Tuesday Volume 598 7 July 2015 No. 29 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Tuesday 7 July 2015 £5·00 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2015 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 159 7 JULY 2015 160 previous Parliament. I very much hope that his local House of Commons hospitals will be looking at that with due care and attention. Tuesday 7 July 2015 Mr Philip Hollobone (Kettering) (Con): Kettering The House met at half-past Eleven o’clock general hospital is looking to develop a £30 million urgent care hub—one of the first of its type in the PRAYERS country—to replace and enhance the accident and emergency department, which is under growing strain. This project enjoyed the support of the previous [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] Government. Will my hon. Friend agree to meet me and the two other MPs from north Northamptonshire to Oral Answers to Questions make sure that it remains on track? Ben Gummer: I very much look forward to meeting my hon. Friend and his colleagues, and I have already HEALTH committed to doing so. I hope that the lead he has taken with his colleagues in forging a cross-party consensus The Secretary of State was asked— will be copied across the House. Keith Vaz (Leicester East) (Lab): Each week, 1,000 Hospital Acute Services diabetics suffer hypoglycaemic attacks, which require urgent medical treatment and access to acute services. 1. Mark Garnier (Wyre Forest) (Con): What Does the Minister agree that better management of assessment he has made of the effectiveness of recent diabetes services by GPs will lessen the pressure on our reviews of acute services in hospitals. [900776] A&E services? The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health (Ben Gummer): The configuration of front-line health Ben Gummer: I do agree with the right hon. Gentleman, services is a matter for the local NHS. It is for NHS who is an expert in this field. We have a diabetes and commissioners and providers to work together with obesity strategy coming later in the year. The Under- local authorities, patients and the public to shape their Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Battersea local NHS in such a way as to improve the quality, (Jane Ellison), who is responsible for public health, will safety and sustainability of healthcare services. be leading that effort. Mark Garnier: The review of acute services in GP Appointments Worcestershire has taken nearly two years longer than anticipated, and that has had subsequent negative 2. Bridget Phillipson (Houghton and Sunderland South) implications for the health economy in Worcestershire. (Lab): What recent estimate he has made of the It is absolutely right that trusts carry out proper reviews proportion of patients who waited for at least one week from time to time, but has the system been written in for a GP appointment in the past 12 months. [900777] such a way that it creates imbalances that prevent a conclusion from being reached? What steps is my hon. The Secretary of State for Health (Mr Jeremy Hunt): Friend taking to bring in practical measures to expedite While we do not record the proportion of patients the conclusion of such reviews? waiting a week for their GP appointment, the latest GP patient survey results show that 85% of patients reported Ben Gummer: I agree that the process in Worcestershire that they were able to get an appointment to see or has taken too long. I am glad that the West Midlands speak to someone, and only a very small percentage Clinical Senate has made recommendations that are ended up not speaking to or seeing someone. being looked at by commissioners at the moment. I have encouraged commissioners to come to as quick a resolution Bridget Phillipson: Unfortunately, many of my as possible—I hope within the next few months. constituents would not recognise the picture that the Ian Austin (Dudley North) (Lab): Will the Minister Secretary of State seeks to paint. The British Medical conduct a review of car parking charges? Patients in Association recently said that waits of one to two weeks Dudley are absolutely furious after the people running were becoming the norm for patients. Why is it becoming Russells Hall hospital put up prices by as much as harder, on his watch, to get a GP appointment? 50% for a short stay. Will he get together with NHS civil servants and the people running the hospitals to sort Mr Hunt: If I may gently say so, the under-investment this out? in general practice has been going on for decades, according to the BMA and the Royal College of GPs. Mr Speaker: Because of the impact of parking charges We have announced that we are putting that right with on those seeking to access acute services. our plans to recruit 5,000 more GPs during this Parliament. That is the biggest increase in GPs in the history of the Ben Gummer: Thank you Mr Speaker—helpful as NHS, with £1 billion going to upgrade GP and primary ever. care premises, and 18 million people by the end of this The hon. Gentleman is entirely right that those who financial year benefiting from evening and weekend seek to access acute services on a regular basis require appointments. That is a big, positive change, and I hope special treatment. That is why we issued guidance in the she would welcome it. 161 Oral Answers7 JULY 2015 Oral Answers 162 David Tredinnick (Bosworth) (Con): Has my right my right hon. Friend describe how the success regime in hon. Friend had a chance to read the report by the the Plymouth and Devon area will build on those Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social achievements? Care, which says that pressure would be taken off doctors and nurses if greater use were made of the Mr Hunt: Absolutely; I had the pleasure and privilege 63,000 practitioners that it regulates on 17 separate of visiting Plymouth during the election campaign to registers covering 25 occupations? Will he look at the see some of the radical changes being offered in community report and write to me? care. There is huge enthusiasm for transforming the situation in Devon. It is a very challenged economy, but Mr Hunt: I am very happy to do that. My hon. by bringing together the health and social care system Friend is right to point out that the solution to the and by putting more resources into primary and out-of- problem is not just about expanding the number of hospital care we will be able to give a better service to appointments offered by GPs, although we are doing my hon. Friend’s constituents, which I know he will that; it is also about looking at the very important role welcome. that pharmacists and other allied health professionals have to play in out-of-hospital care. Andy Burnham (Leigh) (Lab): Ten years ago, this great city lived through one of the darkest days in its Dr Philippa Whitford (Central Ayrshire) (SNP): The history. Our thoughts today are with all those who were Secretary of State mentions recruiting 5,000 extra GPs, affected and we pay tribute to the heroic staff of London’s but I note in a recent speech that that was downgraded NHS, who did so much to help them. from a guarantee to a maximum. With 10% of trainee The latest GP patient survey is important for the posts unfilled and the BMA’s recent survey suggesting simple reason that it covers the first full year of the that a third of GPs will leave in the next five years, is Government’s GP access challenge fund. The results do that not going to be difficult? Has the Secretary of State not make good reading for the Secretary of State. The had any consultation with the BMA and the royal percentage of patients dissatisfied with their surgery’s college to ask why they are leaving? opening hours has increased and patients found it harder to get appointments last year than the year before. Will Mr Hunt: It will be difficult. The commitment has the Secretary of State admit that his policies are simply never been downgraded: we always said that we needed not working and that GP services are getting worse on about 10,000 more primary care staff, about half of his watch? whom we expected to be GPs. We have had extensive discussions about the issues surrounding general practice, Mr Hunt: First, I echo the right hon. Gentleman’s such as burn-out, the contractual conditions and comments about the extraordinary bravery of the emergency bureaucracy. We are looking at all of those things. The services, particularly the London Ambulance Service, in commitment is to increase the number of GPs by about response to the terrible tragedy of 7/7. 5,000 during the course of the Parliament, and that is a I do not accept the picture the right hon. Gentleman very important part of our plan to renew NHS care paints of general practice. The Prime Minister’s challenge arrangements. fund has been extremely successful: by the end of this year, 18 million people will be benefiting from the Dr Whitford: I assume the Secretary of State is aware opportunity to have evening, weekend and Skype that two of the pilot sites for the seven-day, 8 till appointments with their GP. We have also announced 8 working—one in north Yorkshire and the other in the biggest increase in the number of GPs in the history County Durham—have abandoned the project due to of the NHS.