAMES DAVIES CONSERVATIVES, VALE OF CLWYD (MAJORITY: 1,827)

Located in North Wales, the Vale of Clwyd has Workforce amongst the highest prevalence of poverty. Having Dr Davies was vocal on the subject of junior doctors’ been Labour-held since its creation in 1997, Dr James contracts, despite them not applying to Welsh clinicians. Davies won the constituency for the Conservatives for He was critical of miscommunication around proposed the first time in 2015. However, he was defeated by changes to contracts, and emphasised the importance its former MP, Chris Ruane, who re-took the seat for of patient safety. Labour at the 2017 General Election, Dr Davies has claimed back the seat this election. The constituency Primary care Building on his background as GP, Dr Davies has stated is covered by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. that he sought as an MP to champion primary care. He A practising GP with a specialism in dementia, criticised the degree of “GP bashing” in public discourse Dr James Davies can trace his history in Clwyd back around healthcare, and suggested that some politicians seven generations. When elected in 2015, he delivered blame GPs themselves for delays to diagnosis and his maiden speech as part of a debate on health and treatment, without accepting that there are shortages social care, stating that he was concerned about the of primary care professionals. “obvious divide” between NHS performance in Wales and in England. Davies has been critical of the Welsh Government’s handling of local NHS services, pointing out apparent misuse of funds on Twitter.

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DR LUKE EVANS CONSERVATIVES, BOSWORTH (MAJORITY: 26,278)

Bosworth in has been a solidly Ageing population Conservative seat since 1970, and has been represented During his campaign in the 2015 general election, Dr since 1987 by the outgoing MP David Tredinnick, who Evans expressed concern that by 2060, Britain’s entire was Chairman for the APPG on Integrated Healthcare. GDP would be spent on the NHS unless the full extent The seat is covered by the West Leicestershire CCG. of the issue was recognised.

Dr Evans is a practising GP, and has come from a family Trust in CCGs of HCPs – his father was also a GP, his mother a nurse, Dr Evans published an article for Pulse during the his three brothers also entered medicine, and his wife 2015 General Election, setting out his belief that the is also a practising GP. Dr Evans practiced across the general practice community should vote Conservative. Midlands region and Oxford, and decided to enter politics Within this, Dr Evans set out the Government’s emphasis following his successes as National Debating Champion. on primary care laid out in the Five-Year Forward View. Dr Evans was an unsuccessful Conservative candidate He specifically highlighted a renewed emphasis on for the Birmingham Edgbaston seat in the 2015 election, preventative medicine under the Conservatives, alongside finishing second to Labour’s . In healthcare reducing the overall number of QOF targets by 40 per policy, Dr Evans was appointed as the Conservative cent and rolling these into a global sum, including the Policy Forum’s Health Champion in 2018, leading on additional funding provided for GP practices and the grassroots policy outreach with under-represented 40 per cent cut to the number of QOF targets. He also groups within the party. provided a robust defence of GPs holding commissioning responsibility, saying: “After all, who better placed to make decisions about health and health provision than the clinicians themselves?”.

KATHERINE FLETCHER CONSERVATIVE, SOUTH RIBBLE (MAJORITY: 11,199)

South Ribble was previously the seat of Seema Katherine Fletcher is a businesswoman and has Kennedy, who served as Parliamentary Under Secretary previously worked in management and IT consulting. of State for Public Health and Primary Care in the She was previously a PPC in 2015, contesting Ellesmere Theresa May Government. South Ribble has become Port and Neston in Cheshire, where she lost to Labour’s an increasingly safe Conservative seat since it . During her time at University, where was claimed from the Labour Party in 2005. The she studied biology, Ms Fletcher was a nursing assistant constituency is covered by NHS Chorley and in an elderly care home. This experience, according to South Ribble CCG. her local Conservative party profile has given her an “understand[ing] of the importance of the NHS & social care services to us all”.

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ANTONY HIGGINBOTHAM CONSERVATIVES, BURNLEY (MAJORITY: 1,352)

Mr Higginbotham replaces former Labour MP Antony Higginbotham enters Parliament as the new Julie Cooper and sits as the first Conservative MP MP for Burnley. The 30-year old began his career in for the Constituency in over 100 years, since Gerald the NHS before moving into banking where he worked Arbuthnot in 1910. This seat is covered by the at NatWest to ensure the bank is prepared to help East CCG. customers following the UK’s exit from the EU.

DR NEIL HUDSON CONSERVATIVES, PENRITH AND THE BORDER (MAJORITY: 18,519)

Penrith and the Border has been a safe Tory seat Prior to his election to the Commons, Dr Hudson was since its creation in 1950, with five-figure majorities a practising equine vet from Edinburgh, where he is enjoyed by the Conservative incumbent for over thirty also the Programme Director for the Equine Science years. The constituency was represented by Rory postgraduate programme. Although his primary policy Stewart, the former Government Minister who left interests reflect his vocation: animal health and farming the Party to fight the London mayoral election as an affairs, Dr Hudson has expressed interest in areas of independent candidate. The seat is covered by NHS policy where there is a crossover. For example, Dr Hudson North Cumbria CCG and North Cumbria Health regularly tweets information about the importance of and Care System (ICS). vaccinations and anti-microbial resistance.

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IAN LEVY CONSERVATIVES, BLYTH VALLEY (MAJORITY: 712)

Ian Levy enters parliament as the first Conservative Prior to entering parliament Mr Levy worked as an NHS MP for Blyth Valley (Northumberland) since 1950. mental health nursing assistant. During the campaign, it His victory in the former mining area marked the first was claimed that he had potentially misrepresented his major shock of the 2019 election, which saw the Party role as that of a mental health nurse. win many traditional Labour-voting constituencies which had voted Leave in the EU referendum. The seat is covered by Northumberland CCG.

CARLA LOCKHART DUP, UPPER BANN (MAJORITY: 8,210)

A long-standing Unionist stronghold, Upper Bann Carla Lockhart, previously a DUP Member of the is one of the Democratic Unionist Party’s safest Legislative Assembly representing Upper Bann, was parliamentary constituencies, although Sinn Féin’s selected to contest the seat with the incumbent David vote share has grown there in recent years. Simpson stepping down. Ms Lockhart has had a strong The seat is covered by Southern Health and interest in health since her election to the Northern Social Care Trust. Ireland Assembly and is a member of All-Party Groups on Children and Young People, Autism, and Ageing and Older People.

Ms Lockhart has spoken out about the cystic fibrosis drug Orkambi, welcoming arrangements to ensure that patients can begin to be prescribed the drug on the NHS over the coming weeks. Ms Lockhart has also recently pledged to make young people’s mental health a priority if elected.

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DR CONSERVATIVES, CREWE AND NANTWICH (MAJORITY: 8,508)

Historically a Labour-held marginal, since its Workforce creation in 1983, Crewe and Nantwich was taken for Two of Dr Mullan’s three campaign priorities were the Conservatives for the first time at a by-election related to healthcare. He states that delivering an in 2008 by . Timpson held the seat increase in the number of GPs to serve a growing until 2017, when he was defeated by , a population is his primary focus. prominent and vocal supporter of Labour leader . Voting by more than 60 per cent to Social care Dr Mullan also states that one of his priorities is Leave the European Union, the constituency was one reforming the system of social care to deliver better of the Conservatives’ key targets in the 2019 election. treatment for older people. The constituency is covered by South Cheshire CCG.

An emergency medicine doctor by profession, Dr Kieran Mullan also has worked on NHS healthcare reform programmes. He has pledged to be a champion for local health services in Crewe and Nantwich, balancing this aim with the need to make best use of public funds.

TAIWO OWATEMI LABOUR, COVENTRY NORTH WEST (MAJORITY: 208)

The constituency covers six wards The NHS of the city of Coventry and has elected a Labour MP Ms Owatemi is a Senior Oncology Pharmacist, every election since its creation in 1974. From 1976 specialising in cancer and palliative care, and states until this election, the seat was represented by Geoffrey that working in the NHS was always her dream and she Robinson, a former owner of New Statesman. The area “loves getting to know the patients, and… developing is covered by Coventry and Rugby CCG, and there exactly the right medications for them personally”. The are plans for it to merge with the CCGs for South Pharmacists’ Defence Association publicly congratulated Warwickshire and North Warwickshire from April Ms Owatemi and noted that “parliament would be 2020, as part of the proposals for the region to stronger with more pharmacists and others who have become an integrated care system by April 2021. worked in the NHS serving as MPs”. Ms Owatemi has previously written on the potential impact of Brexit on Taiwo Owatemi, from London, won a shock selection the NHS and the availability of medicines. battle against a local candidate to be selected as the Labour Party candidate for Coventry Election priorities North West. , the outgoing MP for Of note, Ms Owatemi pledges that as a pharmacist she the constituency, has submitted a formal complaint to supports the Labour Party’s proposal to set up a publicly- Labour’s general secretary about the “shambolic and owned pharmaceutical producer to support the NHS, underhand nature” of the selection process in Coventry. outlined in the Medicines for the Many policy document A qualified pharmacist, Ms Owatemi interned for Sir unveiled at the Labour Party conference in September. and was previously the Vice Chair of the Young Fabian Health Network.

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SARAH OWEN LABOUR, LUTON NORTH (MAJORITY: 9,247)

A Labour seat since 1997. Luton North was considered Sarah Owen was a Trade Unionist and worked for one of the Party’s safest seats between 2005 and the GMB Union as the National Political Officer, and sat 2015. The seat is covered by NHS Luton CCG, which on Labour’s National Executive Committee. She was also is part of the Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Chair for the Chinese for Labour group. She previously Sustainability and Transformation Partnership. contested the and Rye seat in 2011 and 2015, finishing second to former Cabinet Minister on both occasions. Within healthcare, Ms Owen formerly worked as a community care worker, one of a number of roles she held in the public sector. Writing on her GMB blog, Ms Owen spoke about her experiences of having miscarriages, the first of which took place at a public meeting. In the blog, she added the importance of having supportive employment practices for parents going through the same ordeal.

DEAN RUSSELL CONSERVATIVES, WATFORD (MAJORITY: 4,433)

The Constituency of Watford has been represented Dean Russell and the NHS by Richard Harrington since 2010. Mr Harrington Dean Russell has provided strategic consultancy for the had the whip removed after he rebelled against the Department of Health, and undertaken a review of NHS Government Brexit. Mr Harrington had previously websites. He previously served as a founding Vice-Chair confirmed in August 2019 that he would not seek re- of the NHS Health Patient Reference Panel, the first election. The seat tends to be representative of national initiative to investigate how patients could access their results and only voted against the winning party twice Summary Care Records online. in its history (in 1951 and 1970). The Constituency is covered by Herts Valleys CCG. Mental Health Dean Russell is a strong advocate of mental health for Dean Russell has previously worked in communications young people, and actively supported a report developed and business, having founded the leadership and pitch by a youth council to inform local schools counselling consultancy Win That Pitch. He is also a former District provisions in Hertfordshire in 2010-2011. Councillor where he led a significant reform to create a Health & Wellbeing Partnership whose priorities were smoking cessation, physical activity, obesity, sexual health, alcohol and mental health. He has also written columns, articles and press interviews for relevant healthcare publications including the Health Service Journal and Third Sector magazine.

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SELAINE SAXBY CONSERVATIVES, DEVON NORTH (MAJORITY: 14,813)

Ms Saxby takes over the seat from Selaine Saxby, the new MP for North Devon, brings a its previous Conservative MP, Peter Heaton-Jones, range of experiences to her now role, including running who did not seek re-election in 2019 due to family small businesses, teaching maths and serving as Chief circumstances. The seat is covered by Devon CCG. of Staff to from Bath MP, . In addition, Ms Saxby founded a breast cancer campaigning fund, Pink Aerobics, which raised over £500,000 for breast cancer charities through aerobathons, which won her the Outstanding Contribution to a Breast Cancer Campaign Award, 2009.

AMANDA SOLLOWAY CONSERVATIVES, DERBY NORTH (MAJORITY: 2,540)

The seat of Derby North has been considered a Amanda Solloway has returned to Parliament as the swing seat since 2001, as since then the winner’s Conservative MP for Derby North, having briefly lost majority has not exceeded 8.6 per cent. Ms Solloway her seat to Labour between 2017–2019. During her stint has been elected with a majority of 5.4 per cent. outside of Westminster politics, she founded HeadHigh The seat is covered by Derby and Derbyshire CCG. in 2017, an organisation which seeks to address the stigma surrounding mental health. Prior to parliament, Solloway spent 30 years in retail and HR, working for Sainsbury’s and charities including Help the Aged and Save the Children.

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DR BEN SPENCER CONSERVATIVES, RUNNYMEDE AND WEYBRIDGE (MAJORITY: 18,270)

The seat, a merger of the constituencies of Chertsey “community outreach” and “prevention” in terms of and Walton and North West Surrey, which has been weight-loss and prevention of diabetes. represented by former Chancellor Phillip Hammond continuously since its creation in 1997. The Conservative Reform to mental health Aligned to his close interest in mental health services, majority has never dipped below 8,000 – making it one he has suggested that the 1983 Mental Health Act of the safest seats for the Party. The seat is covered by needs reform, and referenced his involvement on the the North West Surrey Clinical Commissioning Group, Independent Review which took place in 2018. In October and sits within the Surrey Heartlands Integrated 2018 Dr Spencer expressed concern that the “mental Care Partnership. health movement is now trying to protect young people Dr Spencer is a Consultant Psychiatrist, with a particular from all stress, any risk of failure, and the whole range interest in severe mental illness and decision-making of normal human emotions, dressed up as ensuring capacity. He has been Vice Chair of the Conservative good mental health”. Health group, and leads the organisation’s Mental Health Special Interest activity. In the 2017 election, Dr Spencer Changes to NHS workforce contracting contested Camberwell and Peckham – drawing on his Dr Spencer has written for CapX about the junior links to the area through his work as a registrar at King’s doctors contract, during which he suggested that College London and the Maudsley. Specifically within national contracts “cripple trusts’ ability to recruit healthcare, Dr Spencer has indicated he is supportive of: staff and compete with locum agencies”. He called for greater independence for NHS trusts to run their own Community pharmacy employment practices, by recruiting junior doctors Dr Spencer has previously suggested that community directly rather than through Health Education England. pharmacy could take over from GPs “in a lot of areas” on issues such as “long-term illness management”

MUNIRA WILSON LIBERAL DEMOCRATS, TWICKENHAM (MAJORITY: 14,121)

Over the past 20 years, Twickenham has been a solid healthcare policy and communications, Ms Wilson Lib Dem seat for Sir , with the exception of worked as a Political Assistant for Nick Clegg. the 2015 election when it was won by the Conservatives. Since her candidacy was announced, Ms Wilson Sir Vince won it back at the snap general election of expressed interest in improving mental health provision, 2017 with a healthy majority of just under 10,000, particularly for young people. She has also spoken out and the 2019 election sees it held on to by the Liberal against the idea that EU citizens would have to prove Democrats. It is covered by NHS Richmond CCG. their right to NHS care after Brexit, asking: “has it [the Since 2006, Ms Wilson has held public affairs positions Government] learned nothing from Windrush?... Speak at a number of healthcare related organisations, including to any NHS manager or doctor about how they will Beating Bowel Cancer, NHS Digital, Novartis and Merck. administer this policy, and many will tell you just how At Novartis, where she spent 6 years, she rose to Head unworkable and unethical it is. The job of NHS staff of Government Affairs. Most recently at Merck, she was is to ensure patients get treated, not to act like Corporate Affairs Director, UK & Ireland. Before entering border guards.”

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