Browse content similar to 22/02/2018. Check below for episodes and series from the same categories and more!
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supporting the autonomy of the
Kurdish region is important. But so | 0:00:00 | 0:00:00 | |
is supporting the right of the Iraqi
government to territorial integrity. | 0:00:00 | 0:00:08 | |
We now come to the second select
committee statement. He will speak | 0:00:08 | 0:00:14 | |
on this subject on this subject
during which are no interventions | 0:00:14 | 0:00:17 | |
will be taken. I will then call
members to ask questions in the | 0:00:17 | 0:00:21 | |
usual way. I called the chair of the
Justice committee. Thank you very | 0:00:21 | 0:00:26 | |
much, Deputy Speaker. This report
results from what was described by | 0:00:26 | 0:00:33 | |
Her Majesty 's Chief Inspector of
prisons as one of the worst | 0:00:33 | 0:00:36 | |
inspection reports of a prison he
had ever seen. It is to meet the | 0:00:36 | 0:00:41 | |
worst inspection report that our
committee had ever seen, and it is | 0:00:41 | 0:00:45 | |
because of the gravity of that
situation that we took the unique | 0:00:45 | 0:00:50 | |
step of holding a specific evidence
session into that individual | 0:00:50 | 0:00:52 | |
inquiry. Not only do it highlight
conditions which the Chief inspector | 0:00:52 | 0:00:58 | |
describes as squalid as Liverpool
prison, and a history of | 0:00:58 | 0:01:04 | |
deterioration over a two-year
period, and a history of failure of | 0:01:04 | 0:01:11 | |
management at a local national and
regional level over a period of | 0:01:11 | 0:01:14 | |
time, but also we believe it
highlights a number of systemic | 0:01:14 | 0:01:20 | |
problems which need to be addressed
by the Ministry and Her Majesty 's | 0:01:20 | 0:01:25 | |
prison and probation service. And
also, highlights the need for | 0:01:25 | 0:01:29 | |
approaching a fresh way in which we
deal with Her Majesty 's of prisons | 0:01:29 | 0:01:35 | |
is self. May I pay tribute to my
colleagues on the select committee, | 0:01:35 | 0:01:42 | |
a number of whom are present today,
for their work on this report? And I | 0:01:42 | 0:01:48 | |
may also welcome to his place my
Hons friend the Minister, and I | 0:01:48 | 0:01:53 | |
appreciate that he came and gave
evidence to our inquiry so early on | 0:01:53 | 0:01:57 | |
in his appointment to the posting
which he now serves. Can I briefly | 0:01:57 | 0:02:04 | |
outline the report against that
grave background? This was a | 0:02:04 | 0:02:08 | |
situation where Liverpool prison was
inspected in 2015. It was failing | 0:02:08 | 0:02:15 | |
them, it was a re-inspected again in
2017, it had got worse. Some of the | 0:02:15 | 0:02:22 | |
conditions, a man with a mental
health problems in a cell that was | 0:02:22 | 0:02:26 | |
not fit the habitation, and that
there was a serious maintenance | 0:02:26 | 0:02:30 | |
backlog, were in fact the
maintenance backlog had doubled from | 0:02:30 | 0:02:37 | |
1000 - 2000 over that period where
its marking the guess the various | 0:02:37 | 0:02:41 | |
tests have gone backwards indicate
not only was there a gross failure | 0:02:41 | 0:02:45 | |
of management locally and of
oversight at a regional and national | 0:02:45 | 0:02:50 | |
level, but also that the detailed
recommendations of Her Majesty 's | 0:02:50 | 0:02:54 | |
Inspectorate made in 2015 had not
properly been addressed, the first | 0:02:54 | 0:02:58 | |
systemic matter that we addressed.
It's pretty clear that the national | 0:02:58 | 0:03:03 | |
leadership was not the lurch to the
situation as to what was happening | 0:03:03 | 0:03:06 | |
on the ground. -- was not alert. The
head of the prison service told us | 0:03:06 | 0:03:12 | |
he had been informed by the local
management that some 60% of the | 0:03:12 | 0:03:18 | |
recommendations in 2015 were on
track to be met. That was wrong. In | 0:03:18 | 0:03:23 | |
fact, only 25% were met, 60% were
not met. The leadership nationally | 0:03:23 | 0:03:28 | |
was out of touch. When asked what
was the role for the deputy Minister | 0:03:28 | 0:03:35 | |
for corrections, who is supposed to
have oversight for 12 prisons in | 0:03:35 | 0:03:38 | |
that region, clearly there was
failure in communication but a | 0:03:38 | 0:03:42 | |
breakdown in the way the system
operates there. Secondly this is not | 0:03:42 | 0:03:45 | |
unique. The chief Inspectorate
indicated to us this is a regular | 0:03:45 | 0:03:52 | |
occurrence, that recommendations by
the Inspectorate are not acted upon. | 0:03:52 | 0:03:56 | |
The Minister rightly says to us that
much greater use should be made of | 0:03:56 | 0:04:02 | |
the Inspectorate's recommendations
to drive changes in behaviour, he is | 0:04:02 | 0:04:05 | |
right. We therefore recommend two
specific matters to make greater use | 0:04:05 | 0:04:10 | |
of that. Firstly at the moment, the
prison service marks its own | 0:04:10 | 0:04:14 | |
homework, that is not satisfactory
and can breed complacency. We | 0:04:14 | 0:04:18 | |
recommend the Inspectorate of
prisons can be given an additional | 0:04:18 | 0:04:23 | |
resource to follow up on the
implementation of their | 0:04:23 | 0:04:26 | |
recommendations and hold the prisons
to account. This is not a large sum | 0:04:26 | 0:04:30 | |
in the overall scheme of things,
perhaps one inspection team should | 0:04:30 | 0:04:34 | |
be sufficient to do that task and
the overall saving will be offset. | 0:04:34 | 0:04:40 | |
Secondly, ministers should take
personal responsibility for seeing | 0:04:40 | 0:04:42 | |
the inspection reports should be
acted upon and accounts to the House | 0:04:42 | 0:04:47 | |
for that perhaps through a letter to
the Justice select committee. The | 0:04:47 | 0:04:52 | |
first of our practical
recommendations which we believe | 0:04:52 | 0:04:53 | |
will offer a way forward. Secondly,
there is the whole question of the | 0:04:53 | 0:04:59 | |
oversight itself. Given that were
these failings, we believe that | 0:04:59 | 0:05:07 | |
greater work should be done on
ensuring transparency and | 0:05:07 | 0:05:10 | |
accountability of the above
establishment teams within the | 0:05:10 | 0:05:13 | |
Department. Thirdly, there was a
clear problem with the facilities | 0:05:13 | 0:05:19 | |
management contract. Not only had
the backlog got worse, it's pretty | 0:05:19 | 0:05:24 | |
clear that the basic issues which
should be picked up in the contract | 0:05:24 | 0:05:27 | |
were not done so. The fact we had
rats and cockroaches infest it | 0:05:27 | 0:05:32 | |
indicates the level of the problem.
We are not satisfied with the | 0:05:32 | 0:05:36 | |
explanations given for the failures
in that contract and we believe | 0:05:36 | 0:05:39 | |
there is need for greater
transparency. So, we recommend that | 0:05:39 | 0:05:43 | |
a major contracts, a national
contract, will be subject to a | 0:05:43 | 0:05:50 | |
public framework outlining the
expectations, performance of | 0:05:50 | 0:05:51 | |
penalties levies against the
providers of failure and if there | 0:05:51 | 0:05:55 | |
are penalties, they should frankly
be a system of naming and shaming | 0:05:55 | 0:06:00 | |
and a public notification of were
failures occur and how much penalty | 0:06:00 | 0:06:04 | |
is levied as a percentage of the
contract against the provider. | 0:06:04 | 0:06:08 | |
That's the point of outsourcing, to
drive changes in behaviour but we | 0:06:08 | 0:06:11 | |
need transparency and openness to do
that. We also noted that part of the | 0:06:11 | 0:06:17 | |
problem derives from persistent
overcrowding. Liverpool prison was | 0:06:17 | 0:06:21 | |
not understaffed, it was up to
establishment but it was nonetheless | 0:06:21 | 0:06:25 | |
pressed for numbers. So we recommend
the ministry and prison service | 0:06:25 | 0:06:30 | |
published a plan to resolve the
problem of persistent overcrowding | 0:06:30 | 0:06:35 | |
of the estate. The new governess for
Liverpool was clearly doing a | 0:06:35 | 0:06:42 | |
difficult job under difficult
circumstances but we need an overall | 0:06:42 | 0:06:45 | |
plan to deliver on overcrowding and
must aim to reduce the prison | 0:06:45 | 0:06:49 | |
population and or increase safe
capacity. Can't have it both ways. | 0:06:49 | 0:06:55 | |
We were also concerned with the poor
situation with health care | 0:06:55 | 0:06:59 | |
discovered at that stage. We were
glad to see commitments from the | 0:06:59 | 0:07:04 | |
prison services and NHS England
publish a partnership agreement as | 0:07:04 | 0:07:07 | |
to how they work together. The last
partnership however it expired in | 0:07:07 | 0:07:13 | |
April 2017 and a new one will not be
in place until 2018. A one-year gap | 0:07:13 | 0:07:19 | |
is not satisfactory and we need to
have steps taken to ensure that does | 0:07:19 | 0:07:22 | |
not happen again. And finally, we
need to have a commitment there to | 0:07:22 | 0:07:28 | |
make sure there is decent health
care. It was explained to us because | 0:07:28 | 0:07:32 | |
of the overcrowding and the nature
of the regime, frequently prisoners | 0:07:32 | 0:07:35 | |
could not be brought to health care
appointments from their cells. We | 0:07:35 | 0:07:40 | |
need a better approach to that.
Those are the principal | 0:07:40 | 0:07:44 | |
recommendations of our report which
I commence to the House. At the end | 0:07:44 | 0:07:49 | |
of the day, the decency of a society
is judged by the way in which it | 0:07:49 | 0:07:53 | |
treats those who offend against it
as much as the way it treats those | 0:07:53 | 0:07:58 | |
who do well by it. Liverpool failed
in that regard. We did not House | 0:07:58 | 0:08:03 | |
prisoners in the decent conditions
that boasts, humanity and our | 0:08:03 | 0:08:09 | |
international and domestic legal
obligations order that we should. | 0:08:09 | 0:08:14 | |
That failure cannot be allowed to
happen again. Making greater use of | 0:08:14 | 0:08:18 | |
the Inspectorate and its tools and
adopting our recommendations will I | 0:08:18 | 0:08:21 | |
hope be a constructive way forward
to assist the ministry in what I | 0:08:21 | 0:08:27 | |
entirely believe is his intention,
to get the basics right and | 0:08:27 | 0:08:32 | |
improving the prison service. In
that spirit, we put the report | 0:08:32 | 0:08:35 | |
before the House and commend it to
him. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Can I | 0:08:35 | 0:08:40 | |
welcome the committee report and
thank the chair of the select | 0:08:40 | 0:08:44 | |
committee for his quick decision to
hold an evident session on HM | 0:08:44 | 0:08:51 | |
peelable? I -- HMP Liverpool. I
commend his statements to hold this | 0:08:51 | 0:08:59 | |
to a camp in prisons fail. We lost
another life in prison this week, | 0:08:59 | 0:09:04 | |
Anthony Payne suffered with mental
health problems and died in his cell | 0:09:04 | 0:09:07 | |
on Monday. The report does not
mention in detail the failure to | 0:09:07 | 0:09:14 | |
invest in infrastructure, renovate
wings or loss and replacement of | 0:09:14 | 0:09:17 | |
prison officer numbers. And
critically, resources. Having seen | 0:09:17 | 0:09:22 | |
the prison with my own eyes, there
is no doubt these are basic but | 0:09:22 | 0:09:25 | |
expensive requirements. In a written
answer to me, the Minister says | 0:09:25 | 0:09:30 | |
there is no plan to publish the cost
or programme of urgent works at HMP | 0:09:30 | 0:09:34 | |
Liverpool. Will he agree with me
that is a vital we now have | 0:09:34 | 0:09:39 | |
transparency across our prison
network and the improvements that | 0:09:39 | 0:09:43 | |
are necessary, if we are to see a
real change? I'm grateful to the | 0:09:43 | 0:09:49 | |
Gentleman, I know he knows Liverpool
Wharton Jail, as often called | 0:09:49 | 0:09:53 | |
locally, very well. I entirely
understand the point of his remarks | 0:09:53 | 0:09:58 | |
and I hope the ministry will reflect
upon that. The whole thrust of our | 0:09:58 | 0:10:02 | |
report is to say we need to shine
the light on transparency and | 0:10:02 | 0:10:05 | |
publicity on these matters. We've
also in a separate piece of work | 0:10:05 | 0:10:10 | |
have in hand and enquiry into the
shape of the prison population by | 0:10:10 | 0:10:14 | |
2020 and part of that is again
dealing with overcrowding. Our | 0:10:14 | 0:10:20 | |
recommendation is part of that,
getting the fabric right is | 0:10:20 | 0:10:24 | |
necessary, Wharton Jail, Liverpool
prison is one of the old Victorian | 0:10:24 | 0:10:28 | |
prisons and there is a real need for
work done there. If we are | 0:10:28 | 0:10:33 | |
publishing the public framework
arena on facilities maintenance, I | 0:10:33 | 0:10:35 | |
don't see why we should be able to
have similar publicity about the | 0:10:35 | 0:10:39 | |
capital works. Thank you, deputy
Speaker. This is also a historic | 0:10:39 | 0:10:45 | |
opportunity. It's almost the first
time in more than 200 years of our | 0:10:45 | 0:10:52 | |
prison service in which we have had
an individual prison to base it on | 0:10:52 | 0:10:57 | |
the floor of the House. I'd like to
pay to reach to the Justice select | 0:10:57 | 0:11:02 | |
committee to bring this forward, the
situation in Liverpool prison was | 0:11:02 | 0:11:05 | |
genuinely shocking. It is very
disturbing and it's unbelievably | 0:11:05 | 0:11:10 | |
important that select committees,
inspectors, members of Parliament | 0:11:10 | 0:11:14 | |
hold us accountable for prisons.
These are closed communities, often | 0:11:14 | 0:11:18 | |
hidden away from the public. Often
in many areas, they can be forgotten | 0:11:18 | 0:11:25 | |
and without this scrutiny, standards
can drop and standards dropped very | 0:11:25 | 0:11:28 | |
seriously in the Liverpool prison.
The condition in itself is | 0:11:28 | 0:11:32 | |
unacceptable, the conditions with
which prisoners were treated was | 0:11:32 | 0:11:36 | |
unacceptable, the lack of purposeful
activity was unacceptable. We are | 0:11:36 | 0:11:41 | |
now addressing this very hard and
quickly, but there is still huge | 0:11:41 | 0:11:45 | |
lessons to be learned through the
system. I'd like to pay tribute to | 0:11:45 | 0:11:48 | |
the new governor. So, the new
governor has come in, she has taken | 0:11:48 | 0:11:53 | |
ourselves out of commission and is
very clear both that she has cleaned | 0:11:53 | 0:11:58 | |
the prison but also that her
objective over the next six months | 0:11:58 | 0:12:02 | |
is to get those cells into a smart,
good condition. We now have the | 0:12:02 | 0:12:07 | |
money in place to put new windows in
place and she is very focused on | 0:12:07 | 0:12:09 | |
making sure that the education and
employment activity is good. But | 0:12:09 | 0:12:15 | |
more generally, there are lessons
here right the way through the | 0:12:15 | 0:12:18 | |
prison system. We need to get the
basics right, there is no point | 0:12:18 | 0:12:23 | |
talking about rehabilitation or
dealing with reoffending and less we | 0:12:23 | 0:12:28 | |
have clean, decent safe spaces for
all prisoners. So, we want our | 0:12:28 | 0:12:33 | |
prisons to be smart and well
functioning. We're bringing in over | 0:12:33 | 0:12:37 | |
2000 more prison officers and that
will relieve some of the prison | 0:12:37 | 0:12:42 | |
estate pressures. But these are new
prison officers, they are going to | 0:12:42 | 0:12:48 | |
need training, the support until
they have the prison craft to be | 0:12:48 | 0:12:52 | |
able to deliver what we require.
More generally, we also need to | 0:12:52 | 0:12:57 | |
invest I believe a lot more in
training. Because prisons are | 0:12:57 | 0:13:02 | |
unbelievably complex environments,
the governor needs to have the | 0:13:02 | 0:13:05 | |
support, the training and I think
this could be months of training, to | 0:13:05 | 0:13:08 | |
make sure the governor is in
position to turn around the prison. | 0:13:08 | 0:13:13 | |
Training needs to apply to uniform
staff and finally the role of the | 0:13:13 | 0:13:18 | |
inspector in the select committee
will be vital in improving | 0:13:18 | 0:13:20 | |
performance. And he very much, Mr
Deputy Speaker. | 0:13:20 | 0:13:27 | |
I am grateful to the Minister for
that response. He was very much on | 0:13:27 | 0:13:30 | |
the case in recognising that we must
get basic things, basic willingness, | 0:13:30 | 0:13:36 | |
basic decency come a basic
maintenance, the ability to run a | 0:13:36 | 0:13:40 | |
regime where people can actually get
out to appointment is for health | 0:13:40 | 0:13:46 | |
care. All of that is critical.
Unless we turn those things around, | 0:13:46 | 0:13:50 | |
we face a crisis in our prisons. I
look forward to working with him on | 0:13:50 | 0:13:54 | |
those matters, especially if he will
take up our recommendations with | 0:13:54 | 0:13:58 | |
regards to the Inspectorate. I can
say that this is a case of a small | 0:13:58 | 0:14:06 | |
investment paying off in the
long-term. I rise to speak in my | 0:14:06 | 0:14:10 | |
role as co-chair of a Parliamentary
group. While I welcomed the report, | 0:14:10 | 0:14:18 | |
it is is that the Justice committee
did not take evidence from union | 0:14:18 | 0:14:25 | |
representatives. I understand that
maintenance contractors refused to | 0:14:25 | 0:14:31 | |
undertake pest control at HMP
Liverpool. The previous governor, | 0:14:31 | 0:14:36 | |
who is also not called to give
evidence, had to use is already hard | 0:14:36 | 0:14:40 | |
pushed Budget. The autonomy is a
convenient cover for the prison's | 0:14:40 | 0:14:52 | |
state. The select committee engaged
with the POA on a number of | 0:14:52 | 0:14:58 | |
occasions, and on an ongoing basis
will stop secondly, the issues in | 0:14:58 | 0:15:04 | |
relation to facilities maintenance
were examined in some detail as far | 0:15:04 | 0:15:07 | |
as that matter is concerned. We
indicate a report that we are not | 0:15:07 | 0:15:13 | |
satisfied with the outcome is and
intends to return to that. Thirdly, | 0:15:13 | 0:15:16 | |
it was specifically not the role to
examined the position of the | 0:15:16 | 0:15:22 | |
previous governor going forward. We
had evidence from the current | 0:15:22 | 0:15:33 | |
governor as to what is happening
now. We did not think that going | 0:15:33 | 0:15:36 | |
back into the history would be
constructive. We are trying to make | 0:15:36 | 0:15:42 | |
sure that this state of affairs does
not occur again. One of the most | 0:15:42 | 0:15:46 | |
distressing aspects of this report
is its relationship to health care. | 0:15:46 | 0:15:51 | |
My honourable friend has spoken
about health care. Does he, like me, | 0:15:51 | 0:15:58 | |
share the view that we have no
confidence in the partnership | 0:15:58 | 0:16:03 | |
agreement that is going to be
brought forward, because one thing | 0:16:03 | 0:16:06 | |
it will not do is to get prisoners
out of their cells to attend | 0:16:06 | 0:16:10 | |
appointments? He is right. I am
grateful to him for his work on the | 0:16:10 | 0:16:17 | |
select committee on this and many
other reports. That is why we are | 0:16:17 | 0:16:19 | |
calling for the partnership
agreement to be published, so we can | 0:16:19 | 0:16:25 | |
actually examine it. At the moment,
we cannot be satisfied it is fit for | 0:16:25 | 0:16:28 | |
purpose. Previous partnership
agreements have broken down, so we | 0:16:28 | 0:16:33 | |
need to know how this will be
different both in its structure and | 0:16:33 | 0:16:39 | |
how it will operate, to have the
reassurance we will not have a | 0:16:39 | 0:16:41 | |
repetition of what happened in the
past. Let me congratulate the chair | 0:16:41 | 0:16:48 | |
and the members of the committee for
what is an excellent and timely and | 0:16:48 | 0:16:52 | |
important report. If we are to move
out prison estate from being simply | 0:16:52 | 0:16:57 | |
places of detention in whatever
apparatus condition, to where | 0:16:57 | 0:17:07 | |
rehabilitation is key, which is what
prisons have to be. While this moves | 0:17:07 | 0:17:12 | |
us forward, we have a lot of journey
to travel. There does need to be | 0:17:12 | 0:17:17 | |
something that can reconcile whether
we are delivering the policy of | 0:17:17 | 0:17:22 | |
health care and education and all
the other things that are necessary | 0:17:22 | 0:17:26 | |
inside a prison to allow how young
men to come out and be acceptable | 0:17:26 | 0:17:30 | |
citizens.
He is absolutely right. I know how | 0:17:30 | 0:17:35 | |
closely he has followed this as a
police and crime Commissioner in his | 0:17:35 | 0:17:41 | |
part of the world. This is a useful
step forward, but I don't pretend it | 0:17:41 | 0:17:47 | |
can be more than that. It has to be
part of a system exchange, and I | 0:17:47 | 0:17:53 | |
hope it drives that. We have to look
at a long-term strategy of what the | 0:17:53 | 0:17:59 | |
purpose of our prisons is. I thank
him and his committee for their | 0:17:59 | 0:18:04 | |
report. When the Care Quality
Commission goes into investigate | 0:18:04 | 0:18:07 | |
local hospitals, it makes a
recommendation, and goes back at a | 0:18:07 | 0:18:10 | |
later date to see whether those
recommendations have been | 0:18:10 | 0:18:14 | |
implemented. I can't see why that
cannot take place with prisons. It | 0:18:14 | 0:18:20 | |
is alarming that the information
from the prison to the head of the | 0:18:20 | 0:18:26 | |
prison service was so inaccurate.
Given the speed of the report, witty | 0:18:26 | 0:18:29 | |
encourage the Minister to be equally
quick in responding to the findings | 0:18:29 | 0:18:34 | |
is committee has delivered? The
quick answers are yes, yes, yes and | 0:18:34 | 0:18:40 | |
yes. I'm sure the Minister will be
quick in doing that. I'm sure it | 0:18:40 | 0:18:59 | |
will be similar to an Ofsted report
or a CQC report where they will not | 0:19:01 | 0:19:06 | |
be ignored for very long. I thank
the committee for their quick action | 0:19:06 | 0:19:13 | |
and their quick reports. We must not
forget how we arrived at this | 0:19:13 | 0:19:15 | |
situation. Pleased about the
announcement sometime ago about | 0:19:15 | 0:19:21 | |
recruiting an extra 2500 prison
officers, but we must not forget we | 0:19:21 | 0:19:26 | |
lost 7000. there is a 4500 gap. The
nature of the inmates changed. We | 0:19:26 | 0:19:42 | |
have had all of the historical
sexual abuse cases, with different | 0:19:42 | 0:19:44 | |
health needs than and prisoners that
were already in prison. There have | 0:19:44 | 0:19:55 | |
been drains on the resources. At the
same time, the loss of those 7000 | 0:19:55 | 0:20:03 | |
meant there were spikes in drugs.
Morale went down with the loss of | 0:20:03 | 0:20:11 | |
those prison officers. When we
started to recruit, a baggage | 0:20:11 | 0:20:16 | |
handler could be paid more than a
new recruit. It is important that | 0:20:16 | 0:20:22 | |
when we do recruit, and we are
recruiting now, when we do recruit | 0:20:22 | 0:20:27 | |
that they are trained properly. Not
a week or something like that, but | 0:20:27 | 0:20:32 | |
months. It is resources that are
needed. Money is important, but it | 0:20:32 | 0:20:40 | |
is also how that money is used.
Contract management, there has been | 0:20:40 | 0:20:45 | |
absolutely no contract management
from what I can see. I called for a | 0:20:45 | 0:20:51 | |
debate on mental health in prisons,
and it didn't appear that there was | 0:20:51 | 0:20:57 | |
any communication between the
prisons and the Health Service. The | 0:20:57 | 0:21:01 | |
contract was awarded, money given,
no monitoring of the contracts. As | 0:21:01 | 0:21:05 | |
the chair of the Justice select
committee said, it is about systems, | 0:21:05 | 0:21:11 | |
about getting them right. It is also
about resources, getting the right | 0:21:11 | 0:21:16 | |
people in, training them. Excellent.
I very much welcome the honourable | 0:21:16 | 0:21:25 | |
lady back to the committee, where
she has served before. I am glad | 0:21:25 | 0:21:30 | |
she's back with us once more. It is
quite right that we have to look at | 0:21:30 | 0:21:35 | |
all of these issues, there is no
silver bullet to address that. We | 0:21:35 | 0:21:40 | |
need a comrade 's plan. I urge the
Government -- we need a | 0:21:40 | 0:21:46 | |
comprehensive plan. I look forward
to working to achieve that. | 0:21:46 | 0:21:55 | |
Staffing, resources, training,
morale, management and proper | 0:21:55 | 0:22:00 | |
contract management are all part of
the mix that we will need to | 0:22:00 | 0:22:02 | |
address. Motion number one on
estimates. Minister to move. Thank | 0:22:02 | 0:22:15 | |
you. The question is as the order
paper. There is a lot of enthusiasm | 0:22:15 | 0:22:27 | |
here! I'm not sure we need this
estimate. I think we will say the | 0:22:27 | 0:22:31 | |
ayes have it. We now come to the
backbench. A backbench motion on the | 0:22:31 | 0:22:40 | |
role of disabled people in economic
growth. Up to 15 minutes speaking. | 0:22:40 | 0:22:45 | |
Many thanks. I would like to pay to
be to give the backbench Business | 0:22:45 | 0:22:52 | |
Committee for enabling this
extremely important debate to take | 0:22:52 | 0:22:54 | |
place today. Mr Deputy Speaker,
before I begin, I want to pay | 0:22:54 | 0:23:00 | |
tribute to the many organisations
that continuously championed the | 0:23:00 | 0:23:06 | |
rights of people with disabilities
across the UK. Without their | 0:23:06 | 0:23:10 | |
injuring commitment, we would not be
debating this important issue today. | 0:23:10 | 0:23:14 | |
-- enduring commitment. I want to
pay to beach to Leonard Cheshire and | 0:23:14 | 0:23:21 | |
disability rights UK | 0:23:21 | 0:23:31 | |
pay to beach to Leonard Cheshire and
disability rights UK. There are | 0:23:31 | 0:23:35 | |
dedicated medics that contributed to
the all-party parliamentary groups | 0:23:35 | 0:23:41 | |
ahead of the enquiry report. Since
commissioning the report, the | 0:23:41 | 0:23:48 | |
disability all-party Parliamentary
group has been pressing the | 0:23:48 | 0:23:51 | |
Government to address the disability
employment gap as a matter of | 0:23:51 | 0:23:55 | |
urgency. I know the minister today
is open and willing to listen to the | 0:23:55 | 0:24:00 | |
report's suggestions. Mr Deputy
Speaker, the backbench debate is a | 0:24:00 | 0:24:06 | |
significant step forward in the
fight for equal rights for disabled | 0:24:06 | 0:24:11 | |
people. To my knowledge, this is the
first time that people with | 0:24:11 | 0:24:15 | |
disabilities will be debated in the
main chamber with a focus on their | 0:24:15 | 0:24:23 | |
abilities and as contributors to our
economy, not as employees but also | 0:24:23 | 0:24:27 | |
as entrepreneurs and business
leaders. Would she agree with me | 0:24:27 | 0:24:35 | |
that many employers need education,
particularly those with mental | 0:24:35 | 0:24:43 | |
health issues, as many employers are
scared or reluctant to take on such | 0:24:43 | 0:24:53 | |
issues. I thank him for his
contribution. I think it is an | 0:24:53 | 0:25:00 | |
extremely important contribution.
Just prior to this debate, only | 0:25:00 | 0:25:04 | |
yesterday, I was contacted by a
number of people and organisations | 0:25:04 | 0:25:08 | |
reminding me to highlight that very
issue. People with mental health | 0:25:08 | 0:25:12 | |
difficulties and people with not
apparent disabilities find it | 0:25:12 | 0:25:23 | |
difficult to raise awareness of
their disabilities and the | 0:25:23 | 0:25:25 | |
adjustments they require. We need
heightened awareness amongst | 0:25:25 | 0:25:31 | |
employers and Parliament, I may
suggest, to make sure that we can | 0:25:31 | 0:25:38 | |
harness the skills and potential of
everyone for our economy. I thank | 0:25:38 | 0:25:42 | |
the honourable gentleman. All too
often, people with disabilities are | 0:25:42 | 0:25:48 | |
portrayed as passive and and willing
to work. However, this could never | 0:25:48 | 0:25:52 | |
be further from the truth. I want to
use this debate to change the | 0:25:52 | 0:25:56 | |
narrative. I want to see meaningful
action rather than research and | 0:25:56 | 0:26:04 | |
rhetoric. I want to see a welfare
system that treats people with | 0:26:04 | 0:26:08 | |
disabilities as a willing and able
workforce. I want to see | 0:26:08 | 0:26:12 | |
improvements in current access
routes, the development of work | 0:26:12 | 0:26:18 | |
those cultures that reflect a
genuine appreciation on the part of | 0:26:18 | 0:26:22 | |
employers to the positive
contributions that people with | 0:26:22 | 0:26:26 | |
disabilities make. I want to see
accredited business schemes that no | 0:26:26 | 0:26:30 | |
further than ticking boxes. While I
might not be able to cover all of | 0:26:30 | 0:26:35 | |
these points in my speech today, I
know colleagues cross-party around | 0:26:35 | 0:26:38 | |
the benches will be passionately
advocating similar policy changes | 0:26:38 | 0:26:46 | |
and attitude changes which are much
needed. I hope the Minister will | 0:26:46 | 0:26:49 | |
take on board everyone's suggestions
here the date, and they will make | 0:26:49 | 0:26:54 | |
progress going forward. I want to
start my speech on a positive, | 0:26:54 | 0:27:00 | |
uplifting note. I have been
absolutely heartened hearing | 0:27:00 | 0:27:03 | |
accounts of disabled entrepreneurs,
employees and businesses that are | 0:27:03 | 0:27:08 | |
champions of their fields in the
past few weeks was dubbed I would | 0:27:08 | 0:27:14 | |
like to share some examples today. A
tech entrepreneur recently run an | 0:27:14 | 0:27:21 | |
award for disabled entrepreneurs,
run in conjunction with Leonard | 0:27:21 | 0:27:25 | |
Cheshire disability. After creating
a video diary app that supports | 0:27:25 | 0:27:30 | |
people to manage their mental
health, called Mental Snap. They can | 0:27:30 | 0:27:38 | |
rate their mood and named their
feelings. It is innovation at its | 0:27:38 | 0:27:45 | |
finest, I applaud her for creating
the app which will help so many | 0:27:45 | 0:27:50 | |
people moving forward. A business
leader that owns his own sock | 0:27:50 | 0:28:01 | |
company that made several million
pounds in its first year. Its owner | 0:28:01 | 0:28:05 | |
has Down's syndrome. He runs the
company in conjunction with his | 0:28:05 | 0:28:18 | |
father and is the face of the brand.
He is a business leader and manager. | 0:28:18 | 0:28:22 | |
Nearly a third of his staff have
disabilities. He is a businessman, | 0:28:22 | 0:28:31 | |
and therefore is looking for good | 0:28:31 | 0:28:35 | |
disabilities. He is a businessman,
and therefore is looking for good, | 0:28:35 | 0:28:36 | |
reliable workers, and he believes
the disabled community have a vast | 0:28:36 | 0:28:39 | |
and untapped pool of workers. There
are also benefits to a diverse | 0:28:39 | 0:28:46 | |
workforce. Channel 4 and Sainsbury
is a good examples of inclusive | 0:28:46 | 0:28:51 | |
employers. Sainsbury's and Channel
4's workplace adjustment guide is | 0:28:51 | 0:28:57 | |
second to none top both companies
choose to focus on positive aspects | 0:28:57 | 0:29:02 | |
of making adjustments, rather than
their legal duty and minimal | 0:29:02 | 0:29:07 | |
requirements to do so. Most
importantly, these policies are | 0:29:07 | 0:29:10 | |
dissed to be did to all line
managers so everyone is aware of the | 0:29:10 | 0:29:16 | |
adjustments they are entitled to
creating, and inclusive implement | 0:29:16 | 0:29:21 | |
and environment workforce so that
employees and the companies output | 0:29:21 | 0:29:26 | |
can thrive. | 0:29:26 | 0:29:30 | |
Channel 4 goes further by issuing
passports for employees after | 0:29:30 | 0:29:34 | |
receiving a workplace adjustment, so
when they move into a new roller or | 0:29:34 | 0:29:39 | |
perhaps their line manager changes,
the passport can be referred to and | 0:29:39 | 0:29:44 | |
used in all future discussions with
the new line managers. Whilst there | 0:29:44 | 0:29:48 | |
are many other great examples of
disabled business owners and | 0:29:48 | 0:29:53 | |
entrepreneurs and also inclusive
employers, I wanted to highlight | 0:29:53 | 0:29:57 | |
these particular three. Each example
shows that in every corner of our | 0:29:57 | 0:30:03 | |
economy, in every type and size of
business, inclusivity should be | 0:30:03 | 0:30:07 | |
championed. Not just for ethical
reasons, but also because it makes | 0:30:07 | 0:30:12 | |
good business and economic sense to
do so. I thank her for securing this | 0:30:12 | 0:30:21 | |
debate and also for the examples is
given about the good practices in | 0:30:21 | 0:30:25 | |
certain organisations, but is she
aware that only 16% of people with | 0:30:25 | 0:30:31 | |
autism are in full-time employment
and only 30% of autistic adults are | 0:30:31 | 0:30:36 | |
any kind of employment at all and
will she agreed with me much more | 0:30:36 | 0:30:38 | |
needs to be done to close the
employment gap in autism? I thank my | 0:30:38 | 0:30:45 | |
colleagues for that extremely
important intervention. And for | 0:30:45 | 0:30:51 | |
highlighting the autism employment
gap, which is far too large, much | 0:30:51 | 0:30:54 | |
larger even than the disability
employment gap. We much make extra | 0:30:54 | 0:31:00 | |
strides to support people with
autism into work because they have | 0:31:00 | 0:31:02 | |
great skills and abilities. And they
will be fantastic tribute to our | 0:31:02 | 0:31:09 | |
economy given appropriate
opportunities to do so. I'm grateful | 0:31:09 | 0:31:14 | |
for giving way and for securing this
important debate. I would like to | 0:31:14 | 0:31:18 | |
salute the work she does on
disability. I sit on the Work and | 0:31:18 | 0:31:26 | |
Pensions select committee and one of
the things we are looking at the | 0:31:26 | 0:31:29 | |
moment is how employers, work
coaches, and people with disability | 0:31:29 | 0:31:37 | |
can better understand the assistive
technology emerging. Does she think | 0:31:37 | 0:31:41 | |
that we could do more to bring those
three interested parties together to | 0:31:41 | 0:31:47 | |
help people to enter and stay in the
workforce? I thank him for a very | 0:31:47 | 0:31:52 | |
important intervention. I am not a
technical buff myself, but I'm | 0:31:52 | 0:31:57 | |
always heartened when we can see
technology assisting people to | 0:31:57 | 0:32:03 | |
achieve their potential into work
and I think it is extremely | 0:32:03 | 0:32:05 | |
important example he is giving. We
need collaboration to dig those | 0:32:05 | 0:32:09 | |
issues forward. Thank you. Mr Deputy
Speaker, examples of best practice | 0:32:09 | 0:32:16 | |
are exactly that, examples to aspire
to, and as uplifting as they are, | 0:32:16 | 0:32:20 | |
they are not a true reflection of
the experience of many disabled | 0:32:20 | 0:32:25 | |
people. They do not reflect the
systemic problems and barriers faced | 0:32:25 | 0:32:29 | |
by people with disability looking
for work or trying to retain it, and | 0:32:29 | 0:32:33 | |
it is time for Parliament to
question why these practices in | 0:32:33 | 0:32:36 | |
moving forward and in developing
inclusivity are not more | 0:32:36 | 0:32:40 | |
commonplace. In 2017, a report was
published which found that one in | 0:32:40 | 0:32:48 | |
two people with disabilities had
experienced bullying and harassment | 0:32:48 | 0:32:51 | |
in work and felt that they could no
longer take place in work | 0:32:51 | 0:32:57 | |
comfortably, and over half, 58%,
felt the risk of losing their jobs, | 0:32:57 | 0:33:02 | |
so not only is it about getting
people into work, but ensuring an | 0:33:02 | 0:33:06 | |
environment which maintains people
in work and helps them to achieve | 0:33:06 | 0:33:10 | |
their potential throughout. Disabled
people also have to apply for more | 0:33:10 | 0:33:16 | |
jobs than non-disabled people before
finding one. Research has indicated | 0:33:16 | 0:33:22 | |
almost up to 60% more jobs have to
be applied for. Lauren Pitt, in | 0:33:22 | 0:33:29 | |
2017, reported to the Independent
she had to apply for over 250 jobs | 0:33:29 | 0:33:34 | |
before securing one, so something is
obviously not working correctly and | 0:33:34 | 0:33:38 | |
we must ensure that employers are
open to employing people with | 0:33:38 | 0:33:43 | |
disabilities. Seeing their skills.
Seeing their ability and value to | 0:33:43 | 0:33:46 | |
the workplace and the economy. The
disability employment gap is large | 0:33:46 | 0:33:51 | |
and enduring for the most recent
figures from 2017 showed the gap | 0:33:51 | 0:33:58 | |
currently stands at 31.4%. 80% of
non-disabled people of working age | 0:33:58 | 0:34:04 | |
are in work, but the figure for
people with disabilities is just | 0:34:04 | 0:34:09 | |
49%. This has routinely been
recognised by the Government and, in | 0:34:09 | 0:34:14 | |
the 2015 manifesto, they committed
to having this disability employment | 0:34:14 | 0:34:18 | |
gap, but research from the all-party
Parliamentary group shows, on the | 0:34:18 | 0:34:23 | |
basis of progress to September 2016,
this would have taken 49 years to | 0:34:23 | 0:34:28 | |
achieve. The 2017 manifesto replaced
this commitment with a new | 0:34:28 | 0:34:35 | |
commitment to get 1 million more
disabled people into work in the | 0:34:35 | 0:34:37 | |
next ten years. Analysis shows this
new target is weaker and likely to | 0:34:37 | 0:34:43 | |
be met perhaps because of the number
of disabled people within the | 0:34:43 | 0:34:48 | |
working age population itself
increasing. This means that even | 0:34:48 | 0:34:51 | |
though local Government could meet
their new target, the size of the | 0:34:51 | 0:34:55 | |
disability employment gap may not
actually fall and this is something | 0:34:55 | 0:34:59 | |
that we must take account of. Most
of the Government's proposals for | 0:34:59 | 0:35:06 | |
reaching the more attainable
commitment are published within the | 0:35:06 | 0:35:08 | |
command paper improving lives, and
brief look at this paper shows | 0:35:08 | 0:35:13 | |
almost all of these policies are
dependent on further research and | 0:35:13 | 0:35:17 | |
pilot schemes and cost of very
little to run. So I would ask that | 0:35:17 | 0:35:21 | |
we have adequate resourcing and
prioritisation. We cannot afford to | 0:35:21 | 0:35:25 | |
sit and wait. Unemployed people with
disabilities are entitled to the | 0:35:25 | 0:35:32 | |
same opportunities now as everyone
else. Our economy cannot afford to | 0:35:32 | 0:35:36 | |
sit and wait either. Scope estimated
using the employment gap for | 0:35:36 | 0:35:43 | |
disability by just 10% and generate
a further £12 billion to the | 0:35:43 | 0:35:48 | |
exchequer by 2030, so this makes
absolute economic sense. Finding a | 0:35:48 | 0:35:53 | |
solution to the problem goes
significantly beyond the | 0:35:53 | 0:35:57 | |
Government's current focus on
welfare and benefits. Instead, we | 0:35:57 | 0:36:02 | |
will not see significant increases
in the number of disabled people in | 0:36:02 | 0:36:05 | |
employment unless employers can be
in courage to increase their game | 0:36:05 | 0:36:09 | |
and acknowledge the positive
contribution that people with | 0:36:09 | 0:36:12 | |
disabilities make in the workplace
and develop new workplace cultures | 0:36:12 | 0:36:15 | |
and practices that are
accommodating. Reasonable | 0:36:15 | 0:36:19 | |
adjustments are key. I will very
briefly... Very briefly, just to | 0:36:19 | 0:36:28 | |
support what she is saying about the
businesses, does she think that | 0:36:28 | 0:36:33 | |
there may be a case for having
larger employers report on the | 0:36:33 | 0:36:40 | |
proportion of their workforce that
has a disability, so that we can see | 0:36:40 | 0:36:43 | |
those larger employers that are not
pulling their weight and taking | 0:36:43 | 0:36:47 | |
advantage of the high quality
disabled employees in the market? | 0:36:47 | 0:36:53 | |
Yes, I agree entirely with the
honourable gentleman on that point, | 0:36:53 | 0:37:00 | |
and it is particularly concerning
that the Office for National | 0:37:00 | 0:37:03 | |
Statistics has suspended publication
of disability statistics from the | 0:37:03 | 0:37:06 | |
labour Force survey, so I think
that's something we should be | 0:37:06 | 0:37:09 | |
ensuring is taken forward. It is in
an employer's self-interest to make | 0:37:09 | 0:37:16 | |
a difference in this area, not least
because it gives a solution to the | 0:37:16 | 0:37:21 | |
labour market problems likely to
face the country in tighter controls | 0:37:21 | 0:37:25 | |
on the free movement of people. The
UK currently has a skills shortage | 0:37:25 | 0:37:29 | |
that will become more profound once
we leave the European Union. Indeed, | 0:37:29 | 0:37:35 | |
KPMG recently published figures
indicating almost 1 million EU | 0:37:35 | 0:37:39 | |
citizens, many highly qualified,
planning to leave following Brexit. | 0:37:39 | 0:37:45 | |
We already have a willing workforce
of people with disabilities whose | 0:37:45 | 0:37:50 | |
skills are undervalued, who should
be trained in sectors that are | 0:37:50 | 0:37:53 | |
developing and which are much needed
for the future. Health and tech | 0:37:53 | 0:37:59 | |
sectors are extremely important. It
is fundamentally a labour supply | 0:37:59 | 0:38:03 | |
issue full for the Government will
not be able to deliver on its | 0:38:03 | 0:38:08 | |
industrial strategy if it does not
have the capacity to do so. So we | 0:38:08 | 0:38:11 | |
need to train our working workforces
across the UK and see more | 0:38:11 | 0:38:18 | |
investment in apprenticeships and
targeted widespread advertising and | 0:38:18 | 0:38:21 | |
of current access to work schemes to
encourage the business community to | 0:38:21 | 0:38:26 | |
utilise their workforce. The new
commitment in the industrial | 0:38:26 | 0:38:30 | |
strategy is to increase the
proportion of apprenticeships | 0:38:30 | 0:38:32 | |
starting by people with disabilities
by 20% and I commend the Minister, | 0:38:32 | 0:38:38 | |
but it is not enough, it is part of
the solution. The Government | 0:38:38 | 0:38:44 | |
acknowledges this critical role for
employers but its main policy with | 0:38:44 | 0:38:46 | |
regards to this is to encourage or
employers to sign up to confidence | 0:38:46 | 0:38:51 | |
schemes forth as I've argued
previously in Parliament, the | 0:38:51 | 0:38:55 | |
evidence from disability confidence
is variable, it shows the scheme | 0:38:55 | 0:39:00 | |
does not refer enough and result in
enough people being employed and it | 0:39:00 | 0:39:04 | |
is particularly worrying therefore
that improving lives command paper | 0:39:04 | 0:39:07 | |
uses this scheme is one of its
central policies for achieving | 0:39:07 | 0:39:10 | |
targets. The all-party Parliamentary
group points out a number of | 0:39:10 | 0:39:16 | |
alternative bold new policy
initiatives the Government should | 0:39:16 | 0:39:19 | |
pursue. These include using public
film and contracts as leveraged by | 0:39:19 | 0:39:24 | |
stipulating that such contracts will
only go to firms which monitor | 0:39:24 | 0:39:28 | |
disabled people's employment and
commit to adopting an inclusive | 0:39:28 | 0:39:34 | |
approach to employment and retention
policies and to that end, Government | 0:39:34 | 0:39:37 | |
initiatives should think of people
with disabilities not just as | 0:39:37 | 0:39:41 | |
employees but entrepreneurs and
business leaders also. The | 0:39:41 | 0:39:45 | |
Government must ensure disabled
entrepreneurs receive the support | 0:39:45 | 0:39:47 | |
they need from business advisory
networks such as the Federation of | 0:39:47 | 0:39:52 | |
businesses and local chambers of
commerce. And the financial support | 0:39:52 | 0:39:55 | |
that they need from bodies such as
innovate UK and the British business | 0:39:55 | 0:40:00 | |
bank. Mr Deputy Speaker, I refer to
two examples of entrepreneurs with | 0:40:00 | 0:40:06 | |
disabilities Ilia and the notion
disabled people can be business | 0:40:06 | 0:40:09 | |
owners and entrepreneurs as one as
employees was completely missed by | 0:40:09 | 0:40:13 | |
the improving lives paper. We must
ensure disabled people are not | 0:40:13 | 0:40:18 | |
pigeonholed into one sector and have
the opportunity to choose their own | 0:40:18 | 0:40:22 | |
future and be masters of their
lives, and that is why the access to | 0:40:22 | 0:40:26 | |
work scheme should also apply to
start-ups, to accommodate the talent | 0:40:26 | 0:40:30 | |
and innovation of people with
disabilities. The Government must go | 0:40:30 | 0:40:35 | |
further and find a specialist advice
services about taxation and benefits | 0:40:35 | 0:40:39 | |
for people with disabilities who
want to explore the opportunities of | 0:40:39 | 0:40:43 | |
self-employment. As I have laid out
today, the solutions are there and | 0:40:43 | 0:40:48 | |
every corner of the economy, if
action is taken the benefits could | 0:40:48 | 0:40:54 | |
be felt by all in society
immediately but for this to happen | 0:40:54 | 0:40:57 | |
we need to change the current
narrative so that good policy is put | 0:40:57 | 0:41:03 | |
into practice. So my constituents
and those of other honourable | 0:41:03 | 0:41:06 | |
members throughout the land
recognise that we do need to tap | 0:41:06 | 0:41:11 | |
into the underutilised and important
human resource of people with | 0:41:11 | 0:41:14 | |
disabilities who are willing and
able to work. The workforce is there | 0:41:14 | 0:41:18 | |
and ready and it will only grow when
we leave the European Union. It in | 0:41:18 | 0:41:25 | |
the self-interest of employers,
Government, of everyone to engage | 0:41:25 | 0:41:29 | |
with this agenda and to accommodate
a diverse and inclusive workforce. | 0:41:29 | 0:41:37 | |
There are far too many disabled
people who are facing no real | 0:41:37 | 0:41:40 | |
prospect in today's job market. This
is simply unsustainable and, quite | 0:41:40 | 0:41:48 | |
frankly, bad economics. So I am
pleased to have been able to bring | 0:41:48 | 0:41:50 | |
this debate to the chamber today and
I look forward to hearing from other | 0:41:50 | 0:41:56 | |
colleagues's experiences and I look
forward to working together as part | 0:41:56 | 0:42:01 | |
of the Parliamentary group for
disability across the House in | 0:42:01 | 0:42:04 | |
taking this extremely important
issue forward. The question is as on | 0:42:04 | 0:42:09 | |
the order paper. Thank you, Mr
Deputy Speaker Fulston I shall try | 0:42:09 | 0:42:14 | |
to be better behaved today. I'm
truly grateful to the honourable | 0:42:14 | 0:42:18 | |
lady for East Kilbride for leading
this afternoon 's debate and for the | 0:42:18 | 0:42:21 | |
tone she strikes and her
constructive ideas. This follows a | 0:42:21 | 0:42:24 | |
valuable Westminster board debate
tabled by the Member for South | 0:42:24 | 0:42:29 | |
Perthshire on the government's
disability confidence scheme which | 0:42:29 | 0:42:31 | |
she also made a thoughtful
contribution to. During that debate, | 0:42:31 | 0:42:34 | |
members highlighted some of the
economic opportunities before us if | 0:42:34 | 0:42:38 | |
we increased participation of
disabled people in the workplace. We | 0:42:38 | 0:42:41 | |
also focused on barriers to
employment, the disability | 0:42:41 | 0:42:44 | |
employment gap, and the access to
work scheme and as such, I shan't go | 0:42:44 | 0:42:48 | |
into the subject again be on
suggesting that the disability | 0:42:48 | 0:42:51 | |
employment gap is an issue every
business and other workforce diverse | 0:42:51 | 0:42:55 | |
have as a challenge. That a lack of
employment awareness of the support | 0:42:55 | 0:43:01 | |
available and we ought to lead in
publicising the Government | 0:43:01 | 0:43:04 | |
assistance and in this vein I have
now signed up as a disability | 0:43:04 | 0:43:07 | |
employer and have discussed at my
local job centre the possibility of | 0:43:07 | 0:43:11 | |
offering a work placement for local
disabled job-seekers with an | 0:43:11 | 0:43:13 | |
interest in politics. This afternoon
however I wish to focus on economic | 0:43:13 | 0:43:18 | |
costs if we fail to unlock the
potential of disabled people of all | 0:43:18 | 0:43:22 | |
ages as well as economic power of
disabled people as both an active | 0:43:22 | 0:43:25 | |
consumer group and as a motivation
to develop new assisted technologies | 0:43:25 | 0:43:29 | |
with broader application to a
growing elderly population. I have | 0:43:29 | 0:43:33 | |
previously highlighted the case love
two artistic constituents who | 0:43:33 | 0:43:36 | |
desperately want to work but
struggle with the initial stage of | 0:43:36 | 0:43:39 | |
any new job. But in the past few
weeks I've met families of autistic | 0:43:39 | 0:43:43 | |
children who believe that early | 0:43:43 | 0:43:55 | |
support intervention as Woody must
be focusing our attention. I | 0:43:56 | 0:43:58 | |
recently visited first step, local
charity which provide intensive | 0:43:58 | 0:44:00 | |
development full support to
preschool children. It can be a huge | 0:44:00 | 0:44:02 | |
shock to parents to discover their
child has a disability. It they | 0:44:02 | 0:44:04 | |
assess and not just the development
of a child of supporting parents | 0:44:04 | 0:44:07 | |
themselves in a very non-judgemental
environment. Caring for a child | 0:44:07 | 0:44:09 | |
disabilities conveys a huge
financial strain on a family | 0:44:09 | 0:44:11 | |
particular parents need to take time
off work and do not have the right | 0:44:11 | 0:44:13 | |
support network in place. However,
in the words of one local parent, a | 0:44:13 | 0:44:16 | |
failure to develop a child is not
only a moral mistake, but also an | 0:44:16 | 0:44:20 | |
expensive financial one. | 0:44:20 | 0:44:27 | |
With no support, they will be left
in adult daycare centres or worse. | 0:44:27 | 0:44:31 | |
Too often, local authority support
is either entirely absent or limited | 0:44:31 | 0:44:36 | |
and patchy. It increases the chance
of economic participation when that | 0:44:36 | 0:44:47 | |
child reaches adult hood and reduces
the need for adult services later in | 0:44:47 | 0:44:51 | |
life. We also need steady
improvements to the transport | 0:44:51 | 0:44:56 | |
system. The less daunting it is to
leave home, the more disabled people | 0:44:56 | 0:45:00 | |
will be able to participate in the
economy by working and spending. I | 0:45:00 | 0:45:06 | |
support several campaigns. I would
be appreciative if the Minister | 0:45:06 | 0:45:13 | |
could apply pressure on the Mayor of
London to improve facilities. | 0:45:13 | 0:45:30 | |
Finally, with the advent of new
assistive technologies, there is | 0:45:30 | 0:45:34 | |
greater scope than ever before for
disabled people to contribute to | 0:45:34 | 0:45:39 | |
growth. As the financial Times
suggested in a recent article, 1 | 0:45:39 | 0:45:46 | |
billion people across the world have
some form of disability. As people | 0:45:46 | 0:45:49 | |
live longer, often with conditions
that reduce their ability to use | 0:45:49 | 0:45:54 | |
their hands or coordinate, the
market will grow sharply, meaning | 0:45:54 | 0:45:58 | |
that accessibility is important. | 0:45:58 | 0:46:09 | |
Technology will be vital not just in
terms of quality-of-life but in | 0:46:12 | 0:46:14 | |
making it easier for disabled people
to participate fully in the | 0:46:14 | 0:46:17 | |
workforce. Disability sport has in
recent years been critical of | 0:46:17 | 0:46:25 | |
changing perceptions of people with
disabilities. I hope that | 0:46:25 | 0:46:29 | |
technological advances could help
but Judge -- help that trajectory. | 0:46:29 | 0:46:45 | |
I should be most grateful to the
Minister if she could update the | 0:46:45 | 0:46:48 | |
House on how the Government is
promoting accessibility, and would | 0:46:48 | 0:46:54 | |
also appreciate her views on early
investment and transport. I would | 0:46:54 | 0:47:04 | |
like to pay tribute to my honourable
friend, the chair. It is an issue on | 0:47:04 | 0:47:18 | |
and off that I've been working in
for over 20 years. So it's quite | 0:47:18 | 0:47:23 | |
interesting to see that, despite all
the efforts that many people have | 0:47:23 | 0:47:28 | |
made over the years, we have just
under 4 million people with | 0:47:28 | 0:47:33 | |
disabilities that are called
economically inactive, which means | 0:47:33 | 0:47:38 | |
they are of a working age to be
implied but are not. -- to be | 0:47:38 | 0:47:44 | |
employed. I have been working with
people to support John Major in | 0:47:44 | 0:47:52 | |
getting the DDA, which is a game
changer. This meant there was a | 0:47:52 | 0:48:01 | |
regulatory framework, meaning you
could not discriminate against | 0:48:01 | 0:48:05 | |
disabled people in goods and
services educate not discriminate | 0:48:05 | 0:48:09 | |
against people in employment. The
reason that was a game changer as | 0:48:09 | 0:48:18 | |
often discrimination is tacit and
nuanced. It could be the poor you | 0:48:18 | 0:48:26 | |
model, you poor, brave disabled
person. We don't mean to do that, it | 0:48:26 | 0:48:36 | |
is part of human nature, a lack of
understanding. It can be difficult | 0:48:36 | 0:48:41 | |
to break through. It still can be,
sadly, although I do believe there | 0:48:41 | 0:48:45 | |
has been some progress over the
years. One area of the DDA that | 0:48:45 | 0:48:51 | |
worked well this on goods and
services. The reason for that is if | 0:48:51 | 0:48:56 | |
I'm in arrest and and I don't put a
ramp outside -- if I own a | 0:48:56 | 0:49:04 | |
restaurant, and I don't put a wrap
outside and someone with a | 0:49:04 | 0:49:08 | |
wheelchair cannot get in, they can
sue me. Often when you make | 0:49:08 | 0:49:19 | |
something accessible, you make more
than enough money to pay for the | 0:49:19 | 0:49:21 | |
cost of the access ability. It is
harder with employment. Particularly | 0:49:21 | 0:49:29 | |
if you are disabled and you are
applying for a job. If you are | 0:49:29 | 0:49:33 | |
someone who works for a company and
acquire a disability, the DDA and | 0:49:33 | 0:49:39 | |
also the broader knowledge now, I
think, means that businesses, either | 0:49:39 | 0:49:46 | |
in the public or private sector, are
likely to make the necessary effort | 0:49:46 | 0:49:49 | |
to keep you in the job. What is
harder is if you have a disability | 0:49:49 | 0:49:58 | |
is to get over the threshold to get
that job. That is a difficult one. | 0:49:58 | 0:50:03 | |
It is something that I struggled
with many years ago, with some very | 0:50:03 | 0:50:07 | |
good disability consultants who have
done so much over the years. The | 0:50:07 | 0:50:23 | |
four of us work for many years in
this area with the employers Forum | 0:50:23 | 0:50:29 | |
on disability and others to try to
break through. It was difficult. It | 0:50:29 | 0:50:35 | |
is interesting since I've lost the
election, been away at a comeback, | 0:50:35 | 0:50:40 | |
and again the committee is going
great guns. To be honest, Mr Deputy | 0:50:40 | 0:50:55 | |
Speaker, I still feel a little bit
downhearted. It is not my nature. | 0:50:55 | 0:50:59 | |
Anyone who is liberal and
downhearted is in the wrong party, | 0:50:59 | 0:51:03 | |
they are in the wrong party. You
have to be an optimist was. It can | 0:51:03 | 0:51:15 | |
be a game changer. One of the
utility companies, one of the big | 0:51:15 | 0:51:23 | |
ones, had a call centre in north
London. I'm sure the members of the | 0:51:23 | 0:51:32 | |
House no that they turn over you
have in call centres is very high | 0:51:32 | 0:51:37 | |
because it is a difficult job. With
a number of others, I worked with | 0:51:37 | 0:51:42 | |
this utility to persuade them to
take on 15 people with disabilities | 0:51:42 | 0:51:48 | |
as call centre agents. It was hard
work, but to give them that you | 0:51:48 | 0:52:03 | |
, they did their best. People often
just left the carpet and sweep | 0:52:04 | 0:52:10 | |
people with disabilities under the
carpet. That is something that I | 0:52:10 | 0:52:16 | |
found very frustrating and it made
me very angry. With this call | 0:52:16 | 0:52:23 | |
centre, they did finally agree, and
we found the right number of | 0:52:23 | 0:52:28 | |
disabled staff to be interviewed, 15
or so were hired. What I can tell | 0:52:28 | 0:52:37 | |
you is that, a year later, 14 of
them were still there. Two years | 0:52:37 | 0:52:43 | |
later, there were still 14 of them.
One of the fundamental advantages of | 0:52:43 | 0:52:48 | |
hiring disabled staff, in my view,
is that they will actually offer me | 0:52:48 | 0:52:53 | |
more reliable work than non-disabled
people. It makes the business case | 0:52:53 | 0:53:01 | |
for hiring disabled people very
strong. They will need some | 0:53:01 | 0:53:06 | |
guidance, some support, not least
because their disability, take my | 0:53:06 | 0:53:13 | |
own disability of hearing loss, I
need a hearing loop. It is a matter | 0:53:13 | 0:53:20 | |
of providing the right facilities
for that disabled person so they can | 0:53:20 | 0:53:28 | |
shine. The bigger issue is the quiet
discrimination of either they're not | 0:53:28 | 0:53:37 | |
being capable or, you don't have to
deal the situation, and those things | 0:53:37 | 0:53:45 | |
are difficult to change. So where
are we at? The report on improving | 0:53:45 | 0:53:52 | |
lives is important because it
highlighted some of the figures. 3.7 | 0:53:52 | 0:53:57 | |
million economically inactive, as I
mentioned. Another figure was that | 0:53:57 | 0:54:00 | |
if you take out 1% of ESA, of
disabled people not receiving ESA | 0:54:00 | 0:54:08 | |
because they have gained employment,
it would save the Exchequer 250 | 0:54:08 | 0:54:14 | |
million and boost the economy by a
further 260 million. So half £8 | 0:54:14 | 0:54:20 | |
billion. That seems important for
making that bit of extra help to get | 0:54:20 | 0:54:28 | |
people into jobs. -- half a billion
pounds. I have already mentioned the | 0:54:28 | 0:54:35 | |
disability challenges, but if you
have been out of work for many years | 0:54:35 | 0:54:38 | |
it is hard to get back into work.
With the right levels of support, it | 0:54:38 | 0:54:43 | |
is transformational for those
individuals and their families. A | 0:54:43 | 0:54:48 | |
recent report by Joseph Rowntree
found that half of households in | 0:54:48 | 0:54:54 | |
poverty have at least one disabled
member of the House. It is one of | 0:54:54 | 0:54:58 | |
the reasons why we know that getting
people into jobs and out of the | 0:54:58 | 0:55:06 | |
cycle of poverty is the key reason
we're here. Is not just enough to | 0:55:06 | 0:55:19 | |
say we need things. I have been here
four years. Well-meaning isn't | 0:55:19 | 0:55:23 | |
enough. It needs regulation. The
DDA, the of conservative Prime | 0:55:23 | 0:55:33 | |
Minister John Major introduced ...
I'm tremendously grateful for what | 0:55:33 | 0:55:43 | |
he did. It allowed for change. When
you have emotional attitudes, you | 0:55:43 | 0:55:51 | |
often don't realise that you could
be wrong or you could be | 0:55:51 | 0:55:54 | |
discriminating. That is why there
are certain times, even as a | 0:55:54 | 0:56:01 | |
liberal, you need to bring in
legislation. DDA is one, seat belt | 0:56:01 | 0:56:10 | |
is another. I have been here long
enough to remember the uproar around | 0:56:10 | 0:56:14 | |
seat belts. You had to wear a seat
belt, if not you got busted by the | 0:56:14 | 0:56:17 | |
law was up since then, the number of
people dying from car accidents has | 0:56:17 | 0:56:24 | |
plummeted. It is the same with
disability. What we need more with | 0:56:24 | 0:56:33 | |
the DDA, I believe is the need to be
greater incentives for people to | 0:56:33 | 0:56:47 | |
recruit disabled people. You need to
be as perceptive as this to break | 0:56:47 | 0:56:50 | |
this logjam. I think the need for it
is more than ever because, with | 0:56:50 | 0:56:55 | |
Brexit, whatever side of the divide
we sit on, we know that there will | 0:56:55 | 0:56:59 | |
be substantial people's shortages in
employment in the coming years. A | 0:56:59 | 0:57:07 | |
recent report identified that Tier
two occupations, there would be 32 | 0:57:07 | 0:57:14 | |
areas of Shoreditch of staff. -- of
of shortage staff. | 0:57:14 | 0:57:28 | |
I think this government's decision
to change the work-related component | 0:57:31 | 0:57:39 | |
of ESA to mean that they would
receive a lot less money than they | 0:57:39 | 0:57:43 | |
had earlier is a really foolish and
short-sighted decision. There are | 0:57:43 | 0:57:48 | |
three areas of ESA, the support
group which means you have a | 0:57:48 | 0:57:52 | |
disability that is such that you
cannot work, and then their risk | 0:57:52 | 0:57:58 | |
basic ESA at the front end and in
the middle there was something which | 0:57:58 | 0:58:06 | |
recognised a disability that Pete
extra money above and beyond the | 0:58:06 | 0:58:10 | |
normal jobseeker's allowance because
it saw that your disability meant | 0:58:10 | 0:58:13 | |
that you faced further costs. It
also recognised you are ready to | 0:58:13 | 0:58:19 | |
work with support. You got people
into that frame of mind where they | 0:58:19 | 0:58:26 | |
were ready to take a risk, to leave
the structure of support ESA. Then, | 0:58:26 | 0:58:36 | |
after the coalition and the Liberals
were given a straight edge, George | 0:58:36 | 0:58:41 | |
Osborne quickly cut it. It was cut
by 30%. -- the Liberals were given a | 0:58:41 | 0:58:59 | |
defenestrated. If I did go for a
job, never underestimate how strong | 0:59:03 | 0:59:11 | |
fear is in those situations. With
edible encouragement, I will step | 0:59:11 | 0:59:15 | |
into the component, and a properly
tell me I am having my salary cut by | 0:59:15 | 0:59:22 | |
30%. I will do whatever it takes to
stay in the support group because | 0:59:22 | 0:59:26 | |
that is human nature. It is not
rocket science, it is what you would | 0:59:26 | 0:59:33 | |
do. It is what I would do, even
someone as intrepid as you would do | 0:59:33 | 0:59:37 | |
that, Mr Speaker. Because you can be
sure you have the money for the roof | 0:59:37 | 0:59:44 | |
over your head and your children. It
was a foolish idea, and I'm bitterly | 0:59:44 | 0:59:50 | |
disappointed the Government did it.
Clearly, not surprisingly, and I | 0:59:50 | 0:59:54 | |
know from my own constituency
mailbag, I have people try to get | 0:59:54 | 1:00:03 | |
back into the support group. I
support them. | 1:00:03 | 1:00:09 | |
I would like the disabilities
minister to address that and perhaps | 1:00:09 | 1:00:13 | |
take that to the Chancellor that it
was a bad idea and we can change it. | 1:00:13 | 1:00:18 | |
Finally, where are we act? Again,
I'm very grateful for the honourable | 1:00:18 | 1:00:26 | |
member for East Kilbride bring this
debate. It's important. It affects | 1:00:26 | 1:00:33 | |
hundreds and hundreds of thousands
of people across the country. | 1:00:33 | 1:00:36 | |
There's not an MP in this House who
will not have hundreds if not | 1:00:36 | 1:00:40 | |
thousands of disabled people in
their constituency. It is so | 1:00:40 | 1:00:45 | |
important. We know in this room, in
this chamber from our own casework | 1:00:45 | 1:00:49 | |
levels just how many people with
disabilities come and for help and | 1:00:49 | 1:00:52 | |
support. I would just love to see
this Government or a Government step | 1:00:52 | 1:01:01 | |
up and just do a DDA part to around
employment that absolutely said | 1:01:01 | 1:01:09 | |
businesses, private and public
sector, organisations, charities | 1:01:09 | 1:01:11 | |
have to do so and employ ex-member
of disabled people, to at least show | 1:01:11 | 1:01:22 | |
because I don't want it to be
tokenistic, people are disabilities | 1:01:22 | 1:01:27 | |
have tremendous skills about
opportunity, so maybe it would be | 1:01:27 | 1:01:30 | |
pleased to show you have systems and
processes that you have interviewed | 1:01:30 | 1:01:37 | |
a record number of people for every
job with disabilities. I know if | 1:01:37 | 1:01:42 | |
that happens, it will transform I
think the employment opportunities | 1:01:42 | 1:01:49 | |
for disabled people, it will
transform many, many millions of | 1:01:49 | 1:01:53 | |
families because of the poverty are
a lot of people live in, where one | 1:01:53 | 1:02:01 | |
or both parents are disabled, it be
a game changer that this nation | 1:02:01 | 1:02:05 | |
deserves and with Brexit coming up,
it could be possibly something | 1:02:05 | 1:02:09 | |
positive to come out from Brexit.
Many thanks, Mr Deputy Speaker. | 1:02:09 | 1:02:14 | |
Thank you very much. I thank the
honourable lady for East Kilbride | 1:02:14 | 1:02:21 | |
for bringing this backbench debate
to the size. I'd also like to pay | 1:02:21 | 1:02:27 | |
tribute to my honourable friend the
Member for Hornchurch and Upminster | 1:02:27 | 1:02:31 | |
who was an actual friend as well,
and she made a very powerful speech | 1:02:31 | 1:02:40 | |
and she definitely still at least
half of the things I was going to | 1:02:40 | 1:02:45 | |
say. People often ask why do to go
into politics? I'm sure we all get | 1:02:45 | 1:02:53 | |
asked that and we all have many
reasons for going into politics, not | 1:02:53 | 1:02:58 | |
just one, but, for me, the most
important reason why I am in | 1:02:58 | 1:03:03 | |
politics is to enable everybody to
use their God-given talents whatever | 1:03:03 | 1:03:10 | |
they are in as best they way as they
can and contribute both for | 1:03:10 | 1:03:16 | |
themselves, their family, society
and the country and that is why I am | 1:03:16 | 1:03:19 | |
in politics and people with
disabilities are fully included | 1:03:19 | 1:03:22 | |
within that and that is why I think
this debate and this subject is of | 1:03:22 | 1:03:28 | |
critical importance. Now, there will
be those who say that many | 1:03:28 | 1:03:36 | |
disability benefits should be more
generous and in some ways they | 1:03:36 | 1:03:40 | |
probably should be. And I'm sure
that the Minister, because I know | 1:03:40 | 1:03:47 | |
her to strongly believe in this
brief, and the Treasury ministers | 1:03:47 | 1:03:51 | |
will always do what they can to make
up sure appropriate resources are | 1:03:51 | 1:03:54 | |
there to help those who need them.
But let's not kid ourselves. What is | 1:03:54 | 1:04:02 | |
really important, and the subject of
this debate is economic growth but | 1:04:02 | 1:04:08 | |
it's actually important for people's
well-being, for their lives, is the | 1:04:08 | 1:04:12 | |
opportunity to make the most of
themselves in a professional work | 1:04:12 | 1:04:15 | |
career capacity, that is critically
important, and so, yes, benefits are | 1:04:15 | 1:04:21 | |
critically important but we all
silly to do everything we can to get | 1:04:21 | 1:04:24 | |
everybody who has a disability into
appropriate work where possible. -- | 1:04:24 | 1:04:31 | |
absolutely everything. That is what
I regard to be the heart of social | 1:04:31 | 1:04:34 | |
mobility. Now we often talk about
social mobility in this House, in | 1:04:34 | 1:04:40 | |
many different ways, in education
debates, higher education, in the | 1:04:40 | 1:04:46 | |
Treasury, business departments, all
over the place, and usually the way | 1:04:46 | 1:04:50 | |
we talk about social mobility as we
say there's an individual who has | 1:04:50 | 1:04:55 | |
usually come from a very poor
background and they've overcome the | 1:04:55 | 1:04:59 | |
odds, achieved something fantastic
and got to the top of a profession | 1:04:59 | 1:05:02 | |
and we should celebrate that. It is
what Britain is about but actually, | 1:05:02 | 1:05:06 | |
in my view, social mobility is
really more fundamental. It is about | 1:05:06 | 1:05:10 | |
ensuring that society uses the
skills and innate talents of those | 1:05:10 | 1:05:17 | |
who both, with and without
disabilities, to their fullest, that | 1:05:17 | 1:05:24 | |
is true social mobility, so that
everybody has the ability to use | 1:05:24 | 1:05:29 | |
their God-given talents and make the
most of their lives. So where are we | 1:05:29 | 1:05:36 | |
now for policy perspective,
governmental perspective? The | 1:05:36 | 1:05:39 | |
Conservative Party manifesto 2017, I
did read it, and that's a good thing | 1:05:39 | 1:05:43 | |
as a new candidate, I read a very,
very carefully, it stated, "One | 1:05:43 | 1:05:49 | |
million more people with
disabilities should be into | 1:05:49 | 1:05:52 | |
employment in the next ten years."
Now, by my calculation is, we need | 1:05:52 | 1:05:58 | |
to grow numbers, because people are
disabilities have fallen to 4.5 | 1:05:58 | 1:06:05 | |
million people, over the next ten
years, in order to achieve that | 1:06:05 | 1:06:10 | |
target, it would mean a growth of
almost 30% on current levels, and I | 1:06:10 | 1:06:14 | |
think we would all agree on this has
that is a big task and something | 1:06:14 | 1:06:19 | |
that the Government and this party
is very focused on and in fact I | 1:06:19 | 1:06:24 | |
suspect from across the House we
will find agreement on that. What | 1:06:24 | 1:06:29 | |
does the Government aimed to do? In
November 2017, the Government set | 1:06:29 | 1:06:34 | |
out a 10-year plan to improve the
situation and to deliver on this | 1:06:34 | 1:06:37 | |
manifesto pledge and I'm sure the
Minister will elucidate on this plan | 1:06:37 | 1:06:41 | |
further and whether Government is
with it, but, in essence, it is, on | 1:06:41 | 1:06:47 | |
reading it, it appeared that the
main thrust of it appeared to be | 1:06:47 | 1:06:53 | |
linking up the welfare system, the
workplace and health care and in | 1:06:53 | 1:06:58 | |
particular, and this has already
been alluded to in this debate, | 1:06:58 | 1:07:01 | |
bringing in new technologies,
especially assistive technologies to | 1:07:01 | 1:07:04 | |
really help turbo-charge this growth
that we have been gradually seeing | 1:07:04 | 1:07:12 | |
so people with disabilities can
enter the workplace. Now, a 5% rise | 1:07:12 | 1:07:18 | |
in employment among people with
disabilities would bring an increase | 1:07:18 | 1:07:23 | |
in GDP of £23 billion with tax
revenues up somewhere in the region | 1:07:23 | 1:07:26 | |
of 5-6 billion pounds, a
considerable number. Research by | 1:07:26 | 1:07:33 | |
Scope, the disabled charity, is
found 58% of disabled people however | 1:07:33 | 1:07:37 | |
have felt at risk of losing their
job because of their impairment or | 1:07:37 | 1:07:41 | |
condition. And it is quite clear to
me and clear to most if not all | 1:07:41 | 1:07:47 | |
members of this House that we need
to work much more closely and | 1:07:47 | 1:07:51 | |
intensively with employers in order
to drive change. Now several decades | 1:07:51 | 1:07:58 | |
ago, there were many employers who
did not like to employ women. And | 1:07:58 | 1:08:02 | |
what happened, over time, this
House, working with employers and | 1:08:02 | 1:08:09 | |
through legislation, helped drive
change. A few decades ago, there | 1:08:09 | 1:08:13 | |
were several employers who didn't
like taking on, a time where people | 1:08:13 | 1:08:20 | |
did not look like me in this place
all the other place, or the lady | 1:08:20 | 1:08:25 | |
opposite, and they did not like to
employ people of ethnic minorities, | 1:08:25 | 1:08:30 | |
and what happened, this House with
the legislation and working closely | 1:08:30 | 1:08:33 | |
with employers, helped drive change.
Now the time has come for those with | 1:08:33 | 1:08:39 | |
disabilities to get much better
access to employment opportunities. | 1:08:39 | 1:08:43 | |
And the Government needs to work
with employers, along with a | 1:08:43 | 1:08:47 | |
legislation already in place, to
help drive change. No disability | 1:08:47 | 1:08:52 | |
confident as a good scheme and I
think that it is welcome across the | 1:08:52 | 1:09:00 | |
business community and Government
and civil society, but I believe we | 1:09:00 | 1:09:04 | |
can go further and the Government
should bear in mind the huge gains, | 1:09:04 | 1:09:10 | |
not just economic gains, but the
huge games and life chances and | 1:09:10 | 1:09:14 | |
economic potential of this huge
group of people. In my view, there | 1:09:14 | 1:09:20 | |
are two main things that we need to
go further to do, in order to help | 1:09:20 | 1:09:26 | |
drive this change, drive this
turbo-charge. The first is to | 1:09:26 | 1:09:32 | |
financially incentivise perhaps
through the tax system or in another | 1:09:32 | 1:09:38 | |
way employers to take on more people
with disabilities, especially in | 1:09:38 | 1:09:42 | |
industries where typically today
they may not be found. But, in | 1:09:42 | 1:09:46 | |
conjunction with that, and this is
the critical bit, the way that that | 1:09:46 | 1:09:50 | |
will happen appropriately and this
is what businesses tell me when I | 1:09:50 | 1:09:53 | |
have this discussion with them, is
that we need to be able to have a | 1:09:53 | 1:09:59 | |
much better understanding of the
different capabilities of different | 1:09:59 | 1:10:01 | |
people with disabilities, so that we
can make sure you match the right | 1:10:01 | 1:10:06 | |
employment opportunities with the
right people and if we do that | 1:10:06 | 1:10:10 | |
properly, combined with proper
incentives for business, I think we | 1:10:10 | 1:10:13 | |
can really see a huge increase in
this area. Wants more people with | 1:10:13 | 1:10:19 | |
disabilities I believe getting to
the workplace, and not just get into | 1:10:19 | 1:10:24 | |
it, but progress within their
workplace, get promoted, get to the | 1:10:24 | 1:10:27 | |
top of their businesses, they will
show what they can do. They will | 1:10:27 | 1:10:32 | |
show you what they can contribute
and this will send a powerful | 1:10:32 | 1:10:35 | |
message not just to them or Society
or this House, but to the country as | 1:10:35 | 1:10:41 | |
a whole, but... Jayme Stone. Thank
you very much for them, I | 1:10:41 | 1:10:56 | |
congratulate the honourable member
for East Kilbride in placing this | 1:10:56 | 1:10:58 | |
debate before us? It an
extraordinarily important subject | 1:10:58 | 1:11:02 | |
and it is perhaps a shame this not
more members here today but we have | 1:11:02 | 1:11:08 | |
some of the best groups in the
chamber. As Miss Jean Brodie | 1:11:08 | 1:11:13 | |
would've said, we can consider
ourselves the creme de la creme. I | 1:11:13 | 1:11:17 | |
have a personal interest in this
matter, which I will make note of | 1:11:17 | 1:11:21 | |
the House, because my wife is
disabled. She has been disabled | 1:11:21 | 1:11:29 | |
since 1999 and therefore has
featured largely in our lives and as | 1:11:29 | 1:11:32 | |
a members may be aware, I was a
member in Scotland. I quickly | 1:11:32 | 1:11:44 | |
realised the temporary Scottish
Parliament, it was completed | 1:11:44 | 1:11:49 | |
unsuitable for anyone who was
disabled and I volunteered to go on | 1:11:49 | 1:11:55 | |
the small committees and was given
the responsibility building the new | 1:11:55 | 1:11:59 | |
building and we put in place
complete disabled access including | 1:11:59 | 1:12:04 | |
in the chamber of Holyrood itself. I
might say that that job at that time | 1:12:04 | 1:12:08 | |
very nearly cost me my seat such as
the controversy attached to the | 1:12:08 | 1:12:14 | |
Scottish Parliament. That was then
and this is now on I must say for | 1:12:14 | 1:12:17 | |
the record I'm proud to be involved
in building such a disabled friendly | 1:12:17 | 1:12:20 | |
place. The Member for East Kilbride
talked about examples and that seems | 1:12:20 | 1:12:27 | |
to me to be ultra important. Just
two points, the first being that in | 1:12:27 | 1:12:33 | |
the summer of this year, one of the
northernmost Highland games, the | 1:12:33 | 1:12:41 | |
Prince of Wales who will attend in
the summer, and for the first time, | 1:12:41 | 1:12:47 | |
disabled servicemen are going to
take part in the event at the May | 1:12:47 | 1:12:50 | |
games, a historic first for the
Highland games, in Scotland, and | 1:12:50 | 1:12:55 | |
certainly for the far North. And the
other example that will stay with me | 1:12:55 | 1:13:00 | |
to my dying day was a former member
of this place, Dame Anne Begg, who | 1:13:00 | 1:13:09 | |
graced the Labour benches for number
of years here. I knew her because | 1:13:09 | 1:13:13 | |
she was involved in a cross-party
group of oil and gas and I was in | 1:13:13 | 1:13:18 | |
the Scottish Parliament and she was
here in Westminster, and I will | 1:13:18 | 1:13:21 | |
never ever forget going to visit an
oil installation in a field in | 1:13:21 | 1:13:28 | |
Norway, and we were in a semi open
boat with a noisy diesel engine and | 1:13:28 | 1:13:33 | |
there was an in their wheelchair.
The weather can change in the | 1:13:33 | 1:13:41 | |
Atlantic, and a storm came. The boat
was going backwards and forwards and | 1:13:41 | 1:13:44 | |
we had to attach her wheelchair to
prevent it going overboard but such | 1:13:44 | 1:13:52 | |
was their courage and good humour
that she never blinked once and I | 1:13:52 | 1:13:56 | |
think that was example of someone
with disability facing adversity in | 1:13:56 | 1:14:00 | |
life and she got on with it and I
will never forget that as an example | 1:14:00 | 1:14:04 | |
of somebody I thought was very,
very, very brave indeed. | 1:14:04 | 1:14:11 | |
The ambition based on these examples
is there. Particularly I pay tribute | 1:14:11 | 1:14:15 | |
to the honourable member for Hitchin
and Hutton for bringing that point | 1:14:15 | 1:14:20 | |
up. It is hugely important. Today,
my wife volunteers for the local | 1:14:20 | 1:14:28 | |
museum in my hometown, and she is up
in raising money for Marie Curie. | 1:14:28 | 1:14:32 | |
The point of this is that these
underpaid involvements enrich her | 1:14:32 | 1:14:39 | |
life. It makes everything much more
worthwhile. If you can broaden that | 1:14:39 | 1:14:45 | |
out into employment, you can see the
great gift it would give. The points | 1:14:45 | 1:14:52 | |
that have been made about taxation
at benefits are absolutely right. I | 1:14:52 | 1:14:57 | |
was intrigued yesterday. I have an
Irish son-in-law who came by | 1:14:57 | 1:15:09 | |
Westminster in search of a smaller
freshman, and he asked me what I | 1:15:09 | 1:15:14 | |
would be talking about today. I said
it would be about this particular | 1:15:14 | 1:15:19 | |
issue, about disability and using
resources. He struck thing by saying | 1:15:19 | 1:15:24 | |
that he is involved in the textile
business in the Republic of Ireland. | 1:15:24 | 1:15:28 | |
There is a government incentive
scheme to encourage the implement of | 1:15:28 | 1:15:35 | |
people in this situation. We could
learn something from the Republic on | 1:15:35 | 1:15:39 | |
that. The point has been made that
we are mugs if we don't utilise the | 1:15:39 | 1:15:53 | |
skills and abilities and ambition
and enthusiasm that is out there. | 1:15:53 | 1:15:58 | |
Goodness knows, during the next few
years, we will have to mobilise | 1:15:58 | 1:16:01 | |
everything we have got in the UK
because it is an ever more difficult | 1:16:01 | 1:16:05 | |
and competitive world. That is the
reality is we have to use every | 1:16:05 | 1:16:11 | |
single person we have got, and they
will relish the opportunity. I have | 1:16:11 | 1:16:17 | |
absolutely no doubt whatsoever. I
look forward with great interest to | 1:16:17 | 1:16:21 | |
see what the Minister has to say. We
are as one in this chamber. I guess | 1:16:21 | 1:16:27 | |
as a not so new member, 7.5 months,
I'm sure this is one thing that | 1:16:27 | 1:16:38 | |
Westminster does best, to get on to
issues like this. I'm astonished it | 1:16:38 | 1:16:43 | |
hasn't been debated before. Never
mind, here we are today. I believe | 1:16:43 | 1:16:53 | |
it is as simple as this. There is a
bargain to be struck here. I think | 1:16:53 | 1:16:57 | |
that disabled people are offering
their half of the bargain, and I | 1:16:57 | 1:17:02 | |
think it is up to the Government and
all of us in society in the UK to | 1:17:02 | 1:17:09 | |
grasp the hand and on how half of
the bargain and make their lives | 1:17:09 | 1:17:15 | |
better. Thank you. I would like to
start by bringing my congratulations | 1:17:15 | 1:17:22 | |
to the member for East Kilbride on
this important debate today. I'm | 1:17:22 | 1:17:27 | |
delighted to speak in today's debate
on the role of disabled people in | 1:17:27 | 1:17:30 | |
economic growth. Economic growth is
built on development and progress. | 1:17:30 | 1:17:39 | |
But also on people, the essential
building block. People who are | 1:17:39 | 1:17:43 | |
manual workers, managers,
entrepreneurs, females and males, | 1:17:43 | 1:17:51 | |
all ethnicities and able-bodied and
disabled people. Disabled people | 1:17:51 | 1:18:00 | |
play an important role in economic
growth. The wording is a little too | 1:18:00 | 1:18:07 | |
crude. It is not enough for disabled
people to be in jobs to boost | 1:18:07 | 1:18:13 | |
growth, but they deserve the same
career opportunities. It is not a | 1:18:13 | 1:18:16 | |
question of economics but also one
of equality. Only half of working | 1:18:16 | 1:18:23 | |
age people in the UK who are
disabled or have a health condition | 1:18:23 | 1:18:25 | |
or in work. The work rate for people
without disabilities is 80.6%. We | 1:18:25 | 1:18:33 | |
must rectified this inequality. We
must hire those who have overcome | 1:18:33 | 1:18:42 | |
obstacles. We must empower and
assist the disabled so they have the | 1:18:42 | 1:18:45 | |
confidence and the tools to work in
an even playing field. That is why I | 1:18:45 | 1:18:51 | |
fully back the commitment and
strategy to getting 1 million more | 1:18:51 | 1:18:57 | |
disabled people into employment by
2027. I'm delighted that 100,000 | 1:18:57 | 1:19:00 | |
more people disabilities were in
work last year compared to 2016. | 1:19:00 | 1:19:06 | |
Working with employers is key to
reaching this target, which is why | 1:19:06 | 1:19:11 | |
the Government has pledged to work
with industry. Disabled people have | 1:19:11 | 1:19:20 | |
overcome adversity and can offer
workplaces skills such as | 1:19:20 | 1:19:28 | |
determination, they generally stay
in workplaces for longer and have | 1:19:28 | 1:19:32 | |
lower rates of absenteeism. But only
one half of employers have reported | 1:19:32 | 1:19:35 | |
that they recognise the benefits of
employing someone with a disability | 1:19:35 | 1:19:41 | |
or health condition for their
organisation. It's about changing | 1:19:41 | 1:19:46 | |
attitudes and cultures, especially
in certain sectors. For example, the | 1:19:46 | 1:19:48 | |
rate of disabled people in
engineering and science and | 1:19:48 | 1:19:54 | |
technology is very low. The problem
is twofold, you have to encourage | 1:19:54 | 1:20:01 | |
disabled people to believe that they
can do these roles, and also | 1:20:01 | 1:20:06 | |
ensuring that the jobs exist. The
disability confidence scheme has | 1:20:06 | 1:20:11 | |
done great work in this area.
Helping organisations to improve how | 1:20:11 | 1:20:14 | |
they attract, recruit and retain
disabled workers. As of the 16th of | 1:20:14 | 1:20:20 | |
November last year, there were 5359
employers signed up to the scheme. | 1:20:20 | 1:20:26 | |
We need to do work to make sure more
take part. One of the biggest | 1:20:26 | 1:20:37 | |
hurdles is the adaptations that are
needed to the employer's offices. | 1:20:37 | 1:20:46 | |
There is also a lack of awareness
that the 2010 equalities act mean | 1:20:46 | 1:20:52 | |
that employers are based attitude
duty to make reasonable adjustments. | 1:20:52 | 1:20:55 | |
I'm keen to hear from the minister
about how he plans to challenge this | 1:20:55 | 1:21:02 | |
lack of awareness. Adapting
workplaces is also important when a | 1:21:02 | 1:21:08 | |
staff member becomes disabled. The
disability employment gap is partly | 1:21:08 | 1:21:22 | |
driven by disabled people who have
fallen out of employment. One in ten | 1:21:22 | 1:21:26 | |
disabled people falling out of work
each year, convert to one in 20 in | 1:21:26 | 1:21:30 | |
the non-disabled work population.
Retention is key. That is why I | 1:21:30 | 1:21:36 | |
welcome the proposed sophistication
of the scheme to enable employers to | 1:21:36 | 1:21:40 | |
better understand and support their
employees' needs. It is important to | 1:21:40 | 1:21:45 | |
note that their access for work
grants that can pay for special | 1:21:45 | 1:21:48 | |
equipment adaptations or support
worker services. I'm delighted that | 1:21:48 | 1:21:55 | |
it is being rolled out to the
self-employed. We need to raise | 1:21:55 | 1:21:58 | |
awareness of these. Out of work
grants have been taken up by 25,000 | 1:21:58 | 1:22:03 | |
people on average per year. These
figures have stagnated for the last | 1:22:03 | 1:22:09 | |
three gears, indicating we really
need to promote awareness. In | 1:22:09 | 1:22:11 | |
addition, we really need to reach a
younger age group. I have spoken a | 1:22:11 | 1:22:23 | |
lot about employers but it is also
important to encourage individuals | 1:22:23 | 1:22:30 | |
to apply for jobs. Physically
disabled people are also in need of | 1:22:30 | 1:22:37 | |
emotional and mental health support
when re-entering the workplace, and | 1:22:37 | 1:22:42 | |
it is important not to forget the
physical this abilities and mental | 1:22:42 | 1:22:44 | |
health challenges are not mutually
exclusive. | 1:22:44 | 1:22:51 | |
Ritchie agree with me that way you
have a disabled person who is in | 1:22:51 | 1:22:57 | |
rewarding employment, that that
person could perhaps take some time | 1:22:57 | 1:23:00 | |
be encouraged to act as a mental | 1:23:00 | 1:23:13 | |
-- encouraged to act as a mentor.
Being role models for other people | 1:23:13 | 1:23:19 | |
and acting as mentors is a wonderful
initiative we should be doing to | 1:23:19 | 1:23:24 | |
encourage more people to have the
self belief and determination to | 1:23:24 | 1:23:28 | |
progress their dreams and explore
opportunities. We should not just | 1:23:28 | 1:23:34 | |
treat physical this abilities and
mental disabilities in silos, we | 1:23:34 | 1:23:42 | |
need to treat them together for the
best outcomes. I'm delighted that | 1:23:42 | 1:23:45 | |
the key outcomes for the white paper
includes this area. The roll-out of | 1:23:45 | 1:23:52 | |
personal support packages includes
the recruitment of 200 community | 1:23:52 | 1:23:58 | |
partners, 300 disability employment
advisers, 100 small employers | 1:23:58 | 1:24:01 | |
advisers and an extra 1000 mental
health and support bases. In | 1:24:01 | 1:24:08 | |
conclusion, over the last two gears,
the disability employment gap has | 1:24:08 | 1:24:12 | |
reduced by 1.9%, so we are on the
right track was top we could save | 1:24:12 | 1:24:24 | |
240 million and provide a boost to
the economy is 206 the million. | 1:24:24 | 1:24:27 | |
Getting more disability into jobs is
essential. It would be of great | 1:24:27 | 1:24:33 | |
financial benefit to our country,
but I actually think the main | 1:24:33 | 1:24:37 | |
benefit will be to the disabled
people themselves. In turn, making | 1:24:37 | 1:24:41 | |
our society more equal. I shall end
what I began and stressed that it is | 1:24:41 | 1:24:45 | |
not just an issue of economics but
also one of equality. | 1:24:45 | 1:24:52 | |
First of all, it is always a
pleasure to follow the honourable | 1:24:52 | 1:24:59 | |
lady and I thank her for her aunt
ablution. -- for her contribution. | 1:24:59 | 1:25:16 | |
She is clearly a champion for those
with disabilities, and I'm pleased | 1:25:16 | 1:25:20 | |
to be a part of the group that she
chairs. Yesterday, I was able to | 1:25:20 | 1:25:28 | |
participate in some of those things
that the honourable lady put forward | 1:25:28 | 1:25:31 | |
and give a Northern Ireland
perspective to it. I will probably | 1:25:31 | 1:25:35 | |
do that today as well. Also nice to
see the Minister in her place. As an | 1:25:35 | 1:25:45 | |
expression of her interest in this
subject, we had the disability | 1:25:45 | 1:25:51 | |
confident event that the Minister
organise. It was good to go along | 1:25:51 | 1:25:56 | |
and support what she is doing, but
also to have a greater knowledge. | 1:25:56 | 1:26:00 | |
One thing about being an MP is you
learn every day if you want to. I | 1:26:00 | 1:26:07 | |
want to extend my knowledge of those
things. It was an opportunity to do | 1:26:07 | 1:26:13 | |
that yesterday. I could expect to
them what we were doing. A number of | 1:26:13 | 1:26:22 | |
things in my constituency in
relation to what we are doing, what | 1:26:22 | 1:26:28 | |
private businesses are doing. The
Shadow Minister and her | 1:26:28 | 1:26:35 | |
contribution. I look forward to her
contribution. I stand in the shape | 1:26:35 | 1:26:43 | |
to speak out for many people in our
communities stop the get that | 1:26:43 | 1:26:50 | |
knowledge from our everyday
interactions in our communities. | 1:26:50 | 1:26:57 | |
Over 7 million people of working age
are disabled or ... I would hope | 1:26:57 | 1:27:15 | |
that they would have an opportunity
to see how they can achieve that | 1:27:15 | 1:27:18 | |
goal. Some disabled cannot work,
that is a fact of life which has to | 1:27:18 | 1:27:29 | |
be accepted. Those who want to work,
which we are trying to make happen | 1:27:29 | 1:27:34 | |
through this debate. The employment
rate for people with disabilities | 1:27:34 | 1:27:47 | |
was higher in 2017 than 2016. There
is quite clearly a strategy that is | 1:27:47 | 1:27:58 | |
trying to address the issue, because
there are more people with | 1:27:58 | 1:28:01 | |
disabilities in employment and were
a year ago. That has got to be a | 1:28:01 | 1:28:07 | |
good news. When you see the chart at
the library provided, they provide | 1:28:07 | 1:28:24 | |
some excellent information for us
when it comes to preparing for these | 1:28:24 | 1:28:27 | |
debates, and gives us his chance to
do things well. I read the action | 1:28:27 | 1:28:33 | |
report hard at work, which was
interesting reading, as opposed to | 1:28:33 | 1:28:37 | |
just citing their work 33% of
disabled people in work in Northern | 1:28:37 | 1:28:40 | |
Ireland, but asked the question why.
I will ask that today. I am | 1:28:40 | 1:28:45 | |
conscious that the Minister as there
was possible to four Northern | 1:28:45 | 1:28:51 | |
Ireland, and I respect that. To give
the detail to the debate and the | 1:28:51 | 1:28:57 | |
Northern Ireland perspective of it.
Some of the things that are done in | 1:28:57 | 1:29:02 | |
Northern Ireland can be done here on
the mainland as well. The overall | 1:29:02 | 1:29:10 | |
employment rate is 5% lower and for
some groups it is much wider. 33% of | 1:29:10 | 1:29:19 | |
disabled people are in employment,
less than half the rate of | 1:29:19 | 1:29:24 | |
non-disabled people. Many applicants
did not feel Constable about | 1:29:24 | 1:29:37 | |
disclosing their disability. I think
that is something we have do | 1:29:37 | 1:29:41 | |
address. | 1:29:41 | 1:29:50 | |
We are well aware of the story in
the press yesterday, slightly | 1:29:50 | 1:29:53 | |
different from what we are doing
today, but when people are to | 1:29:53 | 1:29:55 | |
disclose, are you pregnant or having
a child, I think it's the wrong | 1:29:55 | 1:30:01 | |
question to ask anybody when they go
for employment. The same thing could | 1:30:01 | 1:30:05 | |
apply for those with disability. By
not telling them you are disabled | 1:30:05 | 1:30:09 | |
you have a better chance of getting
a job but if you do tell them you | 1:30:09 | 1:30:13 | |
are disabled, is they can be a box
marked that they are not the right | 1:30:13 | 1:30:17 | |
people? Employers often did not feel
confident about being open with | 1:30:17 | 1:30:24 | |
their disability. Even when they do
get employment, if there's a | 1:30:24 | 1:30:28 | |
problem, they tend to keep it to
themselves. 50% of people feel they | 1:30:28 | 1:30:38 | |
face discolouration in employment
and less than half of the | 1:30:38 | 1:30:41 | |
respondents to eight survey said
this. If people feel disseminated | 1:30:41 | 1:30:46 | |
against, or they are afraid to ask
for reasonable adjustments, I think | 1:30:46 | 1:30:51 | |
maybe there is a big role for
business to carry out. The reasons | 1:30:51 | 1:30:55 | |
for not asking where not wanting to
draw attention to their disability | 1:30:55 | 1:31:01 | |
or because it would be embarrassing
to do so. Nearly a third said they | 1:31:01 | 1:31:05 | |
received little or no help following
their request. Perhaps it underlines | 1:31:05 | 1:31:10 | |
the other issue, when you ask for
it, you're not sure it will be done. | 1:31:10 | 1:31:15 | |
They need to look about as and maybe
sometimes you have to enforce it | 1:31:15 | 1:31:20 | |
through legislation and through
Government intervention. Little | 1:31:20 | 1:31:24 | |
wonder many people with so much to
offer feel like they are a burden in | 1:31:24 | 1:31:27 | |
the workplace and that is a concern
people have referred to so far. | 1:31:27 | 1:31:36 | |
Concerns among employers in relation
to employing disabled people could | 1:31:36 | 1:31:40 | |
be a risk to productivity, financial
indications, confusion and negative | 1:31:40 | 1:31:49 | |
perceptions and maybe the blade
beware of what legislation means for | 1:31:49 | 1:31:53 | |
them in business as well. Despite
the sea financial indications, a | 1:31:53 | 1:32:00 | |
survey of over 1000 employers said
the majority provided adjustments. | 1:32:00 | 1:32:05 | |
The majority tried to the right
things to flexible working patterns. | 1:32:05 | 1:32:10 | |
I'm not sure but is there financial
incentives available for businesses | 1:32:10 | 1:32:23 | |
to do those changes, because I think
sometimes, because of the cost, his | 1:32:23 | 1:32:27 | |
Mrs are concerned about that and if
there was any help to make those | 1:32:27 | 1:32:31 | |
adjustments happen, I think that
would be helpful. The recent survey | 1:32:31 | 1:32:37 | |
said the option of modified hours
with part-time working would be an | 1:32:37 | 1:32:41 | |
important factor in enabling them to
stay in work. Over the years, I've | 1:32:41 | 1:32:48 | |
had the opportunity to the DLA,
those people who have therapeutic | 1:32:48 | 1:33:00 | |
work, sometimes people are not fully
able to carry out the duties because | 1:33:00 | 1:33:07 | |
of their disablement, but
therapeutically, it's good for them | 1:33:07 | 1:33:10 | |
to have some type of work for a
certain period of time. Maybe we | 1:33:10 | 1:33:16 | |
could have some thoughts upon where
that features? The problems may be | 1:33:16 | 1:33:27 | |
the civil service has and what we
need to do as an example, but | 1:33:27 | 1:33:35 | |
disabled people in the public sector
reported being passed over for | 1:33:35 | 1:33:37 | |
development and promotion
opportunities and being unfairly | 1:33:37 | 1:33:41 | |
assessed in terms of their
performance, suggesting talent is | 1:33:41 | 1:33:43 | |
being wasted and there's a culture
of discontent fostered. So every | 1:33:43 | 1:33:48 | |
have not got our own House in order,
Madam Deputy 's big, as a | 1:33:48 | 1:33:53 | |
Government, at all levels, -- Madam
Deputy Speaker, and so one, we must | 1:33:53 | 1:34:01 | |
address in this place it. When it
comes to Government, they must set | 1:34:01 | 1:34:10 | |
the example. There was a DDA form
filled in and this woman's employer, | 1:34:10 | 1:34:20 | |
the civil service, was aware she had
colitis. She applied for a transfer | 1:34:20 | 1:34:27 | |
to a department closer to home, and
she was not accommodated full | 1:34:27 | 1:34:32 | |
subduing to the occupational health
service meetings and was told, yes, | 1:34:32 | 1:34:36 | |
she would be off work sick and
should not be returning to work | 1:34:36 | 1:34:43 | |
until it settle down and engine was
medically retired because it was | 1:34:43 | 1:34:46 | |
felt she was not fit for work. She
applied for benefits but was not | 1:34:46 | 1:34:55 | |
allowed to get it and she was
advised to go for employment. You | 1:34:55 | 1:34:59 | |
expect someone to hire according to
the PSA, so when we look the civil | 1:34:59 | 1:35:07 | |
service process, at the age of 28,
she was classified as not fit by the | 1:35:07 | 1:35:13 | |
civil service had made to feel like
a scrounger for feeling at the civil | 1:35:13 | 1:35:18 | |
service with their hundreds of
offices could not facilitate an | 1:35:18 | 1:35:21 | |
illness she would have no chance in
the private sector. Thankfully, we | 1:35:21 | 1:35:25 | |
were able to help her when it comes
to the issue of getting her | 1:35:25 | 1:35:28 | |
benefits. Both took reviews but
ultimately she won. Nobody believed | 1:35:28 | 1:35:37 | |
she could not work. The fact she
couldn't, because they paid her off, | 1:35:37 | 1:35:41 | |
because she was medically unfit, it
made no sense and that's why we must | 1:35:41 | 1:35:45 | |
lead by example and put into place
initiatives that help disabled | 1:35:45 | 1:35:49 | |
people be confident in their
abilities. Instead of feeling only | 1:35:49 | 1:35:53 | |
their disabilities are important.
It's hard to expect small businesses | 1:35:53 | 1:35:56 | |
to understand a disability does not
mean an inability to be a vital | 1:35:56 | 1:36:00 | |
player in a team whenever we, as
civil servants, are not able to do | 1:36:00 | 1:36:10 | |
this, putting schemes to rent this
happening, and this House is one | 1:36:10 | 1:36:14 | |
place where I'm advocating we get
our House in order quickly. I look | 1:36:14 | 1:36:20 | |
to my constituency and I'm very
conscious of time, and I see the | 1:36:20 | 1:36:23 | |
potential of young people, in Long
Stone, behave real school where | 1:36:23 | 1:36:28 | |
people with disabilities who need
educational challenges, are trained | 1:36:28 | 1:36:36 | |
to work and sometimes for them, it's
a big bad world, but it's a world of | 1:36:36 | 1:36:42 | |
opportunity and we should try to
move it towards that, and we have so | 1:36:42 | 1:36:46 | |
much more to offer. Should
reconsider apprenticeships with | 1:36:46 | 1:36:50 | |
financial support to those with
learning disabilities? We respect | 1:36:50 | 1:36:59 | |
greatly this. I'm certain many
partnerships would turn into | 1:36:59 | 1:37:04 | |
employment. What can we do to help
those who want to work, who have | 1:37:04 | 1:37:09 | |
skills to offer, and yet feel there
is no place for them in the modern | 1:37:09 | 1:37:12 | |
workplace? To me, that is what this
debate is about, giving hope, | 1:37:12 | 1:37:17 | |
vision, opportunity and if we could
do that I believe we are moving in | 1:37:17 | 1:37:20 | |
the right direction. I don't have
the answers, not to everything in | 1:37:20 | 1:37:25 | |
the world, but I do try to at least
seek out the answers and I see the | 1:37:25 | 1:37:31 | |
great advantage of this debate
today, but I'm asking the Minister | 1:37:31 | 1:37:36 | |
and her department to really
seriously consider this issue. I'm | 1:37:36 | 1:37:42 | |
sure she would come back to the
floor with amazing plan to make this | 1:37:42 | 1:37:49 | |
happen and we can start with the
civil service. I commend the | 1:37:49 | 1:37:53 | |
honourable lady for her compassion
and one of the members who today | 1:37:53 | 1:37:56 | |
came on the third afternoon, to
participate in a debate which is | 1:37:56 | 1:38:01 | |
really, really important. Thank you.
Can I also, as a member who has a | 1:38:01 | 1:38:14 | |
constituency, congratulate my
honourable friend from East Kilbride | 1:38:14 | 1:38:21 | |
and commend the honourable member
for attempting that earlier. You did | 1:38:21 | 1:38:26 | |
very well indeed. I think we heard
from my honourable friend earlier | 1:38:26 | 1:38:30 | |
speech which was rich in detail, in
understanding and empathy, someone | 1:38:30 | 1:38:36 | |
who really truly understands the
subject, and I fully commend her for | 1:38:36 | 1:38:43 | |
bringing this very positively titled
debate about the role of disabled | 1:38:43 | 1:38:46 | |
people in economic growth to the
chamber today. It is somewhat | 1:38:46 | 1:38:52 | |
scandalous that we haven't had the
opportunity to debate this before, | 1:38:52 | 1:38:54 | |
but that is a wrong which has been
invited today. We in the SNP no | 1:38:54 | 1:39:02 | |
disabled people continue to make a
fantastic contribution to the | 1:39:02 | 1:39:05 | |
economy and I've got to say, with
all the words we have heard here | 1:39:05 | 1:39:11 | |
today, the empathy, the joint
approach taken for these issues in | 1:39:11 | 1:39:18 | |
the chamber, comments that actually
come from the Government themselves | 1:39:18 | 1:39:23 | |
can do a lot of harm. I think our
approach to disabled people, the | 1:39:23 | 1:39:29 | |
approach we have heard here today is
in stark contrast to the UK | 1:39:29 | 1:39:34 | |
Government's Chancellor who said
recently he thinks disabled people | 1:39:34 | 1:39:36 | |
are reducing productivity and I
would like to quote from my | 1:39:36 | 1:39:42 | |
honourable friend, not from her
speech today, but from an excellent | 1:39:42 | 1:39:45 | |
article she wrote recently, saying
the answer is simple, invest in | 1:39:45 | 1:39:48 | |
improving the Pathways to work,
invest in the disabled | 1:39:48 | 1:39:54 | |
entrepreneurs, improve reasonable
adjustment guidelines and encourage | 1:39:54 | 1:39:57 | |
businesses to diversify the
workforce. Create incentives rather | 1:39:57 | 1:40:00 | |
than enforce sanctions. If the £108
million spent by the Government to | 1:40:00 | 1:40:05 | |
deny disabled people the benefits
they are entitled to was redirected | 1:40:05 | 1:40:09 | |
into creating an apprenticeship
scheme, entrepreneurship, and | 1:40:09 | 1:40:14 | |
training opportunities for example,
perhaps the narrative of people with | 1:40:14 | 1:40:17 | |
disabilities could change. I think
those are very wise words. I'm also | 1:40:17 | 1:40:24 | |
grateful Madam Deputy Speaker to
scope for the briefing they have | 1:40:24 | 1:40:27 | |
sent along for this debate and
before I move on I want to get onto | 1:40:27 | 1:40:31 | |
that comment made by the Chancellor.
Scope said we found the Chancellor's | 1:40:31 | 1:40:37 | |
statement before the Treasury Select
Committee on the naked | 1:40:37 | 1:40:39 | |
Committee | 1:40:39 | 1:40:40 | |
negative impact to be entirely
untrue and unacceptable and they | 1:40:40 | 1:40:47 | |
underline the fact brought out by my
honourable friend, who said a ten | 1:40:47 | 1:40:53 | |
percentage point rise in the
employment rate amongst disabled | 1:40:53 | 1:40:57 | |
people would increase GDP by £45
billion by 2030 and result in a £12 | 1:40:57 | 1:41:03 | |
billion gain to the Exchequer, so I
do hope that the Minister, who is | 1:41:03 | 1:41:07 | |
known to be a thoughtful person,
will reflect on those comments from | 1:41:07 | 1:41:11 | |
the Chancellor and will distance
herself from those remarks. There is | 1:41:11 | 1:41:22 | |
a real opportunity for a positive
impact of tackling the disability | 1:41:22 | 1:41:26 | |
employment gap in the economy.
Delivering the reforms needed to | 1:41:26 | 1:41:29 | |
support more people to enter, remain
and progress in work but progress up | 1:41:29 | 1:41:34 | |
until now has been slow. Government
and employers need to do more to | 1:41:34 | 1:41:38 | |
harness economic benefits and
increase the disability employment | 1:41:38 | 1:41:45 | |
rate. Tackling the disability
employment gap would mean, as I have | 1:41:45 | 1:41:49 | |
said, economic growth and
productivity would increase. | 1:41:49 | 1:41:54 | |
Employing disabled people is an
opportunity for employers, | 1:41:54 | 1:41:58 | |
delivering significant benefits to
business and the economy, so it's | 1:41:58 | 1:42:01 | |
important to underline the
Parliamentary group on disability, | 1:42:01 | 1:42:08 | |
all of those are relevant, but
especially the tailored and targeted | 1:42:08 | 1:42:13 | |
support for the self-employed
disabled people from the business | 1:42:13 | 1:42:16 | |
bank, the funding for reasonable
adjustments for disabled recipients | 1:42:16 | 1:42:18 | |
of tech start-up support from
innovate UK, and bringing forward | 1:42:18 | 1:42:23 | |
working requirements the plan for
recruitment, but it's also vital to | 1:42:23 | 1:42:28 | |
recognise the additional challenges
that faced by disabled people. My | 1:42:28 | 1:42:33 | |
honourable friend earlier talked
about the bullying and high numbers | 1:42:33 | 1:42:36 | |
of applications required simply to
get a job interview, let alone get | 1:42:36 | 1:42:43 | |
to a job and she said earlier we
cannot afford to sit and wait. | 1:42:43 | 1:42:49 | |
Throughout this debate today we've
heard many people agreeing on the | 1:42:49 | 1:42:52 | |
need for action. I think what
disabled people want to see now is | 1:42:52 | 1:42:55 | |
action. I'm happy to give away. He
quite rightly mentions the | 1:42:55 | 1:43:04 | |
challenges disabled people have. One
is that, depending on the form of | 1:43:04 | 1:43:11 | |
disability, the fatigue element as
the day progresses can be quite | 1:43:11 | 1:43:13 | |
critical to that person, so I do
believe employment opportunities | 1:43:13 | 1:43:18 | |
could be tailored with specific
reference to how this fatigue can | 1:43:18 | 1:43:24 | |
kick in after two or three hours of
concentrated work. Thank you. I | 1:43:24 | 1:43:31 | |
think it's important to look at the
whole size and scale of this, the | 1:43:31 | 1:43:36 | |
challenges people have and to take
all of them into account to make | 1:43:36 | 1:43:39 | |
sure that we are able to take full
advantage of this. Now, as my | 1:43:39 | 1:43:43 | |
honourable friend also said earlier,
the UK has already skills shortage | 1:43:43 | 1:43:46 | |
and the Brexit exodus of skilled
labour means the opportunity of | 1:43:46 | 1:43:51 | |
training and pensions must be
embraced falls as we said, the | 1:43:51 | 1:43:54 | |
Government at the moment is not
going far enough, specialist advice | 1:43:54 | 1:43:58 | |
services for self-employment are
required and we need to start to | 1:43:58 | 1:44:02 | |
avoid stereotypes in these debates. | 1:44:02 | 1:44:11 | |
The additional challenges also come
down to hard cash and the extra | 1:44:11 | 1:44:14 | |
costs they have to cope with. New
research from Scope shows that an | 1:44:14 | 1:44:19 | |
average disabled people have do find
an extra £750 per month related to | 1:44:19 | 1:44:24 | |
their condition on top of any Social
Security payments designed to meet | 1:44:24 | 1:44:28 | |
these costs. The financial penalty
box disabled people out of being | 1:44:28 | 1:44:33 | |
able to make a positive contribution
to the economy. They need practical | 1:44:33 | 1:44:38 | |
help, and the Government can help
now with reversing the trend of | 1:44:38 | 1:44:43 | |
removing, for example, another issue
that my honourable friend is keen to | 1:44:43 | 1:44:49 | |
bring up, the ability of most
ability when people are having their | 1:44:49 | 1:45:00 | |
ability to move around restricted.
I was interested to hear that more | 1:45:00 | 1:45:11 | |
money should be spent on disability
payments. There should be more from | 1:45:11 | 1:45:16 | |
this Social Security to support
disabled people, particularly given | 1:45:16 | 1:45:21 | |
the disadvantage they have. In terms
of the recent work of the pensions | 1:45:21 | 1:45:30 | |
committee, it presented real
evidence that the assessments are | 1:45:30 | 1:45:32 | |
failing a substantial minority of
claimants, with claimants stories | 1:45:32 | 1:45:37 | |
highlighting clear errors being
made, and the SS is lacking | 1:45:37 | 1:45:44 | |
knowledge and expertise. It is not
just about putting more money into | 1:45:44 | 1:45:47 | |
the system, but about making the
system work for more disabled | 1:45:47 | 1:45:51 | |
people. I will give way. We can meet
with some of the officials in | 1:45:51 | 1:46:03 | |
Northern Ireland, and I was just
that if it is possible to have a | 1:46:03 | 1:46:10 | |
meeting that we would then get the
hotline for people who can make the | 1:46:10 | 1:46:13 | |
changes. Those people who are doing
the assessment would be up to speed. | 1:46:13 | 1:46:21 | |
Capita nisi changed some of the
things they are doing. Can I suggest | 1:46:21 | 1:46:28 | |
that others do the same in their own
regions ration | 1:46:28 | 1:46:30 | |
that others do the same in their own
regions ration? Having listened to | 1:46:30 | 1:46:35 | |
me on issues of Universal Credit for
many occasions, he can be a I | 1:46:35 | 1:46:47 | |
reassured. I believe that it is a
good thing to do. It does not I | 1:46:47 | 1:46:53 | |
nabbed the difficulties. -- remove
the difficulties. Between April 2016 | 1:46:53 | 1:47:02 | |
and March 2017, the Scope helpline
saw eight 542% rise in calls related | 1:47:02 | 1:47:14 | |
to PIP payments. There is much more
that the Government can do to help | 1:47:14 | 1:47:25 | |
on this. I want to finish with some
criticisms, but also given the fact | 1:47:25 | 1:47:33 | |
that the Minister will be listening
carefully and looking for ways to | 1:47:33 | 1:47:36 | |
take action today, and that we are
looking at things back in our own | 1:47:36 | 1:47:46 | |
constituencies. I hope that the
Minister will listen carefully and | 1:47:46 | 1:47:49 | |
take on board some of the
opportunities to perhaps learn or | 1:47:49 | 1:47:54 | |
think about how things might be done
differently. We have seen the impact | 1:47:54 | 1:48:02 | |
that the UK government's system has
had on people in Scotland. In | 1:48:02 | 1:48:08 | |
October, between 7000 and 10,000
disabled people per year were being | 1:48:08 | 1:48:11 | |
affected by the removal of the work
activity component of employment and | 1:48:11 | 1:48:16 | |
support allowance. That is
completely appalling and simply | 1:48:16 | 1:48:20 | |
unacceptable. It also found that
40,000 disabled people claiming | 1:48:20 | 1:48:25 | |
implement and support allowance had
been affected by the bedroom tax. | 1:48:25 | 1:48:28 | |
TSA is supposed to support disabled
people into employment, but the | 1:48:28 | 1:48:33 | |
Government has said that the £30 a
week cut was to remove incentives to | 1:48:33 | 1:48:37 | |
be out of work. That is an
outrageous thing to do. It is | 1:48:37 | 1:48:42 | |
pushing people into poverty and
crisis. The PIP assessment process | 1:48:42 | 1:48:46 | |
is failing disabled people.
According to the DWP figures, one in | 1:48:46 | 1:48:54 | |
five claimants who went through
mandatory reconsideration had their | 1:48:54 | 1:48:58 | |
reward changed, meaning there is a
20% of those decisions that were | 1:48:58 | 1:49:06 | |
wrong. With the limited powers that
have been transferred to Scotland, | 1:49:06 | 1:49:13 | |
there are changes where disabled
people should have equality to | 1:49:13 | 1:49:18 | |
access the work. The Scottish
government is committed to reducing | 1:49:18 | 1:49:23 | |
the gap by half. With financial
support available to businesses, it | 1:49:23 | 1:49:34 | |
would make sense that they would
recruit from the widest pool of | 1:49:34 | 1:49:38 | |
talent possible. While disabled
people make up 20% of the | 1:49:38 | 1:49:46 | |
population, they represent a lower
proportion in the public and private | 1:49:46 | 1:49:56 | |
sector. The Scottish government
introduced employer ability | 1:49:56 | 1:50:06 | |
programmes. In July last year, a
campaign was launched to boost the | 1:50:06 | 1:50:11 | |
awareness amongst businesses of the
benefits of employing people with | 1:50:11 | 1:50:14 | |
disabilities, specifically targeting
small and medium-sized enterprises. | 1:50:14 | 1:50:19 | |
From April 2018, a new programme
will take a new approach to make | 1:50:19 | 1:50:25 | |
sure that disabled people are
offered support which is | 1:50:25 | 1:50:29 | |
appropriate. Disabled people
engaging with the programme will | 1:50:29 | 1:50:36 | |
receive support which identifies and
develops their strengths and assets | 1:50:36 | 1:50:39 | |
while focusing on sustainable
employment outcomes. Only today, the | 1:50:39 | 1:50:44 | |
Scottish Dummett and as that people
will no longer see a reduction in | 1:50:44 | 1:50:47 | |
their payments during the appeal
process for benefits. That is | 1:50:47 | 1:50:52 | |
something the Minister, given her
response, can say that the UK | 1:50:52 | 1:50:57 | |
government will consider taking
action. The message from the chamber | 1:50:57 | 1:51:03 | |
today, from all sides of the
chamber, has been crystal clear. | 1:51:03 | 1:51:06 | |
Let's do all that can be done to
realise and release the potential of | 1:51:06 | 1:51:12 | |
disabled people for economic growth. | 1:51:12 | 1:51:22 | |
Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. Let
me firstly begin by congratulating | 1:51:23 | 1:51:26 | |
the member for East Kilbride for
securing this important and also | 1:51:26 | 1:51:32 | |
timely debate. I also want to
commend her for all the work that | 1:51:32 | 1:51:37 | |
she has led on the disability all
party Parliamentary group. I would | 1:51:37 | 1:51:44 | |
also like to extend a thank you to a
number of different disability | 1:51:44 | 1:51:50 | |
organisations, including the
disability rights UK, the RNIB, | 1:51:50 | 1:51:56 | |
Scope, Leonard Cheshire and also
action on hearing loss for all of | 1:51:56 | 1:52:02 | |
their work that they have done
around improving the employment | 1:52:02 | 1:52:06 | |
opportunities for disabled people
and also for the important briefings | 1:52:06 | 1:52:10 | |
that they have provided for today's
very important debate. Madam Deputy | 1:52:10 | 1:52:17 | |
Speaker, there are currently around
11.6 million disabled people in this | 1:52:17 | 1:52:23 | |
country, people like me who have
factors that could act as a barrier | 1:52:23 | 1:52:27 | |
to engaging in a wide range of
valued activity, not just economic | 1:52:27 | 1:52:32 | |
activity. That is obviously the
focus of our debates today. Disabled | 1:52:32 | 1:52:39 | |
people make up around 16% of the
working age population, yet we face | 1:52:39 | 1:52:44 | |
barriers in all aspects of life,
including in education, in | 1:52:44 | 1:52:49 | |
transport, access to justice, access
to voting, housing, health and most | 1:52:49 | 1:52:56 | |
importantly employment. Almost eight
years of Tory austerity has had a | 1:52:56 | 1:53:04 | |
disproportionate impact on disabled
people. We know that half of those | 1:53:04 | 1:53:07 | |
who live in poverty are disabled or
live with somebody who is. In part | 1:53:07 | 1:53:15 | |
because of the additional cost of
their disability, but also because | 1:53:15 | 1:53:22 | |
the labour market does not work well
for disabled people who were able to | 1:53:22 | 1:53:25 | |
work. The duty to make reasonable
adjustments to support disabled | 1:53:25 | 1:53:30 | |
people to access education,
employment, housing and goods and | 1:53:30 | 1:53:37 | |
services is a key feature of the
equality act of 2010, but we know | 1:53:37 | 1:53:42 | |
that from the House of Lords report
in 2000 15/16 or the equality act | 1:53:42 | 1:53:47 | |
and disabled people that legislation
needs strong government action to | 1:53:47 | 1:53:54 | |
ensure it is strongly upheld and to
remove the barriers in society that | 1:53:54 | 1:53:58 | |
disabled people who have a
condition. It is of concern that we | 1:53:58 | 1:54:10 | |
have a government who speak of
removing barriers but then create | 1:54:10 | 1:54:16 | |
others through Social Security cuts.
They made a commitment that they | 1:54:16 | 1:54:28 | |
were found to be behind on. They
have replaced the pledge and reduced | 1:54:28 | 1:54:34 | |
it to committing to getting 1
million more disabled people into | 1:54:34 | 1:54:37 | |
work. As we have heard today, the
rate for disabled people being | 1:54:37 | 1:54:44 | |
employed stands at 49 when -- 49.2%.
In the most recent period where | 1:54:44 | 1:54:56 | |
these figures were available. The
disability employment gap lies at | 1:54:56 | 1:55:03 | |
around 31.3%, which is even wider
among specific disability groups. If | 1:55:03 | 1:55:10 | |
you take the registered blind
individuals, only one in four of | 1:55:10 | 1:55:15 | |
working age people are in work. My
honourable friend from Enfield | 1:55:15 | 1:55:20 | |
Southgate also made reference to the
employment gap among those living | 1:55:20 | 1:55:23 | |
with autism. The Office for National
Statistics recently announced that | 1:55:23 | 1:55:31 | |
it was suspending publication of the
disability employment rate in | 1:55:31 | 1:55:33 | |
definitely. The motion today's
refers to the fact that there will | 1:55:33 | 1:55:41 | |
be an implement gap after Brexit, at
the current gap is above the | 1:55:41 | 1:55:46 | |
European union level of around 20%.
It highlights the failure to take | 1:55:46 | 1:55:56 | |
action. In light of this, why has
the Government weakened its | 1:55:56 | 1:56:01 | |
commitment to reducing the
disability employment gap? It would | 1:56:01 | 1:56:04 | |
also be helpful if the Minister
could set out what measures she is | 1:56:04 | 1:56:08 | |
taking to improve disabled people's
ability to enter work, but also to | 1:56:08 | 1:56:13 | |
actually stay in work. So around
retention. Many barriers faced by | 1:56:13 | 1:56:21 | |
disabled people are shaped by false
perceptions about the role that | 1:56:21 | 1:56:24 | |
disabled people face in the work
place. Research by the Scope charity | 1:56:24 | 1:56:31 | |
found that almost half of disabled
people have worried about making | 1:56:31 | 1:56:35 | |
employers aware of their impairment
or condition. One of the key | 1:56:35 | 1:56:41 | |
barriers highlighted is how we shape
employer attitudes around employing | 1:56:41 | 1:56:46 | |
people with a disability. I would
like two ask the Minister, what with | 1:56:46 | 1:56:54 | |
the Government do to support
employees and especially small | 1:56:54 | 1:56:57 | |
businesses given they make up almost
half the workforce. How cancel | 1:56:57 | 1:57:04 | |
businesses access timely health
support, and how can best practice | 1:57:04 | 1:57:09 | |
be shared? I was surprised that, in
the Budget, disability or disabled | 1:57:09 | 1:57:17 | |
people were not mention, given a
negative message to disabled people | 1:57:17 | 1:57:24 | |
about their role in the economy, and
the regrettable impression that | 1:57:24 | 1:57:31 | |
there could be she was not being
championed or prioritised by this | 1:57:31 | 1:57:33 | |
government. We on this site of the
House will build an economy that | 1:57:33 | 1:57:39 | |
includes everybody because that is
how you can develop an economy that | 1:57:39 | 1:57:44 | |
works for everybody and not just for
a few. Madam Deputy Speaker, I | 1:57:44 | 1:57:49 | |
cannot stand here speaking on the
subject without mentioning the | 1:57:49 | 1:57:55 | |
comments made in December last year
by the right honourable member for | 1:57:55 | 1:58:01 | |
Runnymede during a select committee
questioning. The Chancellor linked | 1:58:01 | 1:58:05 | |
low productivity growth to the
employment of disabled people. | 1:58:05 | 1:58:08 | |
Unfortunately, there has been no
apology for the comments and his | 1:58:08 | 1:58:13 | |
lack of a Morse after the
scapegoating of disabled people | 1:58:13 | 1:58:20 | |
after the failed economic policy
speaks volumes. Does the Minister | 1:58:20 | 1:58:27 | |
agree that there is a need for a
clear and coherent message from the | 1:58:27 | 1:58:30 | |
Government that employing disabled
people can enhance productivity and | 1:58:30 | 1:58:35 | |
make a real contribution to
organisations and businesses across | 1:58:35 | 1:58:38 | |
the UK? Despite this, the Government
did manage to finally publish its | 1:58:38 | 1:58:44 | |
long-awaited improving lives paper
late last year. 90% of disability | 1:58:44 | 1:58:51 | |
and long-term health conditions are
acquired, so it is right to examine | 1:58:51 | 1:58:57 | |
how employers can make reasonable
adjustments to support android to | 1:58:57 | 1:59:00 | |
stay in work if they become
disabled. -- to support an employee. | 1:59:00 | 1:59:11 | |
They do not set out how they would
achieve this aim. Today, the | 1:59:11 | 1:59:15 | |
disability confident campaign
launched in 2014 has been a dismal | 1:59:15 | 1:59:21 | |
failure, making a negligible impact
on the disability employment gap. | 1:59:21 | 1:59:27 | |
The campaign has yet to produce any
concrete evidence or results, so can | 1:59:27 | 1:59:32 | |
the Minister confirm how many
additional disabled people have | 1:59:32 | 1:59:37 | |
found work as a direct result of the
disability confident campaign? | 1:59:37 | 1:59:52 | |
Access to work when it works well
provides invaluable support that too | 1:59:52 | 1:59:55 | |
often I hear about the problems in
administration and the timeliness of | 1:59:55 | 2:00:00 | |
payments as well as the cap on
individual awards. Miss French is a | 2:00:00 | 2:00:07 | |
visually impaired person, her
experience found that when the | 2:00:07 | 2:00:09 | |
subject of access to work came up,
recruiters would say the employer is | 2:00:09 | 2:00:14 | |
into much of a hurry and will not be
able to wait for an access to work | 2:00:14 | 2:00:19 | |
assessments to be completed. Access
to work as we all know is probably | 2:00:19 | 2:00:26 | |
the best kept secret, but a also the
scheme also helps far too few people | 2:00:26 | 2:00:31 | |
and will need significantly more
resources if the government is to | 2:00:31 | 2:00:33 | |
get anywhere near the aim of getting
1 million more disabled people into | 2:00:33 | 2:00:41 | |
work by 2017. In the case of a deaf
person, Mr Will, they were a job by | 2:00:41 | 2:00:53 | |
a different ability -- disability
confident employer, however once the | 2:00:53 | 2:00:59 | |
employer realised they would have to
meet the rest of the costs after the | 2:00:59 | 2:01:05 | |
cap, that job offer was withdrawn.
So, will the minister set out what | 2:01:05 | 2:01:08 | |
substantive action the government is
taking to support people in work, | 2:01:08 | 2:01:12 | |
what work have they done with
disabled people to ensure this | 2:01:12 | 2:01:14 | |
support is flexible and responsive
to need, and more importantly, what | 2:01:14 | 2:01:19 | |
additional funding is the government
going to make available, especially | 2:01:19 | 2:01:24 | |
to access to work? We also have
concerns around the language used in | 2:01:24 | 2:01:31 | |
the government's Improving Lives
paper, which centres around the idea | 2:01:31 | 2:01:36 | |
that employment can promote
recovery. It's a familiar sounding | 2:01:36 | 2:01:42 | |
phrase, disabled people and people
with chronic conditions would | 2:01:42 | 2:01:47 | |
recover if only they tried a bit
harder, or were subject to an ever | 2:01:47 | 2:01:51 | |
tougher system. Again, can the
minister reassure people with | 2:01:51 | 2:01:58 | |
disabilities that have limitations
to work, and those that are actually | 2:01:58 | 2:02:00 | |
unable to work, that this is not the
intended message that her government | 2:02:00 | 2:02:08 | |
is trying to convey, or in fact that
the government believes in? Over | 2:02:08 | 2:02:16 | |
nearly eight years, disabled people
have become the brunt of cuts | 2:02:16 | 2:02:21 | |
inflicted on them by this government
and the coalition government for | 2:02:21 | 2:02:23 | |
them. The cuts have had a
detrimental impact on the lives of | 2:02:23 | 2:02:36 | |
disabled people, cutting living
standards and undermining their | 2:02:36 | 2:02:37 | |
access to education, to social care
and also to justice. And in a 2016 | 2:02:37 | 2:02:42 | |
United Nations convened committee,
state violations were investigated | 2:02:42 | 2:02:44 | |
of the UN Convention on the rights
of and persons with a disability, | 2:02:44 | 2:03:00 | |
and the report concluded that the
government had committed grave, | 2:03:00 | 2:03:06 | |
systematic violations of the rights
of | 2:03:06 | 2:03:17 | |
Persons with a disability. And this
is a damning indictment of the | 2:03:19 | 2:03:30 | |
treatment of disabled people by this
government, one which shames us as a | 2:03:30 | 2:03:39 | |
country, yet the government has
failed to act and we believe in a | 2:03:39 | 2:03:42 | |
social model of disability, a
society which removes the barriers | 2:03:42 | 2:03:44 | |
restricting opportunities and
choices for disabled people. We will | 2:03:44 | 2:03:46 | |
incorporate the UN Convention and
the rights of Persons with | 2:03:46 | 2:03:48 | |
disabilities into law, and I would
ask the minister why does the | 2:03:48 | 2:03:52 | |
government refuse to do the same?
Currently there are 4.2 million | 2:03:52 | 2:03:54 | |
disabled people who live in poverty,
and new evidence indicates that this | 2:03:54 | 2:03:57 | |
number is increasing as a result of
cuts and support. Again, according | 2:03:57 | 2:04:03 | |
to Scope, the 2012 welfare reform
act has cut nearly 28 billion in | 2:04:03 | 2:04:13 | |
social security support from a 3.7
million disabled people. The 2016 | 2:04:13 | 2:04:21 | |
welfare reform act cuts are adding
to the real suffering many disabled | 2:04:21 | 2:04:23 | |
people are experiencing and, of
course, this doesn't include the | 2:04:23 | 2:04:25 | |
cuts in social care, the NHS,
education and transport. All of | 2:04:25 | 2:04:28 | |
which have had a direct effect on
disabled people. Research by Scope | 2:04:28 | 2:04:30 | |
that was published this week
revealed that on average, disabled | 2:04:30 | 2:04:32 | |
people face an extra cost of £570 a
week, I'm sorry, a month, related to | 2:04:32 | 2:04:35 | |
their impairment or condition, and
this is on top of the social | 2:04:35 | 2:04:38 | |
security payments designed to help
meet those costs. Extra costs mean | 2:04:38 | 2:04:40 | |
that disabled people's money simply
doesn't go far. £100 for a | 2:04:40 | 2:04:45 | |
non-disabled person is the
equivalent of just £67 for a | 2:04:45 | 2:04:47 | |
disabled person. In addition to the
four-year freeze in social security | 2:04:47 | 2:04:57 | |
support affecting disabled people,
the 9016 welfare reform act at | 2:04:57 | 2:05:00 | |
financial support I £1500 a year to
half a million disabled people who | 2:05:00 | 2:05:08 | |
had been found not fit for work but
who maybe in future on the activity | 2:05:08 | 2:05:14 | |
group. Can the minister provide the
House with an assessment of the | 2:05:14 | 2:05:18 | |
impact of this social security
disabled people and their ability to | 2:05:18 | 2:05:21 | |
actually stay in work and the
current social security system is | 2:05:21 | 2:05:27 | |
not working for disabled people, and
new analysis this week of the | 2:05:27 | 2:05:31 | |
treatment of unemployed disabled
claimants has revealed that there | 2:05:31 | 2:05:35 | |
are up to 53% -- snap up to 53% more
likely to be docked money than | 2:05:35 | 2:05:44 | |
claimants who are not disabled.
Disabled people hit with a million | 2:05:44 | 2:05:48 | |
sanctions since 2010. Under this
government we have seen the social | 2:05:48 | 2:05:52 | |
security system penalising people
with disabilities, cutting | 2:05:52 | 2:05:55 | |
much-needed support and making it
harder for them to access the | 2:05:55 | 2:05:58 | |
support that is available. The
assessment process for both ESA and | 2:05:58 | 2:06:07 | |
PIP are not fits for purpose. The
widespread distrust of the | 2:06:07 | 2:06:15 | |
assessment process by sick and
disabled people is, with a record | 2:06:15 | 2:06:19 | |
68% of PIP decisions taken to
tribunal being overturned by those | 2:06:19 | 2:06:22 | |
tribunal judges. Under private
contractors, the assessment process | 2:06:22 | 2:06:28 | |
is getting worse and not better. So,
I ask, wire won't be government act | 2:06:28 | 2:06:34 | |
to end privatisation and replace the
current system with a more holistic | 2:06:34 | 2:06:39 | |
process? I do welcome the
opportunity to have this important | 2:06:39 | 2:06:45 | |
debate in this Chamber today | 2:06:45 | 2:06:46 | |
opportunity to have this important
debate in this Chamber today, and | 2:06:46 | 2:06:49 | |
also thanking members across the
House for their contributions. | 2:06:49 | 2:06:51 | |
However I believe that until the
government take into account the | 2:06:51 | 2:06:57 | |
reality that far too many disabled
people in the social security system | 2:06:57 | 2:07:02 | |
that punishes them, rather than
support them, and a labour market | 2:07:02 | 2:07:06 | |
that shuts them out rather than one
which opens up their potential and | 2:07:06 | 2:07:11 | |
opens up to their skills. It is
incumbent on the government to | 2:07:11 | 2:07:15 | |
harness the potential of everyone
and create a truly inclusive society | 2:07:15 | 2:07:22 | |
that works for the many and not just
a few. Thank you. Thank you very | 2:07:22 | 2:07:32 | |
much, Madam Deputy Speaker. I would
like to add my personal | 2:07:32 | 2:07:38 | |
congratulations to those offered by
everyone else this afternoon to the | 2:07:38 | 2:07:43 | |
member for East Kilbride. I am not
going to throw everybody's named | 2:07:43 | 2:07:49 | |
constituencies because I have got so
little time left, but I think she | 2:07:49 | 2:07:54 | |
did a magnificent job introducing
this debate. I would echo the words | 2:07:54 | 2:07:59 | |
that people have said on all sides
of the House about her commitment to | 2:07:59 | 2:08:04 | |
this really important issue, her
sincerity and the way in which she | 2:08:04 | 2:08:07 | |
presented her debate in such a
positive weighbridge has been in | 2:08:07 | 2:08:13 | |
marked contrast to some of the later
contributions in this debate, quite | 2:08:13 | 2:08:16 | |
sadly. The work of the AP Gigi and
voluntary sector organisations that | 2:08:16 | 2:08:23 | |
do sue so much to support their work
and in the myriad of ways that we | 2:08:23 | 2:08:27 | |
have heard this afternoon. It is
really important to hear all the | 2:08:27 | 2:08:32 | |
voices across the House today, and
we have heard some very powerful | 2:08:32 | 2:08:44 | |
personal testimony from the members
of Eastbourne and Battersea and | 2:08:44 | 2:08:55 | |
others about their lived experience
of disability, and they have all | 2:08:55 | 2:08:58 | |
made significant contributions in
improving disabled people's | 2:08:58 | 2:09:00 | |
opportunities in playing their full
part in society. The member for | 2:09:00 | 2:09:10 | |
Battersea raised to some individual
cases, and I would appreciate her | 2:09:10 | 2:09:14 | |
providing me with the specific
details so that I can resolve those | 2:09:14 | 2:09:27 | |
matters. I would like to
congratulate the member for | 2:09:27 | 2:09:36 | |
Hornchurch and Upminster on becoming
a disabled, confident employer. | 2:09:36 | 2:09:49 | |
Yesterday she joined some 78 mamas
of Parliament who have done this, | 2:09:49 | 2:09:55 | |
and there will be further
opportunities for those that have | 2:09:55 | 2:09:57 | |
taken up this scheme. I would really
like to praise her and encourage her | 2:09:57 | 2:09:59 | |
for the work that she's going to be
doing her constituency with her | 2:09:59 | 2:10:02 | |
Jobcentre plus. That personal work
that we can do in our | 2:10:02 | 2:10:04 | |
constituencies, advocating amongst
local employers, to take seriously | 2:10:04 | 2:10:06 | |
all of our desire to see more
disabled people in employment, is | 2:10:06 | 2:10:08 | |
really important and really
powerful. She raised a really | 2:10:08 | 2:10:10 | |
important point about enabling
disabled children to develop their | 2:10:10 | 2:10:12 | |
employment skills, and to have the
same opportunities as all other | 2:10:12 | 2:10:14 | |
young people to gain work
experience. So, she will be pleased | 2:10:14 | 2:10:16 | |
to know that the Department for
Education completely agrees with her | 2:10:16 | 2:10:18 | |
and is increasing its commitment and
funding to enable young people to | 2:10:18 | 2:10:21 | |
have supported internships. We've
also heard from the member for | 2:10:21 | 2:10:23 | |
hitching and Harper didn't and
Chippenham, who have both made | 2:10:23 | 2:10:25 | |
powerful speeches about the level of
ambition we all share in closing the | 2:10:25 | 2:10:27 | |
discipline disability employment
gap. They both stress the importance | 2:10:27 | 2:10:29 | |
of working closely with employers on
culture change, and I completely | 2:10:29 | 2:10:31 | |
agree. We are considering the issues
that they raised about improving the | 2:10:31 | 2:10:34 | |
disability confidence scheme,
although I absolutely refute what | 2:10:34 | 2:10:35 | |
the member for Battersea set, this
is not a failing skin, it is a | 2:10:35 | 2:10:38 | |
growing scheme. We are looking at
what more we can do to incentivise | 2:10:38 | 2:10:44 | |
businesses, publishing the levels of
disability employment, especially | 2:10:44 | 2:10:45 | |
from large employers, and looking at
what more we can do to communicate | 2:10:45 | 2:10:50 | |
the wide range of help that is
available to support businesses and | 2:10:50 | 2:10:54 | |
public sector organisations to
employ disabled people. Now, I'd | 2:10:54 | 2:10:59 | |
like to congratulate the member for
Strangford unbecoming at a | 2:10:59 | 2:11:04 | |
disability confident employer
yesterday. And he raised a very | 2:11:04 | 2:11:06 | |
important point about how important
it is that people feel confident to | 2:11:06 | 2:11:14 | |
disclose their disability, and how
important it is for employers to | 2:11:14 | 2:11:16 | |
feel confident about hearing that
news, and how we can work together | 2:11:16 | 2:11:20 | |
to make sure that happens. Because
there is financial support | 2:11:20 | 2:11:25 | |
available, both to the disabled
person through access to work but | 2:11:25 | 2:11:28 | |
also to employers who will be
employing a disabled person. And I | 2:11:28 | 2:11:35 | |
can absolutely assure the member for
Inverness that each and every year, | 2:11:35 | 2:11:41 | |
we are increasing our investment in
benefits for disabled people, and | 2:11:41 | 2:11:46 | |
those with health conditions. This
year alone we're spending more than | 2:11:46 | 2:11:49 | |
£50 billion more than the defence
budget, and I'm proud to be part of | 2:11:49 | 2:11:55 | |
a government that prioritises
supporting disabled people. That is | 2:11:55 | 2:11:58 | |
an increase of £7 billion since
2010. And we are determined to | 2:11:58 | 2:12:03 | |
continuously improve the processes
of the operation of the system which | 2:12:03 | 2:12:08 | |
administers our disability benefits.
I will give way. I am grateful to | 2:12:08 | 2:12:11 | |
the minister for giving way. I feel
that in addition to this point that | 2:12:11 | 2:12:17 | |
she is due to address the comments
made by the Chancellor and distance | 2:12:17 | 2:12:20 | |
herself from that, but on that
specific point, what does she say to | 2:12:20 | 2:12:24 | |
those people who have lost the
severe disability allowance, then, | 2:12:24 | 2:12:35 | |
from disability payments? As he has
so intervened on me, I will not | 2:12:35 | 2:12:38 | |
leave that without commenting on it.
It is absolutely irresponsible of | 2:12:38 | 2:12:42 | |
the gentlemen to so deliberately
misrepresent what the Chancellor has | 2:12:42 | 2:12:48 | |
said at the select committee. We all
owe a huge, we all have a huge | 2:12:48 | 2:12:55 | |
responsibility in this House, to be
very careful of what we say so that | 2:12:55 | 2:12:58 | |
we honour the truth, and we don't
make comments which will scare among | 2:12:58 | 2:13:04 | |
and frighten some of the most
vulnerable people... No, I'm not | 2:13:04 | 2:13:08 | |
going to give way, I've been very
generous in giving way and I will | 2:13:08 | 2:13:12 | |
not indulge the honourable gentleman
any more in pursuing things which he | 2:13:12 | 2:13:16 | |
has met was misrepresented and
quoted out of context. Madam Deputy | 2:13:16 | 2:13:22 | |
Speaker, returning to the spirit of
the debate, which his colleague, the | 2:13:22 | 2:13:28 | |
honourable lady, so well-set for
this House, of cross-party, all this | 2:13:28 | 2:13:33 | |
House coming together to speak to
disabled people outside this | 2:13:33 | 2:13:36 | |
Chamber, to show how much we value
them, how much more we want to do to | 2:13:36 | 2:13:42 | |
enable them to play their support in
society, how much we all want to do | 2:13:42 | 2:13:46 | |
to enable employers to take able on,
I'm going to return to the tone | 2:13:46 | 2:13:50 | |
which was ably set by the honourable
gentleman's colleague and I hope he | 2:13:50 | 2:13:55 | |
can respect his own colleague and
the tone she set for us. Madam | 2:13:55 | 2:14:02 | |
Deputy Speaker, last week I visited
North Devon district Hospital with | 2:14:02 | 2:14:05 | |
the excellent member of Parliament,
and we met some young people who are | 2:14:05 | 2:14:09 | |
doing really valued jobs in hospital
on wards with patients and in | 2:14:09 | 2:14:14 | |
vitally important support services
such as in the engineering | 2:14:14 | 2:14:17 | |
department. All these excellent
young people had been supported by | 2:14:17 | 2:14:20 | |
their local college and plus through
a government funded scheme. They | 2:14:20 | 2:14:24 | |
were really supported through work
experience and placements in the | 2:14:24 | 2:14:29 | |
hospital, and this programme has
been working for five years. All of | 2:14:29 | 2:14:34 | |
these young people have learning
disabilities. | 2:14:34 | 2:14:41 | |
They were being employed not as an
act of charity but because of who | 2:14:41 | 2:14:44 | |
they were. I have the privilege as
the Minister for disabled people to | 2:14:44 | 2:14:49 | |
meet disabled people doing
extraordinarily good work in every | 2:14:49 | 2:14:54 | |
sort of work right across this
country. Just this morning, I was at | 2:14:54 | 2:15:01 | |
Channel 4, who kindly hosted the
first year anniversary of our sector | 2:15:01 | 2:15:06 | |
champions. Each sector champion is a
leader in their industry. They are | 2:15:06 | 2:15:12 | |
working to improve access for
disabled people to their industry, | 2:15:12 | 2:15:17 | |
from financial services to retail,
tourism, media and transport. Each | 2:15:17 | 2:15:22 | |
sector leader is an inspirational
leader in their field, driving real | 2:15:22 | 2:15:27 | |
change in access for disabled
people. They are doing this not just | 2:15:27 | 2:15:32 | |
because it is the right thing to do
but because it makes good business | 2:15:32 | 2:15:36 | |
sense for them as well. There are an
estimated 13 million disabled people | 2:15:36 | 2:15:41 | |
in our country. Each year, they
spend an estimated £250 billion. If | 2:15:41 | 2:15:50 | |
businesses are not accessible, they
are missing out on a great deal of | 2:15:50 | 2:15:52 | |
business. Access ability, as members
have said, does not need to be | 2:15:52 | 2:15:58 | |
expensive. What our champions are
doing is sharing best practice and | 2:15:58 | 2:16:02 | |
information so more people are
confident about employing disabled | 2:16:02 | 2:16:05 | |
people. Disabled people are not | 2:16:05 | 2:16:12 | |
Mickey huge contributions as
consumers at, as we have heard | 2:16:12 | 2:16:13 | |
today, in all aspects of our
society. That does include | 2:16:13 | 2:16:19 | |
employment. As the Government is
building a bridge and which is fit | 2:16:19 | 2:16:22 | |
for the future, when no one is left
behind, we have been clear that we | 2:16:22 | 2:16:28 | |
want our economy to harness the
skills, talents and contributions of | 2:16:28 | 2:16:33 | |
every person in society. We have
made significant progress. There are | 2:16:33 | 2:16:39 | |
now 6000 more disabled people in
work than there were four years ago | 2:16:39 | 2:16:43 | |
for the -- there are now 600,000
more disabled people in work. | 2:16:43 | 2:16:52 | |
Implement rates are at record highs.
But we know that only half of the | 2:16:52 | 2:16:58 | |
disabled people who would like to
work or in work. New analysis also | 2:16:58 | 2:17:02 | |
shows that over the course of the
year disabled people are twice as | 2:17:02 | 2:17:06 | |
likely to fall out of work, and
almost three times less likely to | 2:17:06 | 2:17:10 | |
move into work when compared to
non-disabled people. That is simply | 2:17:10 | 2:17:14 | |
not acceptable. I will give way. I
thank the Minister for giving way. | 2:17:14 | 2:17:21 | |
Apropos of what the Minister has
just said, which she agree with me | 2:17:21 | 2:17:26 | |
that if you are disabled and living
in a very remote area, such as my | 2:17:26 | 2:17:31 | |
constituency, getting to work, the
physical travel poses very special | 2:17:31 | 2:17:37 | |
and difficult challenges for these
people, and that is something the | 2:17:37 | 2:17:41 | |
Government will have to think about
very carefully so that my | 2:17:41 | 2:17:43 | |
constituents in this situation are
not disadvantaged. He makes a good | 2:17:43 | 2:17:49 | |
point. Representing a constituency
in Cornwall, I completely sympathise | 2:17:49 | 2:17:56 | |
with the issues he raises. Access to
work funding is available, which | 2:17:56 | 2:18:02 | |
includes transport, enabling people
to get to their places of | 2:18:02 | 2:18:03 | |
employment. It is also important
that we look at what more can be | 2:18:03 | 2:18:11 | |
doing, joining up community
transport with public transport. In | 2:18:11 | 2:18:15 | |
areas like the one to represent,
public transport isn't as good a | 2:18:15 | 2:18:21 | |
service as it is in urban areas.
There is more work to be done there. | 2:18:21 | 2:18:25 | |
With more than one in six people of
working age reporting a disability, | 2:18:25 | 2:18:31 | |
it is important that we do
everything we can to make sure their | 2:18:31 | 2:18:35 | |
talents do not go to waste. That is
why we do have an urgent and copper | 2:18:35 | 2:18:40 | |
of plans in action. We have the
personal support package, £330 | 2:18:40 | 2:18:50 | |
million of funding for a range of
new initiatives for those in the | 2:18:50 | 2:18:54 | |
right group, so they can have
tailor-made personal support to | 2:18:54 | 2:18:57 | |
enable them to take the steps to
work. We have already recruited over | 2:18:57 | 2:19:04 | |
300 additional disability employment
advisers, bringing special advice | 2:19:04 | 2:19:07 | |
and support into the job centre. We
have begun introducing 200 new | 2:19:07 | 2:19:13 | |
community partners you are able to
share their lived experience of | 2:19:13 | 2:19:17 | |
disability across our job centre
network. I will not take any more | 2:19:17 | 2:19:22 | |
interventions because I am seeing a
slight impatience because there is a | 2:19:22 | 2:19:27 | |
second debate this afternoon and
there are some point I need to | 2:19:27 | 2:19:29 | |
address that have been raised this
afternoon. Our work and health has | 2:19:29 | 2:19:35 | |
lodged, which has contracted value
of over £500 million to give | 2:19:35 | 2:19:39 | |
specialist support, including two
disabled people. An important point | 2:19:39 | 2:19:43 | |
was raised this afternoon about the
entrepreneurial spirit of disabled | 2:19:43 | 2:19:49 | |
people. Our new enterprise allowance
has allowed daily 20,000 people -- | 2:19:49 | 2:19:57 | |
nearly 20,000 disabled people to set
up businesses. We also have our | 2:19:57 | 2:20:07 | |
small employer offer them again to
help more disabled people into | 2:20:07 | 2:20:11 | |
employment. Bearing in mind the
time, I would really encourage | 2:20:11 | 2:20:18 | |
members to read the improving lives,
which sets out an ambitious plan of | 2:20:18 | 2:20:25 | |
detailed actions and investments
that the Government is taking, | 2:20:25 | 2:20:29 | |
including in assistive technology.
It is absolutely not what the mother | 2:20:29 | 2:20:34 | |
for Battersea said it was. We are
not saying those things, which I | 2:20:34 | 2:20:39 | |
will not repeat in this House
because they are so fundamentally | 2:20:39 | 2:20:41 | |
wrong. What we are about is
recognising the talents of disabled | 2:20:41 | 2:20:46 | |
people and making sure that there
are no barriers all its so those -- | 2:20:46 | 2:20:55 | |
no barriers or limits so those
talents can take them as far as they | 2:20:55 | 2:20:58 | |
can. I'm delighted to say that in
the devolved administrations, they | 2:20:58 | 2:21:01 | |
are taking all sorts of different
actions. We are working closely with | 2:21:01 | 2:21:06 | |
the Scottish government, and we are
jointly funding the single gateway | 2:21:06 | 2:21:12 | |
project in Dundee and five, which is
a good, innovative programme which | 2:21:12 | 2:21:15 | |
I'm looking forward to looking
closely with to see the lessons we | 2:21:15 | 2:21:18 | |
can learn to roll it out. It is a
single point of contact between the | 2:21:18 | 2:21:23 | |
job centre and employers and
disabled people themselves. Of | 2:21:23 | 2:21:27 | |
course we will continue to work
closely with devolved | 2:21:27 | 2:21:30 | |
administrations to see what more we
can do. To finally summarise, I want | 2:21:30 | 2:21:37 | |
to congratulate the member for East
Kilbride on bringing this issue to | 2:21:37 | 2:21:42 | |
the House, achieving our ambition of
seeing at least 1 million more sabre | 2:21:42 | 2:21:48 | |
people in work requires all of us to
work together. Of course, the | 2:21:48 | 2:21:54 | |
Government has got a role to play
but so do businesses, the health | 2:21:54 | 2:22:03 | |
sector and the voluntary sector. We
all have vital roles to play. I hope | 2:22:03 | 2:22:12 | |
they will support me and the
Government in delivering our | 2:22:12 | 2:22:17 | |
ambitious vision for a society in
which disabled people can play their | 2:22:17 | 2:22:20 | |
full part and go as far as the
talents will take them. | 2:22:20 | 2:22:30 | |
Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I
would like to thank everyone from | 2:22:30 | 2:22:32 | |
across the House. It is an important
debate and we have done it justice. | 2:22:32 | 2:22:41 | |
This is the starting point for the
work that we take together. I am | 2:22:41 | 2:22:47 | |
keen that people become disability
confident employers, so I would | 2:22:47 | 2:22:52 | |
encourage MPs to do that and hold
events in your constituency, to | 2:22:52 | 2:22:58 | |
encourage employers locally. I would
also like to pay tribute to our | 2:22:58 | 2:23:05 | |
speaker in this Parliament, who has
now created internship schemes over | 2:23:05 | 2:23:10 | |
the next five years for people to
come with disabilities to work in | 2:23:10 | 2:23:14 | |
Parliament with MPs. I think it is
important that Parliament is a role | 2:23:14 | 2:23:19 | |
model and leads the way, that we
don't just talk the talk but also | 2:23:19 | 2:23:25 | |
walk the walk. He is a shiny example
in that light. We are in politics to | 2:23:25 | 2:23:29 | |
make a difference to enable, and we
can create the inclusive society | 2:23:29 | 2:23:37 | |
that everyone deserves stop so thank
you. Thank you. The question is has | 2:23:37 | 2:23:41 | |
the order paper. As many of that
opinion, say I. I thought some more | 2:23:41 | 2:23:49 | |
enthusiasm! The ayes have it. We now
come to the backbench debate on | 2:23:49 | 2:24:04 | |
cancer strategy. Before we begin
this debate, I would like to remind | 2:24:04 | 2:24:12 | |
honourable members, and some of the
offenders have just left the | 2:24:12 | 2:24:15 | |
chamber, that there is not unlimited
time in this place, and that I | 2:24:15 | 2:24:22 | |
didn't impose a time-limit on the
last debate because I thought it | 2:24:22 | 2:24:25 | |
would run naturally to finish about
15 minutes ago. It didn't, it | 2:24:25 | 2:24:31 | |
overran, and I would like to point
out to the House the following. The | 2:24:31 | 2:24:35 | |
proposer of the motion, all three
front and two other members | 2:24:35 | 2:24:43 | |
significantly exceeded the amount of
time they ought to have taken. I was | 2:24:43 | 2:24:48 | |
hoping that in a good-natured
debate, we might have some self | 2:24:48 | 2:24:56 | |
regulation. It didn't happen. In the
next debate, I will have to impose | 2:24:56 | 2:25:01 | |
time limits. I should also point out
to those members taking part in the | 2:25:01 | 2:25:06 | |
next debate that the reason they
have less time to speak in this | 2:25:06 | 2:25:10 | |
debate is because their colleagues
in the last debate took longer than | 2:25:10 | 2:25:14 | |
they ought to have. I will leave it
to honourable members, although some | 2:25:14 | 2:25:21 | |
of the offenders have left the
chamber. I will find them later. Act | 2:25:21 | 2:25:33 | |
in an honourable way. As I call
Doctor Lisa Cameron, who is working | 2:25:33 | 2:25:36 | |
very hard this afternoon, to propose
this next debate, I hope that she | 2:25:36 | 2:25:41 | |
will do so in 15 minutes or less.
Doctor Lisa Cameron. Thank you so | 2:25:41 | 2:25:50 | |
much, Madam Deputy Speaker. I will
indeed tried to behave myself much | 2:25:50 | 2:25:56 | |
better in this debate, timewise. It
is an honour and privilege to | 2:25:56 | 2:25:59 | |
introduce this debate, and I want to
pay tribute to the backbench | 2:25:59 | 2:26:06 | |
Business Committee, and also for the
all-party Parliamentary group for | 2:26:06 | 2:26:12 | |
cancer for the timely and extremely
important report, and particularly | 2:26:12 | 2:26:16 | |
to the member for a sudden, who
could not be with us today but who | 2:26:16 | 2:26:24 | |
has done an awful lot of work on
this subject and deserves our thanks | 2:26:24 | 2:26:30 | |
in that regard. We are an essay on
site against cancer in this House, | 2:26:30 | 2:26:36 | |
and we are all on the same side in
achieving world-class cancer | 2:26:36 | 2:26:40 | |
outcomes. This speech will address,
very briefly as I have been | 2:26:40 | 2:26:52 | |
instructor, the issues raised in a
recent report. The report had over | 2:26:52 | 2:26:56 | |
80 contributions from charities and
bodies, and truly reflects the | 2:26:56 | 2:27:01 | |
passion from this sector. But it is
also a cry for help and progress, | 2:27:01 | 2:27:06 | |
and a positive way forward. The
speech will address the report's | 2:27:06 | 2:27:12 | |
four main areas of concern,
workforce strategy, data | 2:27:12 | 2:27:16 | |
transparency and funding. The debate
is open for contributors to raise | 2:27:16 | 2:27:26 | |
all issues. I will stick to the
group's recent report | 2:27:26 | 2:27:34 | |
recommendations. It considered
progress as we reached the halfway | 2:27:34 | 2:27:37 | |
point of the NHS cancer strategy
2015 to 2020. It was the result of | 2:27:37 | 2:27:45 | |
an all-party enquiry from last year.
It was formally launched at the | 2:27:45 | 2:27:50 | |
summer reception last July, and the
written submissions were larger than | 2:27:50 | 2:27:59 | |
anticipated, showing the dedication
of those working in the field. Many | 2:27:59 | 2:28:01 | |
submissions came from cancer
alliances, those at the front line | 2:28:01 | 2:28:07 | |
of the services that are being
provided, who identify many | 2:28:07 | 2:28:10 | |
pressures and challenges in the way
forward. The evidence from front | 2:28:10 | 2:28:14 | |
line services in particular seemed
to amount to a call for help and in | 2:28:14 | 2:28:20 | |
the report the Parliamentary group
indicated that while progress has | 2:28:20 | 2:28:26 | |
been made since its launch, the NHS.
Or to achieve the objectives set out | 2:28:26 | 2:28:30 | |
in the cancer strategy and less
corrective action is immediately | 2:28:30 | 2:28:34 | |
taken. To this end, the all-party
Parliamentary group has listed | 2:28:34 | 2:28:40 | |
recommendations, a copy of which
will be sent to all MPs. The lack of | 2:28:40 | 2:28:45 | |
workforce planning a merged as a key
concern. The cancer workforce is | 2:28:45 | 2:28:52 | |
constantly recognised as the biggest
barrier to implement in cash | 2:28:52 | 2:28:54 | |
strategy. -- implement in our
strategy. The strategy was | 2:28:54 | 2:29:08 | |
originally promised for 2016.
Written evidence suggests that the | 2:29:08 | 2:29:15 | |
workforce is the greatest barrier to
the strategy. The group also heard | 2:29:15 | 2:29:21 | |
that transformation funding is being
withheld from cancer alliances | 2:29:21 | 2:29:25 | |
because of the performance against
the 62 data waiting time targets. A | 2:29:25 | 2:29:32 | |
new conditioner funding which only
at a merged after the bidding | 2:29:32 | 2:29:35 | |
process emerged. | 2:29:35 | 2:29:43 | |
I thank her for giving way and I
appreciate the fact that she | 2:29:43 | 2:29:46 | |
acknowledged organisations like
Macmillan nurses for example, who | 2:29:46 | 2:29:50 | |
very often rely on subscription. And
they should be encouraged to give | 2:29:50 | 2:29:56 | |
more subscriptions where possible.
Absolutely. The honourable gentleman | 2:29:56 | 2:30:00 | |
makes an excellent point. These
agencies are working at the front, | 2:30:00 | 2:30:06 | |
with people who are just at their
most vulnerable point, and their | 2:30:06 | 2:30:12 | |
families, and they deserve all of
our encouragement and praise and, of | 2:30:12 | 2:30:15 | |
course, funding. In addition to
setting out how cancer alliances are | 2:30:15 | 2:30:25 | |
going to be funded and supported
both for the duration of the | 2:30:25 | 2:30:28 | |
strategy in the future, the
all-party Parliamentary group | 2:30:28 | 2:30:30 | |
strongly wreck ends -- strongly
recommends that the 62 day waiting | 2:30:30 | 2:30:37 | |
time target is decoupled. The
previously mentioned issues prevent | 2:30:37 | 2:30:41 | |
progress in improving cancer care
and treatment which is not our | 2:30:41 | 2:30:45 | |
collective vision. The all-party
Parliamentary group also heard that | 2:30:45 | 2:30:48 | |
improving transparency as regards to
priorities and accountability would | 2:30:48 | 2:30:54 | |
help support the delivery of the
strategy. At the moment, a lack of | 2:30:54 | 2:30:59 | |
clarity and lines of communication
are delaying its ink limitation. | 2:30:59 | 2:31:02 | |
Publishing a detailed progress
update on each of the strategies' 96 | 2:31:02 | 2:31:10 | |
recommendations would indeed be a
positive step forward. In addition, | 2:31:10 | 2:31:14 | |
following on from the previous
point, it is generally accepted that | 2:31:14 | 2:31:18 | |
the 62 day waiting target has been
treated as a high priority amongst | 2:31:18 | 2:31:23 | |
CCG and cancer alliances leaders
than survival or stage diagnosis as | 2:31:23 | 2:31:30 | |
shown by the linkage between funding
and performance against this | 2:31:30 | 2:31:33 | |
measure. So, decoupling funding and
process target performance in favour | 2:31:33 | 2:31:37 | |
of a greater focus on outcomes would
strongly be in the interest of | 2:31:37 | 2:31:41 | |
patients, not least because if
outcomes are good, survival rates | 2:31:41 | 2:31:47 | |
increasing, processes will also be
functioning efficiently and | 2:31:47 | 2:31:49 | |
correctly. Will my honourable friend
give way? I will indeed. That 62 day | 2:31:49 | 2:31:57 | |
target has not been met since 2014,
and as such, that is an issue that | 2:31:57 | 2:32:01 | |
has been around for quite a while.
Wilshere agree with me that more | 2:32:01 | 2:32:05 | |
funding needs to be put in to make
sure that that target is met and is | 2:32:05 | 2:32:10 | |
met as soon as possible? I
absolutely agree with the honourable | 2:32:10 | 2:32:13 | |
gentleman. It is absolutely
essential that that target is met | 2:32:13 | 2:32:16 | |
and that resources are put in to
ensure that it is. The all-party | 2:32:16 | 2:32:21 | |
Parliamentary group also found
access to detailed and timely data | 2:32:21 | 2:32:25 | |
is critically important for the
success of the strategy, | 2:32:25 | 2:32:28 | |
particularly in relation to data for
the rare and less common cancers. | 2:32:28 | 2:32:33 | |
Strong concerns were also raised as
to how future protection regulations | 2:32:33 | 2:32:39 | |
on data might affect surveys such as
the cancer patient experience | 2:32:39 | 2:32:41 | |
survey. The value of the cancer
patient experience survey should be | 2:32:41 | 2:32:47 | |
emphasised, along with outcomes
from... We must hear from those who | 2:32:47 | 2:32:53 | |
are experiencing services. They are
the ones who know how to improve | 2:32:53 | 2:32:58 | |
things for the better. In addition,
the ageing UK population cannot be | 2:32:58 | 2:33:04 | |
left out of the conversation. The
cancer patient is experience survey | 2:33:04 | 2:33:10 | |
suggests that older people are less
likely to have access to a clinical | 2:33:10 | 2:33:15 | |
nurse specialist. Additionally,
older patients are less likely to | 2:33:15 | 2:33:18 | |
know the full extent of their
illness. Age discrimination must | 2:33:18 | 2:33:21 | |
come to an end, especially in terms
of cancer care. The all-party | 2:33:21 | 2:33:27 | |
Parliamentary group recommends the
NHS and Public Health England's data | 2:33:27 | 2:33:33 | |
teamwork to produce more timely
cancer data and to make it publicly | 2:33:33 | 2:33:39 | |
available. The all-party
Parliamentary group advocates that | 2:33:39 | 2:33:41 | |
the government ensures that the
cancer agent experience survey and | 2:33:41 | 2:33:47 | |
other such surveys are able to
continue in a way which allows | 2:33:47 | 2:33:50 | |
patient experience to be considered
on a par with clinical | 2:33:50 | 2:33:54 | |
effectiveness, rather than leaving
patients without sufficient | 2:33:54 | 2:33:58 | |
information regarding their cancer
and care. Furthermore, in terms of | 2:33:58 | 2:34:02 | |
specific cancers like breast-cancer,
there are key priorities for | 2:34:02 | 2:34:05 | |
delivery in the cancer strategy. It
must ensure data is collected for | 2:34:05 | 2:34:11 | |
people living with incurable
secondary cancer. Everyone with | 2:34:11 | 2:34:16 | |
secondary breast-cancer has a
specialist nurse with the right | 2:34:16 | 2:34:20 | |
skills and expertise and everyone
has access to the right support | 2:34:20 | 2:34:25 | |
after finishing treatment for
primary cancer, so they are able to | 2:34:25 | 2:34:28 | |
live well after breast-cancer. We
should not ignore the fact that the | 2:34:28 | 2:34:33 | |
strategy has had positive effects.
In the last year, 60 cancer | 2:34:33 | 2:34:40 | |
alliances and three vanguards have
been established, and £200 million | 2:34:40 | 2:34:43 | |
has been made available to them for
earlier diagnosis and post-diagnosis | 2:34:43 | 2:34:48 | |
of support. In addition, 23 NHS
trusts have now received new and | 2:34:48 | 2:34:55 | |
upgraded radiotherapy machines.
However, as the report makes clear, | 2:34:55 | 2:34:58 | |
there is much more work still to be
done. I want to just reflate in the | 2:34:58 | 2:35:05 | |
few minutes that I have left to
speak a bit more about less | 2:35:05 | 2:35:08 | |
survivable cancers. The less
survivable cancers task force has | 2:35:08 | 2:35:14 | |
been in touch with me prior to
today's debate, made up of | 2:35:14 | 2:35:18 | |
pancreatic cancer UK, the British
liver trust, the brain tumour | 2:35:18 | 2:35:21 | |
charity and axing against heart
bonus offer go cancer and call or | 2:35:21 | 2:35:27 | |
digestive diseases. There is a
staggering 55% gap in morbidity, and | 2:35:27 | 2:35:34 | |
that a shock is absolutely
unacceptable. Much, much more must | 2:35:34 | 2:35:40 | |
be done. I recently myself lost a
very dear uncle to pancreatic | 2:35:40 | 2:35:49 | |
cancer, and as a family going
through that experience, and knowing | 2:35:49 | 2:35:55 | |
that we need much more research, we
need much more specialist | 2:35:55 | 2:36:01 | |
understanding, we need to have the
investment in those areas, it's | 2:36:01 | 2:36:04 | |
absolutely crucial. I want to ensure
that other families have a better | 2:36:04 | 2:36:08 | |
chance of a longer survival rate,
and I would also pay tribute to my | 2:36:08 | 2:36:14 | |
own uncle for his courage in terms
of coping with that condition right | 2:36:14 | 2:36:19 | |
till the end. Hospice care I would
say is also absolutely essential. | 2:36:19 | 2:36:25 | |
And we must ensure that families and
patients have dignity at the end of | 2:36:25 | 2:36:30 | |
life. It's just absolutely
imperative. I have watched far too | 2:36:30 | 2:36:39 | |
many family members die in hospital
beds, surrounded by other patients, | 2:36:39 | 2:36:44 | |
with the curtain screen drawn, to
know that that is not dignified, and | 2:36:44 | 2:36:49 | |
that where possible, we must improve
services and access to Hospice care. | 2:36:49 | 2:36:56 | |
Very quickly, I want to also pay
tribute to Teenage Cancer Trust, | 2:36:56 | 2:37:02 | |
because often we think of cancer as
an illness which affects older | 2:37:02 | 2:37:04 | |
people, but also, young people are
diagnosed with cancer, they do | 2:37:04 | 2:37:13 | |
fantastic work, Vanessa Todd in my
own constituency is an absolute | 2:37:13 | 2:37:17 | |
advocate for Teenage Cancer Trust,
and we must ensure that whilst it | 2:37:17 | 2:37:22 | |
may not be something that GPs
expect, when a young person comes | 2:37:22 | 2:37:27 | |
with symptoms that are perhaps not
easily identifiable, but it is | 2:37:27 | 2:37:31 | |
something that we increase awareness
of to make sure that the gnosis is | 2:37:31 | 2:37:35 | |
very quick and timely for young
people to improve their prognosis. I | 2:37:35 | 2:37:39 | |
want to thank everybody, thanks once
again the all-party Parliamentary | 2:37:39 | 2:37:42 | |
group, and as I say, it has been a
privilege to date to open the debate | 2:37:42 | 2:37:48 | |
for the honourable member who is
Chair of that group, and who leads | 2:37:48 | 2:37:53 | |
that group in these issues so well.
The question is, this House has | 2:37:53 | 2:38:02 | |
considered the cancer strategy. And
before I call the next Speaker, I | 2:38:02 | 2:38:09 | |
will try to continue my experiment
of seeing if people will self at the | 2:38:09 | 2:38:13 | |
and behave in a decent and
honourable fashion. That means | 2:38:13 | 2:38:18 | |
taking 8-9 minutes, not 13 or 14 or
15 minutes, and I trust the well | 2:38:18 | 2:38:29 | |
experienced Mr David Tredinnick to
do so first. Thank you, Madam Deputy | 2:38:29 | 2:38:34 | |
Speaker, it is an honour to be
called first on this side of the | 2:38:34 | 2:38:37 | |
House and I have heard what you said
and intend to respect what you said. | 2:38:37 | 2:38:40 | |
Madam Deputy Speaker, on the 25th of
January in the Other Place, in the | 2:38:40 | 2:38:46 | |
House of Lords, as we tend to call
it now, a very distinguished former | 2:38:46 | 2:38:50 | |
Secretary of State for Culture,
Media and Sport in this House, | 2:38:50 | 2:38:54 | |
former minister of the Olympics,
someone who did much to bring the | 2:38:54 | 2:38:58 | |
Olympics to London, Tessa Jowell,
now Baroness Jowell, made an | 2:38:58 | 2:39:01 | |
impassioned speech about the brain
tumour which she has suffered. And | 2:39:01 | 2:39:09 | |
this is something that I can
identify with, I don't normally talk | 2:39:09 | 2:39:13 | |
about family matters, but I will
share with the House that my sister | 2:39:13 | 2:39:16 | |
died of a brain tumour. What a
Baroness Jowell said in her speech | 2:39:16 | 2:39:24 | |
is something that I think the
Parliamentary undersecretary, the | 2:39:24 | 2:39:28 | |
member for Winchester, should mark.
I know he has a strong interest in | 2:39:28 | 2:39:31 | |
cancer. She said... For what would
every cancer patient want? First to | 2:39:31 | 2:39:40 | |
know that the latest science was
being used and available for them. | 2:39:40 | 2:39:42 | |
What else would they want? They need
to know that they have a community | 2:39:42 | 2:39:47 | |
around them, supporting and caring,
being practical and kind, while | 2:39:47 | 2:39:54 | |
doctors look at the big picture. We
can all be part of the human sized | 2:39:54 | 2:39:59 | |
picture. Now, Madam Deputy Speaker,
yesterday at the all-party cancer | 2:39:59 | 2:40:08 | |
group, of which I am a deputy
chairman, one of the things we | 2:40:08 | 2:40:12 | |
looked at was recovery packages. And
this is something which is very dear | 2:40:12 | 2:40:15 | |
to my heart, as the member who has
chaired for much of the 30 years | 2:40:15 | 2:40:22 | |
that I've been in this House, the
all-party group for integrated | 2:40:22 | 2:40:24 | |
health care, and my researcher has
told me that I have chaired over 120 | 2:40:24 | 2:40:33 | |
meetings in this House of that
group. What we have try to do over | 2:40:33 | 2:40:39 | |
the years is to look at how to
support cancer patients in a broader | 2:40:39 | 2:40:46 | |
way. And if I can share a figure
with the House straightaway, in the | 2:40:46 | 2:40:51 | |
United Kingdom, according to Cancer
Research UK, 33% of those who have | 2:40:51 | 2:40:58 | |
cancer use some sort of additional
support the repeat, often | 2:40:58 | 2:41:02 | |
compliments with therapy. For
sometimes of cancer, such as breast | 2:41:02 | 2:41:08 | |
cancer, this number is even higher,
at almost 50%. -- some types of | 2:41:08 | 2:41:14 | |
cancer. Why people use it is because
when used alongside conventional | 2:41:14 | 2:41:19 | |
cancer treatments such as
radiotherapy and chemotherapy, it | 2:41:19 | 2:41:22 | |
makes it easier for them to cope
with the cancer and it makes them | 2:41:22 | 2:41:26 | |
feel that they play a part in how
they coped. It helps them relax, | 2:41:26 | 2:41:31 | |
reduces stress, it enables them to
take more active roles in their | 2:41:31 | 2:41:38 | |
treatment and recovery in
partnership with their therapist. It | 2:41:38 | 2:41:41 | |
enables them to feel more in control
of their feelings and emotions. And | 2:41:41 | 2:41:45 | |
there is very strong evidence that
these therapies work effectively, | 2:41:45 | 2:41:49 | |
although more research is always
welcome. The use of acupuncture now | 2:41:49 | 2:41:54 | |
to relieve sickness caused by some
in the therapy drugs is | 2:41:54 | 2:41:59 | |
well-established. And also for
relieving a sore mouth after having | 2:41:59 | 2:42:05 | |
treatment for head and neck cancer.
Not far away from here, there are | 2:42:05 | 2:42:11 | |
three good examples of how these
additional therapies have helped at | 2:42:11 | 2:42:17 | |
guys Thomases NHS Trust. They're
offering in the outbreak clinic | 2:42:17 | 2:42:21 | |
aromatherapy massage, reflexology
and quantitative data analysis shows | 2:42:21 | 2:42:30 | |
that the statistics show a
statistically significant | 2:42:30 | 2:42:33 | |
improvement. At the Royal Marsden
the global world-renowned hospital | 2:42:33 | 2:42:39 | |
not far away from here, they're
using aromatherapy, mass arch and | 2:42:39 | 2:42:45 | |
have treated 1000 patients to date
at the full circle therapies unit at | 2:42:45 | 2:42:53 | |
St George is NHS Foundation Trust,
they're using reflexology, massage | 2:42:53 | 2:42:58 | |
therapy and relaxation training.
Professor Smith, the professor of | 2:42:58 | 2:43:06 | |
haematology there, said the therapy
team has made a fantastic difference | 2:43:06 | 2:43:09 | |
to the well-being of our patients.
And there are other citations here. | 2:43:09 | 2:43:13 | |
I give way. I am grateful to my
honourable friend for giving way, | 2:43:13 | 2:43:20 | |
and I know having been a minister of
his assiduous commitment to this | 2:43:20 | 2:43:23 | |
cause. He mentioned the Noble
Baroness Jowell, would he agree with | 2:43:23 | 2:43:28 | |
me that the sight of her and the
Prime Minister together, embracing, | 2:43:28 | 2:43:31 | |
and the Prime Minister's
announcement of £40 million for | 2:43:31 | 2:43:35 | |
brain cancer, is good news and it is
done in the spirit of cross-party | 2:43:35 | 2:43:39 | |
commitment to tackling disease and
will give a lot of hope to that | 2:43:39 | 2:43:42 | |
community. On the point about
alternative therapies, does he agree | 2:43:42 | 2:43:46 | |
with me that it is very important
that the medical community and the | 2:43:46 | 2:43:50 | |
national institute of health
research does the research to look | 2:43:50 | 2:43:53 | |
at the extent to which these
therapies, even if they may not be | 2:43:53 | 2:43:57 | |
rooted in the tradition of empirical
science, if there is data to show | 2:43:57 | 2:44:00 | |
that they help patients' recovery
time, then that is worthwhile and | 2:44:00 | 2:44:04 | |
should be looked at? | 2:44:04 | 2:44:12 | |
If you look at the trials that have
taken place, we have randomised | 2:44:12 | 2:44:19 | |
control trials, controlled studies,
the person who came up with the | 2:44:19 | 2:44:21 | |
notion of evidence -based medicine
has said that the practice of | 2:44:21 | 2:44:28 | |
evidence -based medicine means
integrating individual clinical | 2:44:28 | 2:44:31 | |
expertise with the best available
external evidence, which means you | 2:44:31 | 2:44:36 | |
have to look at the patient and see
what they think and what the | 2:44:36 | 2:44:42 | |
patient's experience is. Deputy
Speaker, we're often told by the | 2:44:42 | 2:44:50 | |
front bench, Treasury bench and
others that we need more evidence, | 2:44:50 | 2:44:54 | |
there must be evidence. When you
produce evidence and proper trials, | 2:44:54 | 2:44:58 | |
it is often ignored. I have chosen
this particular subject, healing, | 2:44:58 | 2:45:04 | |
therapeutic touch, call it what you
like, because it appears that with a | 2:45:04 | 2:45:10 | |
very good evidence people who are
able to use their hands to transfer | 2:45:10 | 2:45:13 | |
some kind of energy, and I have
studied Reiki myself, once ended up | 2:45:13 | 2:45:24 | |
speaking to 5000 therapists in Japan
at a conference many years ago, but | 2:45:24 | 2:45:28 | |
a study in 2007, according to Cancer
Research UK, found that up to 40% of | 2:45:28 | 2:45:36 | |
people in America uses some kind of
spiritual healing. In this country, | 2:45:36 | 2:45:42 | |
there is very good evidence to
suggest that seeing a healer helps | 2:45:42 | 2:45:47 | |
people. In the UK, long-term hormone
therapy for women with breast cancer | 2:45:47 | 2:45:53 | |
can be enhanced and patients can be
helped if he really is given to them | 2:45:53 | 2:46:03 | |
for the side-effects of the
treatment. -- healing is to them. | 2:46:03 | 2:46:07 | |
There is a study that said that over
a period of ten weeks they had fewer | 2:46:07 | 2:46:14 | |
side-effects. In the National Health
Service, there was a two year trial | 2:46:14 | 2:46:23 | |
involving 200 hospital patients with
long-standing illness is, the | 2:46:23 | 2:46:28 | |
largest of its kind funded by the
lottery and supervised by the | 2:46:28 | 2:46:32 | |
University of Birmingham. The
methodology looks at the | 2:46:32 | 2:46:39 | |
effectiveness of refuelling in
dealing with irritable bowel | 2:46:39 | 2:46:45 | |
syndrome, 200 patients were seen.
After these patients were assessed, | 2:46:45 | 2:46:55 | |
the measure yourself medical outcome
profile showed a very significant | 2:46:55 | 2:46:59 | |
improvement after six, 12 and 24
weeks. This was a trial on irritable | 2:46:59 | 2:47:04 | |
bowel syndrome and IBD, but it was a
scientifically carried out trial and | 2:47:04 | 2:47:14 | |
it worked, so it would almost
certainly work for cancer. We need | 2:47:14 | 2:47:18 | |
to do more research to look at this.
I say to my honourable friend, the | 2:47:18 | 2:47:24 | |
drug showed the same results,
especially at minimal cost, it would | 2:47:24 | 2:47:30 | |
be recommended by NICE. More trials
are needed. Part of the Government's | 2:47:30 | 2:47:36 | |
efforts to get more rigorous
assessment has been conducted by the | 2:47:36 | 2:47:40 | |
professional standards authority,
which was set up to oversee the UK's | 2:47:40 | 2:47:45 | |
nine health and care professional
bodies, previously named as the | 2:47:45 | 2:47:54 | |
Council for health care regulatory
excellence. In February 2013, it | 2:47:54 | 2:47:58 | |
lost its accredited registered
scheme, a Government backed scheme, | 2:47:58 | 2:48:04 | |
and now has 24 accredited registered
covering 31 occupations and 80,000 | 2:48:04 | 2:48:12 | |
practitioners. Among the registers
it has the Association of child | 2:48:12 | 2:48:18 | |
psychotherapist, the British
acupuncture Council, the British | 2:48:18 | 2:48:20 | |
Association of sport rebuild
teachers and trainers, the | 2:48:20 | 2:48:24 | |
Federation of holistic therapists,
the national hypnotherapist society | 2:48:24 | 2:48:30 | |
and many others. Madam Deputy
Speaker, in its summary, the Chief | 2:48:30 | 2:48:47 | |
Executive of the professional
standards authorities said, a key | 2:48:47 | 2:48:53 | |
recommendation is for practitioners
to have the authority to make a | 2:48:53 | 2:49:01 | |
direct NHS referrals. That is the
practitioners that they are | 2:49:01 | 2:49:05 | |
regulatory. Inappropriate places,
thereby reducing the administrative | 2:49:05 | 2:49:12 | |
burden on GP surgeries. Please mark
what I've said here. They are saying | 2:49:12 | 2:49:18 | |
that practitioners on that register
should have the authority to make | 2:49:18 | 2:49:23 | |
direct NHS referrals. If this was
possible, you bring into the service | 2:49:23 | 2:49:32 | |
30,000 additional practitioners. I'm
trying to figure out, perhaps you | 2:49:32 | 2:49:39 | |
can guide me. I can guide to the
honourable gentleman. Around 11 | 2:49:39 | 2:49:45 | |
minutes to date, but he has taken
the few interventions, therefore I | 2:49:45 | 2:49:49 | |
am not compelling him to sit down.
But I'm sure he is going to conclude | 2:49:49 | 2:49:53 | |
quite soon. I'm very encouraged to
see that Leicester's hospitals have | 2:49:53 | 2:50:03 | |
entered into a memorandum of
understanding with university | 2:50:03 | 2:50:08 | |
affiliated hospital in China. It
attempts to have cooperation between | 2:50:08 | 2:50:16 | |
the two middle. I have used Chinese
medicine for 20 years and the use of | 2:50:16 | 2:50:22 | |
acupuncture and herbal medicine, in
my belief, looking through the | 2:50:22 | 2:50:29 | |
testimonials, dramatically increases
the sense of well-being for those | 2:50:29 | 2:50:33 | |
whose software cancer and frequently
extend the life span. I absolutely | 2:50:33 | 2:50:38 | |
come into the hospitals of Leicester
sure when they are discussing this | 2:50:38 | 2:50:42 | |
with the authorities in China to
look at the possibility of training | 2:50:42 | 2:50:47 | |
therapists in Chinese therapy. Thank
you, I rest my case. Thank you, | 2:50:47 | 2:50:59 | |
Madam Deputy Speaker, and it is a
pleasure to follow the honourable | 2:50:59 | 2:51:04 | |
member who made a very interesting
speech. I also want to think thank | 2:51:04 | 2:51:12 | |
the honourable member for a school
pride for securing this very | 2:51:12 | 2:51:16 | |
important debate. We all know
someone who has had or has been | 2:51:16 | 2:51:22 | |
affected by cancer. My family is no
exception, both my parents had | 2:51:22 | 2:51:28 | |
cancer and my husband lives with
cancer every day of his life. I | 2:51:28 | 2:51:33 | |
could talk about cancer for ever not
I'll try to limit myself to the | 2:51:33 | 2:51:40 | |
recommended time. We know that the
cancer strategy sets out such eejit | 2:51:40 | 2:51:46 | |
priorities and recommendations which
aim to radically improve the | 2:51:46 | 2:51:52 | |
outcomes for people affected by
cancer but we also know that the | 2:51:52 | 2:51:55 | |
specific needs of a lot cancer
patients are not being fully met by | 2:51:55 | 2:52:01 | |
this cancer strategy. -- blood
cancer patients. This is because | 2:52:01 | 2:52:11 | |
their experience is different to
solid tumour patients so it is not | 2:52:11 | 2:52:16 | |
all that effective in meeting their
needs. These unmet needs occur any | 2:52:16 | 2:52:21 | |
number of priority areas identified
in the cancer strategy, including | 2:52:21 | 2:52:27 | |
awareness and early diagnosis,
patient experience, living with and | 2:52:27 | 2:52:32 | |
beyond cancer, access to new
treatments and researching NHS | 2:52:32 | 2:52:36 | |
commissioning. Today I want to focus
on one particular issue, the need | 2:52:36 | 2:52:42 | |
for post stem cell transplant care
for patients. This is for patient | 2:52:42 | 2:52:54 | |
experience, living beyond cancer and
NHS commissioning. It is estimated | 2:52:54 | 2:52:59 | |
by 2020, they will be more than
16,000 people in the UK living post | 2:52:59 | 2:53:04 | |
transplant, many of whom will be
experiencing both physical and | 2:53:04 | 2:53:08 | |
psychological side-effects from the
treatment. That can last for months | 2:53:08 | 2:53:12 | |
and even years. The side effects can
include second cancers, infertility, | 2:53:12 | 2:53:20 | |
depression, isolation and
post-traumatic stress disorder. | 2:53:20 | 2:53:24 | |
Unfortunately, we know that there
are worrying gaps in their care and | 2:53:24 | 2:53:27 | |
support available to stem cell
transplant patients after treatment. | 2:53:27 | 2:53:33 | |
It is particularly concerning that
only half of those who need | 2:53:33 | 2:53:36 | |
psychological support actually
receive it. The same is true for | 2:53:36 | 2:53:41 | |
practical support. One and five are
not offered any specialist care to | 2:53:41 | 2:53:50 | |
help with physical recovery. These
are reflected in the expenses of | 2:53:50 | 2:53:53 | |
many blood cancer patients who feel
after their transplant, when they | 2:53:53 | 2:53:58 | |
are sent home, the level of support
and the level of support available | 2:53:58 | 2:54:03 | |
to them actually falls away. They
feel they have no one to talk to | 2:54:03 | 2:54:07 | |
about the effects and being
challenged by its complications. | 2:54:07 | 2:54:12 | |
Also about the psychological burden
of living with and beyond cancer and | 2:54:12 | 2:54:17 | |
its treatment, their dietary needs
or infertility problems and even | 2:54:17 | 2:54:22 | |
practical issues such as when they
can start to resume everyday | 2:54:22 | 2:54:26 | |
activities. The ones they had
enjoyed before the treatment | 2:54:26 | 2:54:29 | |
started. This is because the
commissioning of post transplant | 2:54:29 | 2:54:35 | |
services is simply not working for
every patient. After 100 days, | 2:54:35 | 2:54:40 | |
responsibility transfers from NHS
England to CCGs, but this arbitrary | 2:54:40 | 2:54:47 | |
cut-off leaps to fragmentation and
gaps in the support. There must be a | 2:54:47 | 2:54:54 | |
review of that 100 day cut-off as
well as the care currently provided | 2:54:54 | 2:54:57 | |
to patients after a stem cell
transplant to ensure that all | 2:54:57 | 2:55:01 | |
patients can access the support they
need. This includes ensuring that | 2:55:01 | 2:55:06 | |
all patients have access to
appropriate emotional and | 2:55:06 | 2:55:12 | |
psychological support services and
access to clinical specialist or | 2:55:12 | 2:55:15 | |
equivalent model of support. Both of
which are pledges in the cancer | 2:55:15 | 2:55:18 | |
strategy. This issue very much ties
into what the cancer strategy says | 2:55:18 | 2:55:24 | |
about the commissioning of cancer
services being highly fragmented. It | 2:55:24 | 2:55:30 | |
recommended setting clear
expectations by the end of 2015 for | 2:55:30 | 2:55:35 | |
how cancer services should be
commissioned. As we had rapidly | 2:55:35 | 2:55:41 | |
towards 2020, it is important that
we continue working hard to resolve | 2:55:41 | 2:55:45 | |
the confusion that still exists. I
hope the Minister when winding up | 2:55:45 | 2:55:52 | |
can update us on how work in this
area is progressing. I have outlined | 2:55:52 | 2:55:57 | |
to do just a few of the priority
areas were much more needs to be | 2:55:57 | 2:56:01 | |
done to ensure that blood cancers
and the needs of the patients are | 2:56:01 | 2:56:08 | |
appropriately addressed by the
cancer strategy. I believe that | 2:56:08 | 2:56:12 | |
thorough and robust action in these
and a number of other key areas will | 2:56:12 | 2:56:19 | |
have an impact for blood cancer
patients, Inc approving care on | 2:56:19 | 2:56:23 | |
their journey from diagnosis to
treatment and through to recovery. | 2:56:23 | 2:56:27 | |
Thank you. I'm delighted to be
taking part in today's debates, | 2:56:27 | 2:56:36 | |
which I know is such an important
area the Government. Can I | 2:56:36 | 2:56:41 | |
congratulate the members for
securing time today to speak on it? | 2:56:41 | 2:56:48 | |
Since 2010, the Government has
recognised the need to improve | 2:56:48 | 2:56:52 | |
cancer services offered by the NHS
and make the UK a world leader in | 2:56:52 | 2:56:57 | |
cancer research, diagnosis,
treatment and care. Many innovations | 2:56:57 | 2:57:01 | |
are being introduced, such as the
Cancer Drugs Fund and the | 2:57:01 | 2:57:05 | |
implementation of the independent
cancer task force strategy. Cancer | 2:57:05 | 2:57:09 | |
survival rates are a record high and
access to the world's leading cancer | 2:57:09 | 2:57:15 | |
continues to improve, so it is clear
great work is already being done. I | 2:57:15 | 2:57:21 | |
want to focus on the area of breast
cancer. It has been a honour to be | 2:57:21 | 2:57:27 | |
co-chair of the breast cancer group
for three years, and I have worked | 2:57:27 | 2:57:32 | |
with a range of really inspirational
people of patients through to | 2:57:32 | 2:57:37 | |
clinicians. It is great to see two
former chairs representing both | 2:57:37 | 2:57:43 | |
frontbenchers here today. I know the
minister did some really good work | 2:57:43 | 2:57:49 | |
during his time on aid related risk
and it is good to see that he is | 2:57:49 | 2:57:53 | |
carrying that one. I believe we may
be able to tempt him to talk about | 2:57:53 | 2:57:58 | |
some of the work he is doing in his
remarks later. As we know, breast | 2:57:58 | 2:58:03 | |
cancer is the UK's most common, with
11,500 women and easy men dying from | 2:58:03 | 2:58:09 | |
the disease every year. But great
strides are being made in diagnosis | 2:58:09 | 2:58:14 | |
and treatment, leading to survival
rates doubling over the last 40 | 2:58:14 | 2:58:18 | |
years. One of the key
recommendations in the cancer | 2:58:18 | 2:58:21 | |
strategy is and early diagnosis were
the targets by 2020 that 95% of | 2:58:21 | 2:58:26 | |
patients will be diagnosed and
receive results within four weeks. I | 2:58:26 | 2:58:33 | |
want to concentrate on an area that
is critical in achieving that | 2:58:33 | 2:58:37 | |
ambition and is often preferred to
as the biggest breast cancer risk | 2:58:37 | 2:58:40 | |
women are not aware of, breast
density. During my work, the issues | 2:58:40 | 2:58:48 | |
surrounding breast density has
become clear, particularly the | 2:58:48 | 2:58:52 | |
increased risk and masking of
cancers in mammography. This is the | 2:58:52 | 2:58:57 | |
main method of national screening
and well considered the gold | 2:58:57 | 2:59:01 | |
standard, evidence shows it is not
as effective for women with a dense | 2:59:01 | 2:59:05 | |
breast'. It is important to
understand what its implications | 2:59:05 | 2:59:10 | |
are. I would point out it is not an
uncommon situation, with 40% of | 2:59:10 | 2:59:16 | |
women aged over 40 having dense
breast tissue. Although it is | 2:59:16 | 2:59:22 | |
completely normal, as is also a
well-established predictor of | 2:59:22 | 2:59:25 | |
developing breast cancer, with women
having the highest density between | 2:59:25 | 2:59:30 | |
four and six times more likely to
develop the disease than those with | 2:59:30 | 2:59:34 | |
less dense breasts. | 2:59:34 | 2:59:35 | |
The challenge is that on a mammogram
in more than 50% of cases the cancer | 2:59:38 | 2:59:44 | |
is missed. To illustrate the
significance of this it is useful to | 2:59:44 | 2:59:48 | |
recount a couple of examples given
to me by patients which highlight | 2:59:48 | 2:59:51 | |
the importance of the issue and the
differences in approach by country. | 2:59:51 | 2:59:56 | |
One lady living in the UK underwent
mammogram screening from 2004-2012 | 2:59:56 | 3:00:03 | |
receiving a clean bill of health
each time. Shortly after her fourth | 3:00:03 | 3:00:11 | |
mammogram she found a lump which was
found to be seven centimetres in | 3:00:11 | 3:00:14 | |
size and had been missed over ten
years due to her breast tissue being | 3:00:14 | 3:00:19 | |
75% dense. She underwent a
mastectomy and as a result of her | 3:00:19 | 3:00:23 | |
illness was forced to give up her
business. Six years later she | 3:00:23 | 3:00:27 | |
continues to undergo breast
construction surgery. Compare this | 3:00:27 | 3:00:33 | |
to another patient I met who lives
in France. In 2016 her first ever | 3:00:33 | 3:00:38 | |
mammogram was clear but as she was
also diagnosed as having dense | 3:00:38 | 3:00:42 | |
tissue she was immediately referred
for an ultrasound scan which | 3:00:42 | 3:00:46 | |
revealed an 8mm invasive tumour. As
a result of the early detection she | 3:00:46 | 3:00:51 | |
received minimal treatment and an
extremely positive outcome. Sadly | 3:00:51 | 3:00:57 | |
the first experience is not unusual
with three and a half thousand | 3:00:57 | 3:01:00 | |
breast cancer is going undetected
each year in the UK alone. I'm aware | 3:01:00 | 3:01:06 | |
there is a global movement to
educate not only women but also | 3:01:06 | 3:01:09 | |
health professionals about the
implications of density with a view | 3:01:09 | 3:01:13 | |
to ultimately saving lives by
promoting earlier diagnosis so that | 3:01:13 | 3:01:17 | |
tumours can be found when they are
small. Currently in the USA 30 | 3:01:17 | 3:01:22 | |
states have passed legislation to
provide women with some level of | 3:01:22 | 3:01:24 | |
information on breast density
detailing the increased risk they | 3:01:24 | 3:01:29 | |
face and how effective mammograms
are likely to be for them. I know | 3:01:29 | 3:01:33 | |
this is an area that the Minister
has a great deal of interest in as | 3:01:33 | 3:01:36 | |
it is something I have raised
previously and it is pleasing to see | 3:01:36 | 3:01:39 | |
that in the UK some action is
already being taken. But the | 3:01:39 | 3:01:44 | |
government commissioning research by
Warwick University on the subject. | 3:01:44 | 3:01:48 | |
There is also clear evidence showing
high breast density eclipses family | 3:01:48 | 3:01:52 | |
history as a risk factor for
developing breast cancer. So what | 3:01:52 | 3:01:57 | |
are the solutions? In an ideal world
the answer is to change screening | 3:01:57 | 3:02:01 | |
guidelines and offer further
screening to those women at risk. | 3:02:01 | 3:02:04 | |
But I appreciate the changes on the
skill needs we wait on the outcome | 3:02:04 | 3:02:10 | |
of the research so long-term
decisions can be reached. But there | 3:02:10 | 3:02:16 | |
is a straightforward solution which
can be found right now, there is a | 3:02:16 | 3:02:24 | |
definite need to promote awareness
not only to women but also health | 3:02:24 | 3:02:28 | |
professionals including GPs who are
the usual first port of call for | 3:02:28 | 3:02:32 | |
women concerned about their health.
This simple task of educating about | 3:02:32 | 3:02:38 | |
breast density can potentially
promote more positive health | 3:02:38 | 3:02:42 | |
outcomes, lead to less harsh
treatments, reduce mastectomies, | 3:02:42 | 3:02:47 | |
avoid secondary cancer and
ultimately save lives. To conclude | 3:02:47 | 3:02:51 | |
Madam Deputy Speaker over the past
two years I have learned an awful | 3:02:51 | 3:02:54 | |
lot about breast density and I would
like to think that as a result of | 3:02:54 | 3:02:58 | |
today's debate more people will be
informed about the impact it can | 3:02:58 | 3:03:02 | |
have. But questions remain, do the
women in your family or friends know | 3:03:02 | 3:03:07 | |
the risk that is posed to them from
breast density? Does your wife, | 3:03:07 | 3:03:11 | |
mother, sister or daughter now that
a clear mammogram may not actually | 3:03:11 | 3:03:16 | |
be clear? And shouldn't these
potentially life-saving pieces of | 3:03:16 | 3:03:20 | |
information be available to every
single woman to ensure that the | 3:03:20 | 3:03:24 | |
government 's excellent ambition of
an even better cancer survival rate | 3:03:24 | 3:03:29 | |
and delivering a world-class cancer
outcome can be achieved? Thank you | 3:03:29 | 3:03:35 | |
Madam Deputy Speaker, it's a real
pleasure to follow the member who | 3:03:35 | 3:03:40 | |
reminds us of the importance of
using the expertise and knowledge we | 3:03:40 | 3:03:43 | |
have got in the system to improve
and accelerate improvements of | 3:03:43 | 3:03:47 | |
outcomes now. I would like to thank
the honourable member for Basildon | 3:03:47 | 3:03:52 | |
and Billericay who I know is
disappointed not to be here for | 3:03:52 | 3:03:55 | |
securing the debate and for his time
and education in chairing the | 3:03:55 | 3:04:02 | |
all-party group so well and
impressively over the last nine | 3:04:02 | 3:04:05 | |
years. This debate is focused on the
cancer strategy and the current | 3:04:05 | 3:04:09 | |
challenges it faces. It is important
as well to reflect on the positives. | 3:04:09 | 3:04:14 | |
In the space of my lifetime the
progress made in understanding, | 3:04:14 | 3:04:19 | |
diagnosing and treating cancer has
been remarkable Madam Deputy | 3:04:19 | 3:04:23 | |
Speaker. In the 1950s there was a
limited knowledge of cancers and the | 3:04:23 | 3:04:29 | |
risk factors associated, the NHS had
only recently emerged and there was | 3:04:29 | 3:04:33 | |
no coordinated plan to treat cancer.
We've come a long way since then. | 3:04:33 | 3:04:39 | |
Since the 1970s cancer survival
rates in the UK have doubled, this | 3:04:39 | 3:04:42 | |
is a real credit to the countless
health Provisionals, researchers, | 3:04:42 | 3:04:47 | |
volunteers charities and of course
patients who have pioneered progress | 3:04:47 | 3:04:51 | |
and continue to do so every day. It
is because of them we are where we | 3:04:51 | 3:04:55 | |
are, where a person in the UK is
more likely to survive cancer than | 3:04:55 | 3:05:00 | |
to die from it. However the remain
massive challenges. My constituent | 3:05:00 | 3:05:05 | |
came to see me after losing her
husband to pancreatic cancer in | 3:05:05 | 3:05:11 | |
2009, it is her fault I have ended
up as the chair of the all-party | 3:05:11 | 3:05:14 | |
group of pancreatic cancer. Kevin's
own mother died of the same thing 40 | 3:05:14 | 3:05:21 | |
years earlier and the shocking thing
about that story is that the chances | 3:05:21 | 3:05:26 | |
of survival were no better than his
mothers and in most parts of life | 3:05:26 | 3:05:30 | |
the world has moved on rapidly in 40
years but in this part it has not. | 3:05:30 | 3:05:33 | |
In fact less than 7% in the UK,
pancreatic cancer has the worst | 3:05:33 | 3:05:40 | |
five-year survival rates of the 20
most common cancers with the new | 3:05:40 | 3:05:43 | |
Cray ranked 26th out of the 27 EU
countries | 3:05:43 | 3:05:50 | |
Cray ranked 26th out of the 27 EU
countries. Sadly pancreatic cancer | 3:05:50 | 3:05:52 | |
is on course to become the fourth
biggest cancer killer by 2026 so | 3:05:52 | 3:05:57 | |
action is needed now. I am grateful
to the honourable gentleman for | 3:05:57 | 3:06:05 | |
giving way, would he agree that it
is vital, if we are to attack those | 3:06:05 | 3:06:10 | |
outliers that as well as the great
research we do here we make sure the | 3:06:10 | 3:06:13 | |
NHS is better at adopting and taking
up innovative medicines? That is a | 3:06:13 | 3:06:18 | |
large part of what the exhilarated
access review, the Informatics | 3:06:18 | 3:06:23 | |
programme is about, making sure the
NHS is capable of not just doing the | 3:06:23 | 3:06:27 | |
research but of enlightened
procurement to take up more quickly | 3:06:27 | 3:06:32 | |
drugs that work? Absolutely and I
will come to that in my speech. As | 3:06:32 | 3:06:35 | |
the honourable member moving the
debate pointed out so well we are | 3:06:35 | 3:06:41 | |
almost halfway into the five-year
implementation plan of the | 3:06:41 | 3:06:44 | |
governments cancer strategy for
England. At this point there are | 3:06:44 | 3:06:48 | |
concerns about the rate of progress
being made. The workforce plan is | 3:06:48 | 3:06:52 | |
not yet as effective as we would
like. As the royal college of | 3:06:52 | 3:07:00 | |
pathologists point out while it can
take up to 15 years to train a | 3:07:00 | 3:07:05 | |
pathologist pathology services are
unable to recruit two vacant posts | 3:07:05 | 3:07:09 | |
today and it's anticipated that a
third of consultants will retire in | 3:07:09 | 3:07:12 | |
the next five years. This is just
one example of the we face. | 3:07:12 | 3:07:18 | |
Workforce capacity must be addressed
to change survival outcomes. It | 3:07:18 | 3:07:26 | |
would be good if the Minister could
update us on what is being done to | 3:07:26 | 3:07:31 | |
provide the funding needed based
upon England's cancer workforce | 3:07:31 | 3:07:34 | |
plan. Fast access to quick and
accurate diagnosis test is crucial | 3:07:34 | 3:07:39 | |
for pancreatic cancer patients many
are diagnosed too late. When surgery | 3:07:39 | 3:07:44 | |
is no longer available. In the
all-party pancreatic group early | 3:07:44 | 3:07:49 | |
diagnosis enquiry time to change the
story there was anecdotal evidence | 3:07:49 | 3:07:54 | |
from a health care professional that
a CT scan can be done quite quickly | 3:07:54 | 3:07:59 | |
but the report can sometimes take
ten weeks. It would be helpful if | 3:07:59 | 3:08:04 | |
the Minister's department were able
to respond to the recommendations in | 3:08:04 | 3:08:08 | |
the report and the progress being
made in that area. Not only | 3:08:08 | 3:08:13 | |
pancreatic cancer but other cancers
like blood cancers diagnosis can be | 3:08:13 | 3:08:17 | |
confiscated because symptoms can be
misunderstood or misdiagnosed. | 3:08:17 | 3:08:24 | |
Delays can have a major impact on a
patient's quality of life and | 3:08:24 | 3:08:27 | |
overall outcome and last elder
diagnosis would make a difference | 3:08:27 | 3:08:31 | |
for many not all blood cancers. To
change this recommendations for | 3:08:31 | 3:08:36 | |
early diagnosis should be reviewed
to ensure that all people with blood | 3:08:36 | 3:08:41 | |
cancer are benefiting from early,
accurate diagnosis. GPs could be | 3:08:41 | 3:08:45 | |
encouraged to ask for a simple blood
test for people displaying one or | 3:08:45 | 3:08:49 | |
more blood cancer symptoms.
Diagnostic techniques also have the | 3:08:49 | 3:08:56 | |
potential to guide what treatment
options are likely to be effective. | 3:08:56 | 3:08:58 | |
Last month it was provisionally
rejected to use five tumour | 3:08:58 | 3:09:05 | |
profiling test to gauge treatment
decisions on whether patients with a | 3:09:05 | 3:09:08 | |
particular type of early breast
cancer should also have received | 3:09:08 | 3:09:11 | |
chemotherapy following surgery,
reversing the previous guidance | 3:09:11 | 3:09:17 | |
recommending the option. This goes
to the point the honourable member | 3:09:17 | 3:09:22 | |
opposite was saying about using
genomics effectively and any precise | 3:09:22 | 3:09:27 | |
way. Breast cancer now is concerned
this could be a backward step for | 3:09:27 | 3:09:33 | |
some breast cancer patients
especially in the context of the | 3:09:33 | 3:09:37 | |
current cancer strategy is welcome
ambition to enable more personalised | 3:09:37 | 3:09:40 | |
treatment. I will indulge the
honourable member. Would he agree | 3:09:40 | 3:09:48 | |
that on the subject the work of the
Institute in Birmingham led by | 3:09:48 | 3:09:54 | |
Professor Charlie Craddick and the
cure lead to the team working on | 3:09:54 | 3:09:56 | |
blood cancers has written the
playbook on how we do early | 3:09:56 | 3:10:00 | |
diagnosis. They have pulled in £200
million of free drugs for NHS | 3:10:00 | 3:10:05 | |
patients by doing exhilarated
access. There is wonderful work | 3:10:05 | 3:10:09 | |
going on and it goes back to what
the member before me said, that we | 3:10:09 | 3:10:13 | |
need to grab this wonderful work and
move it forward and not be held back | 3:10:13 | 3:10:16 | |
by frameworks which are not quick
enough to move with the times. The | 3:10:16 | 3:10:22 | |
ability to personalise treatment
based on Trym profiling which would | 3:10:22 | 3:10:26 | |
allow many to avoid the brutal side
effects as the potential to reduce | 3:10:26 | 3:10:32 | |
the associated costs with the
therapy. It can give clinicians and | 3:10:32 | 3:10:37 | |
patients are valuable reassurance
that they may safely not have | 3:10:37 | 3:10:40 | |
chemotherapy which reduces
overtreatment. Nice is not community | 3:10:40 | 3:10:44 | |
clearly enough the reasons behind
rejecting the use of tumour | 3:10:44 | 3:10:48 | |
profiling tests as it is unclear if
this is a result of additional | 3:10:48 | 3:10:54 | |
evidence, the cost, or both. Behind
the recent provisional rejection of | 3:10:54 | 3:11:03 | |
tumour profiling tests to gauge
treatment decisions any specific | 3:11:03 | 3:11:06 | |
group of breast cancer patients. The
cancer strategy calls on Public | 3:11:06 | 3:11:10 | |
Health England to continue to invest
in campaigns to raise awareness of | 3:11:10 | 3:11:16 | |
the possible symptoms of cancer.
It's a big challenge for pancreatic | 3:11:16 | 3:11:20 | |
cancer as well as others. A poll
carried out in 2017 found that 35% | 3:11:20 | 3:11:26 | |
of adults in the UK would not be
worried if they had few of the | 3:11:26 | 3:11:31 | |
penitential symptoms of pancreatic
cancer. Last year Public Health | 3:11:31 | 3:11:34 | |
England launched an exciting
regional pilot including persistent | 3:11:34 | 3:11:42 | |
diarrhoea, although the results were
positive it's not yet been rolled | 3:11:42 | 3:11:45 | |
out nationally. I would be keen to
know when the minister plans a | 3:11:45 | 3:11:50 | |
national roll-out on the campaign.
In conclusion Madam Deputy Speaker | 3:11:50 | 3:11:54 | |
much has been done and much is
happening but there is much more to | 3:11:54 | 3:11:58 | |
do. Cancer Alliance has a
significant role in delivering | 3:11:58 | 3:12:01 | |
effective change and many are
clearly making a difference. | 3:12:01 | 3:12:06 | |
Workforce planning, early diagnosis
and greater symptom awareness are | 3:12:06 | 3:12:09 | |
key areas we need to up our game as
we move into the second half of this | 3:12:09 | 3:12:14 | |
five-year cancer strategy. | 3:12:14 | 3:12:17 | |
Thank you Madam Deputy Speaker. I
would like to also thank the | 3:12:21 | 3:12:27 | |
honourable member for East Kilbride
for securing this debate and I would | 3:12:27 | 3:12:30 | |
like to take this opportunity to
discuss blood cancer in particular | 3:12:30 | 3:12:34 | |
as many will know there are many
different types of blood cancer from | 3:12:34 | 3:12:37 | |
leukaemia, lymphoma and Mullah Omar
to the rarest that affect just a few | 3:12:37 | 3:12:43 | |
people. Blood cancer is a complex
and much misunderstood gees Leave | 3:12:43 | 3:12:53 | |
disease area. It is the third
biggest cancer killer and the fifth | 3:12:53 | 3:12:57 | |
most common overall with over
230,000 people living with blood | 3:12:57 | 3:13:01 | |
cancer. Compare to other cancers
those blood cancer patients had to | 3:13:01 | 3:13:05 | |
see her GP significantly more times
before being referred to hospital, | 3:13:05 | 3:13:11 | |
more than 35% had to see their GP
three or more times before referral | 3:13:11 | 3:13:16 | |
compare to only 6% for breast cancer
and 23% for other solid tumour | 3:13:16 | 3:13:22 | |
types. Blood cancer is by far the
most common cancer among people | 3:13:22 | 3:13:26 | |
under the age of 30. Despite that
Madam Deputy Speaker there are still | 3:13:26 | 3:13:32 | |
a number of issues with blood cancer
which need addressed. As the | 3:13:32 | 3:13:37 | |
honourable member for Scunthorpe has
said diagnosing can be very complex | 3:13:37 | 3:13:41 | |
at times, symptoms such as back pain
or tiredness are often misunderstood | 3:13:41 | 3:13:46 | |
and diagnosed as other conditions.
Those delays can lead to major | 3:13:46 | 3:13:52 | |
problems for the patients, not only
for quality of life but the overall | 3:13:52 | 3:13:55 | |
outcome. Recommendations for early
diagnosis in the cancer strategy | 3:13:55 | 3:14:01 | |
should be reviewed to ensure all
people with blood cancer and | 3:14:01 | 3:14:05 | |
benefiting from early and accurate
diagnosis. GPs should be encouraged | 3:14:05 | 3:14:08 | |
to ask a simple blood tests for
people displaying one or more blood | 3:14:08 | 3:14:12 | |
cancer symptoms. And the cancer
strategy says all cancer patients | 3:14:12 | 3:14:16 | |
will have had access to the recovery
practice by 2020. This helps once | 3:14:16 | 3:14:21 | |
the treatment has ended to return to
their normal lives. | 3:14:21 | 3:14:24 | |
It includes a review of the cancer
care but the package is based around | 3:14:29 | 3:14:33 | |
the needs for people with solid
tumour cancers. People with chronic | 3:14:33 | 3:14:43 | |
leukaemia, relapsing and phoning,
say that the term such as beyond | 3:14:43 | 3:14:46 | |
cancer and post treatment are not
applicable to them. In order to | 3:14:46 | 3:14:49 | |
ensure that people with blood cancer
receive sufficient support, I would | 3:14:49 | 3:14:55 | |
like to ask if my right honourable
friend would consider how all blood | 3:14:55 | 3:15:01 | |
cancer patients can benefit from
after-care support, including | 3:15:01 | 3:15:05 | |
ensuring the recovery package takes
account of the unique | 3:15:05 | 3:15:09 | |
characteristics of blood cancer.
Madam Deputy Speaker, 5000 people a | 3:15:09 | 3:15:13 | |
year with some slow-growing blood
cancers are put on a regime of watch | 3:15:13 | 3:15:19 | |
and wait instead of starting
treatment straightaway. Though | 3:15:19 | 3:15:25 | |
cancer is monitored potentially for
many years before treatment needs to | 3:15:25 | 3:15:28 | |
start. This can be difficult for
many patients and can lead to | 3:15:28 | 3:15:34 | |
psychological distress. Tailored
psychological support must be made | 3:15:34 | 3:15:37 | |
available to those patients and
watch and wait. I'd like treatment | 3:15:37 | 3:15:41 | |
of solid shimmer cancers, blood
cancers are not often treatable | 3:15:41 | 3:15:47 | |
through the use of surgery or
radiotherapy. This means blood | 3:15:47 | 3:15:51 | |
cancer is more dependent on the
development of new drugs and being | 3:15:51 | 3:15:55 | |
able to access them, and in order to
continue to improve patient | 3:15:55 | 3:15:58 | |
outcomes, that's very important.
Continued Government investment in | 3:15:58 | 3:16:05 | |
blood cancer research, including a
clinical trials infrastructure, is | 3:16:05 | 3:16:09 | |
required to capitalise on the UK's
position as a reader in blood cancer | 3:16:09 | 3:16:14 | |
research. This will benefit patients
but also help the Government reach | 3:16:14 | 3:16:20 | |
ambitions outlined in the UK life
sciences industrial strategy. The | 3:16:20 | 3:16:25 | |
cancer strategy sets out to clinical
leaders should work together in | 3:16:25 | 3:16:29 | |
Cancer alliances with those affected
by cancer to decide on how local | 3:16:29 | 3:16:34 | |
care and services should be
delivered. But despite this | 3:16:34 | 3:16:37 | |
omission, patients often find the
services are fragmented, adding | 3:16:37 | 3:16:42 | |
stress to their experience. This can
be a particular problem for blood | 3:16:42 | 3:16:47 | |
cancer because patients are often
treated in haematology units rather | 3:16:47 | 3:16:50 | |
than oncology. Cancer alliances
should reduce fragmentation between | 3:16:50 | 3:16:55 | |
the different stages of care for
blood cancer patients by | 3:16:55 | 3:16:59 | |
acknowledging and bridging the
recognised gaps between oncology and | 3:16:59 | 3:17:03 | |
haematology departments and between
primary and secondary care. To | 3:17:03 | 3:17:08 | |
conclude, the cancer dashboard has
been developed following a | 3:17:08 | 3:17:12 | |
recommendation on the cancer
strategy. It allows clinicians and | 3:17:12 | 3:17:16 | |
others to compare performance of
clinical commissioning groups and | 3:17:16 | 3:17:19 | |
identify areas for improvement.
However it only covers the four most | 3:17:19 | 3:17:27 | |
common salute tumour types, long,
breast, prostate and colorectal, and | 3:17:27 | 3:17:32 | |
this equates to less than half of
all cancer cases. Can my right | 3:17:32 | 3:17:37 | |
honourable friend provide ensures
that the health service will | 3:17:37 | 3:17:40 | |
actively work to include blood
cancer in the cancer dashboard? As | 3:17:40 | 3:17:45 | |
the fifth most common cancer and to
ensure that decisions about future | 3:17:45 | 3:17:49 | |
services to disregard these
patients. -- don't disregard these | 3:17:49 | 3:17:56 | |
patients. It is an honour to follow
the right honourable man member who | 3:17:56 | 3:18:05 | |
spoke knowledgeably. Like everyone
in this House, I'm sure I can speak | 3:18:05 | 3:18:10 | |
about many aspects of cancer as we
probably all can, including my own | 3:18:10 | 3:18:14 | |
experience. I could speak about the
very moving speech made by Baroness | 3:18:14 | 3:18:21 | |
Jowell, a very special moment in
Parliament's history and one I will | 3:18:21 | 3:18:24 | |
be glad to be there for but I'm very
sad that she had to be. I could | 3:18:24 | 3:18:32 | |
speak about how horrible
chemotherapy is and how deeply a | 3:18:32 | 3:18:34 | |
girl can feel the loss of her
eyelashes. I could speak about my | 3:18:34 | 3:18:42 | |
support for health labelling and
alcohol, because people are unaware | 3:18:42 | 3:18:45 | |
of the connections between it and
cancer. I hope he will support | 3:18:45 | 3:18:51 | |
better labelling. I could speak
about how important healthy habits | 3:18:51 | 3:18:57 | |
are generally for reducing cancer
and would ask the minister if he | 3:18:57 | 3:19:00 | |
would do more to urge people to take
up healthy habits from an early age. | 3:19:00 | 3:19:04 | |
I could speak about how women should
learn how to check their breasts | 3:19:04 | 3:19:08 | |
properly because many have told me
they don't know how. I could tell | 3:19:08 | 3:19:13 | |
you what I learned last week about
the contribution CERN has made to | 3:19:13 | 3:19:20 | |
improving diagnoses of cancer
through the development of the | 3:19:20 | 3:19:23 | |
magnetic resonance imaging machine.
I also spoke to scientists who are | 3:19:23 | 3:19:28 | |
doing what they can to reduce the
very frightening knocking effects | 3:19:28 | 3:19:31 | |
that happens when you are in fact
cited. But I'm going to speak about | 3:19:31 | 3:19:37 | |
the patient experience of a very
specific group, children and young | 3:19:37 | 3:19:41 | |
people with cancer and their
families. I say to those children | 3:19:41 | 3:19:46 | |
and young people, their parents, the
clinicians and charity supporting | 3:19:46 | 3:19:51 | |
them, this speech is for you. I pay
tribute in particular to the teenage | 3:19:51 | 3:19:56 | |
Cancer trust and thank them and all
other charities who help children | 3:19:56 | 3:20:01 | |
and young people with cancer every
day. I want to give very personal | 3:20:01 | 3:20:05 | |
close to my sister-in-law Emily, who
is following the hearing, | 3:20:05 | 3:20:12 | |
fundraising is an inspiration to
many and whose personal knowledge | 3:20:12 | 3:20:14 | |
has taught me so much. I will
happily give way to my noble friend. | 3:20:14 | 3:20:21 | |
As a parent of a child who has had
the support of the charity, and it | 3:20:21 | 3:20:28 | |
is and then supporting you only from
a medical point of view, it is | 3:20:28 | 3:20:32 | |
people to talk to to understand what
your child and you are going | 3:20:32 | 3:20:37 | |
through. I thank my honourable
friend for that intervention. The | 3:20:37 | 3:20:45 | |
specialist organisations understand
what the families are going through, | 3:20:45 | 3:20:48 | |
how devastating the diagnosis can
be, but also what can be done to | 3:20:48 | 3:20:52 | |
help people through it. I set up the
all-party Parliamentary group on | 3:20:52 | 3:20:57 | |
childhood and teenage cancer last
year with the help of CLIC Sargent | 3:20:57 | 3:21:04 | |
and teenage Cancer trust for
children and young people living | 3:21:04 | 3:21:05 | |
with cancer and their parents
because they told me they want to | 3:21:05 | 3:21:08 | |
have their voices heard in
Parliament. I think the officers who | 3:21:08 | 3:21:12 | |
are almost all here, for their
support. And childhood cancers are | 3:21:12 | 3:21:22 | |
thankfully rare, just 4000 people
under 25 each year in the UK are | 3:21:22 | 3:21:29 | |
diagnosed with cancer, but this
rarity means they are often die as | 3:21:29 | 3:21:32 | |
Michael difficult to diagnose and
much more likely than Oldham | 3:21:32 | 3:21:37 | |
patients to be diagnosed at a later
stage. This also means that | 3:21:37 | 3:21:41 | |
treatment can be difficult and
children, young people and their | 3:21:41 | 3:21:43 | |
peers have to travel a long way for
specialist treatment. It can mean | 3:21:43 | 3:21:47 | |
treatment can be unpleasantly
aggressive. There are consequences | 3:21:47 | 3:21:54 | |
for children's education, future
employment, the treatment affects | 3:21:54 | 3:21:59 | |
their fertility. Some of them may
not even be thinking about them at | 3:21:59 | 3:22:03 | |
the time of diagnosis. It may cause
a disability, set them apart from | 3:22:03 | 3:22:08 | |
their friends at the time they are
finding out who they are. In | 3:22:08 | 3:22:12 | |
Bristol, the teenage Cancer trust
provides a specialist ward for | 3:22:12 | 3:22:18 | |
teenage patients. They are able to
help teenagers and their parents get | 3:22:18 | 3:22:23 | |
through this difficult time with the
services tailored to the specific | 3:22:23 | 3:22:27 | |
needs. CLIC Sargent provides a
specialist support and in Bristol | 3:22:27 | 3:22:31 | |
that includes a home for children
and their families to live and have | 3:22:31 | 3:22:36 | |
here whilst they are having cancer
treatment. A parent I met when | 3:22:36 | 3:22:41 | |
visiting the CLIC Sargent has told
me of arriving in Bristol with | 3:22:41 | 3:22:45 | |
nothing apart from them and their
child expecting a checkup and by the | 3:22:45 | 3:22:49 | |
evening discovered that their child
had cancer and that treatment was | 3:22:49 | 3:22:53 | |
due to start immediately. The CLIC
Sargent social worker can explain | 3:22:53 | 3:22:58 | |
what the House does, what the
facilities are and can help guide | 3:22:58 | 3:23:01 | |
people who are just suddenly dealing
with the really traumatising | 3:23:01 | 3:23:05 | |
experience, but also having no
supplies to cope with the next few | 3:23:05 | 3:23:08 | |
days. Two years ago, the cost of
cancer and support, whose Parliament | 3:23:08 | 3:23:15 | |
launch I had the honour of hosting,
identified specific costs for | 3:23:15 | 3:23:20 | |
families affected by chartered
cancer. I urge the Minister to look | 3:23:20 | 3:23:23 | |
at it again. We are launching our
first enquiry on Monday. We are | 3:23:23 | 3:23:34 | |
looking at patient experience, and I
know the Minister will want to | 3:23:34 | 3:23:37 | |
engage with that process as we go
forward. We want Parliament to | 3:23:37 | 3:23:41 | |
understand better the really
specific experience of children and | 3:23:41 | 3:23:44 | |
young people with cancer and their
families and identifying whether | 3:23:44 | 3:23:48 | |
there needs are being met at where
improvements can be made. There | 3:23:48 | 3:23:52 | |
might be suggestions for
improvements to diagnosis or | 3:23:52 | 3:23:55 | |
post-treatment support or help with
the very specific about of cancer | 3:23:55 | 3:23:58 | |
diagnosis. And all those other
consequences I have listed. Many of | 3:23:58 | 3:24:05 | |
us who may have had contact with
children with cancer or their | 3:24:05 | 3:24:10 | |
appearance in her constituency work
and I say to those people, this | 3:24:10 | 3:24:14 | |
enquiry is for you but it's about
you and it's with you. Young people, | 3:24:14 | 3:24:19 | |
parents and professionals can get
involved by filling in the short | 3:24:19 | 3:24:23 | |
survey online on the all-party
Twitter feed and website from | 3:24:23 | 3:24:27 | |
Monday. They can find out more about
the enquiry on the web page, just | 3:24:27 | 3:24:38 | |
Google APPG and cancer. We are
informed by what young people have | 3:24:38 | 3:24:41 | |
already told us and have heard and
analysed evidence as well as giving | 3:24:41 | 3:24:47 | |
it. The Government is committed to
collecting patient experience data | 3:24:47 | 3:24:53 | |
for the under 16. This is
progressing and we are pleased to | 3:24:53 | 3:24:55 | |
hear about it, but I would like the
Minister to consider how it might be | 3:24:55 | 3:25:00 | |
improved and tell us a bit more
about it. I will happily give way. | 3:25:00 | 3:25:06 | |
CLIC Sargent a few years ago now
produced a report about children | 3:25:06 | 3:25:10 | |
with cancer going back to school
which are really highlighted some of | 3:25:10 | 3:25:15 | |
the major problems and the lack of
guidelines about how teachers are | 3:25:15 | 3:25:20 | |
actually given the proper
understanding. Particularly if the | 3:25:20 | 3:25:22 | |
children are very young, is not only
difficult for them, but also the | 3:25:22 | 3:25:26 | |
other children at the school who
have perhaps a senior friend who | 3:25:26 | 3:25:30 | |
they saw looked perfectly normal and
now might not have hair or something | 3:25:30 | 3:25:36 | |
like that. We need a proper system
in place so those children can be | 3:25:36 | 3:25:42 | |
properly included than excluded.
Absolutely right and I know from | 3:25:42 | 3:25:47 | |
Michael Leask unions in my circle of
exactly how that can affect both the | 3:25:47 | 3:25:52 | |
young person but also their
educators and their peers. Young | 3:25:52 | 3:25:56 | |
people have spoken to me with very
difficult experiences, some who had | 3:25:56 | 3:26:00 | |
good support from their school and
others have been told they were | 3:26:00 | 3:26:04 | |
upsetting their colleagues with
their hairlessness. But it should be | 3:26:04 | 3:26:15 | |
an opportunity to work with young
people about how they can support | 3:26:15 | 3:26:19 | |
their friend and reduced their own
risk through making healthy choices | 3:26:19 | 3:26:21 | |
at that point. I will close shortly,
but I want to finish by rear to | 3:26:21 | 3:26:28 | |
rating to all honourable members in
the House and beyond that if they | 3:26:28 | 3:26:32 | |
would like to get involved with the
all-party group of this enquiry, | 3:26:32 | 3:26:36 | |
please get in touch with me. If
children, young people are parents | 3:26:36 | 3:26:41 | |
and other family members wanted
their voices heard, they can contact | 3:26:41 | 3:26:45 | |
the group myself for their own MPs.
I hope the Government and parliament | 3:26:45 | 3:26:52 | |
generally will be willing to hear
those voices, needs and experiences | 3:26:52 | 3:26:55 | |
of children and young people with
cancer and their families. I'm sure | 3:26:55 | 3:27:00 | |
everyone here is committed to that,
but we really must actually do that. | 3:27:00 | 3:27:09 | |
I would like to thank the member for
East Kilbride for securing the | 3:27:09 | 3:27:14 | |
debate today and also state that it
is an honour to follow the member | 3:27:14 | 3:27:17 | |
for Bristol worst of what was a
passionate and very well-informed | 3:27:17 | 3:27:20 | |
speech. We all have loved ones that
have been affected by cancer. I lost | 3:27:20 | 3:27:27 | |
my maternal grandparents to breast
and oesophageal cancer. Many in my | 3:27:27 | 3:27:32 | |
family have suffered from melanoma
and one of my friends is currently | 3:27:32 | 3:27:35 | |
battling cancer. We have all heard
harrowing stories by constituencies. | 3:27:35 | 3:27:44 | |
Cancer is indiscriminate and yes we
can make lifestyle changes to try | 3:27:44 | 3:27:48 | |
and avoid it and be aware with The
Simpsons, advances in medicine mean | 3:27:48 | 3:27:52 | |
we can fight it more effectively and
can detect it earlier to increase | 3:27:52 | 3:27:56 | |
the Lords, but there are still no
guarantees. Cancer is a powerful | 3:27:56 | 3:28:01 | |
rates are at a record high with
around 7000 people alive today who | 3:28:01 | 3:28:05 | |
would not have been hit maternity
rates be the same in 2010. -- | 3:28:05 | 3:28:10 | |
mortality rates. This is a step in
the right direction and we are not | 3:28:10 | 3:28:16 | |
at our destination. For all those
who lose their mother or child or | 3:28:16 | 3:28:21 | |
friend today and hero of this
debate, I want them to know the | 3:28:21 | 3:28:25 | |
Government and MPs and get it, we
get that were on the right track but | 3:28:25 | 3:28:28 | |
equally there is so far to go
because cancer is still the most | 3:28:28 | 3:28:33 | |
dangerous serial killer that remains
at large and that is why we must | 3:28:33 | 3:28:39 | |
continue to prioritise this area.
The formation of the 1.2 billion | 3:28:39 | 3:28:44 | |
cancer drug fund was a massive step
forward and has helped over 95,000 | 3:28:44 | 3:28:49 | |
people to access the life extending
drugs they need. As was the | 3:28:49 | 3:28:53 | |
fermentation of the pass cancer
strategy. In 2010, we had some of | 3:28:53 | 3:29:06 | |
the worst survival rates in Europe,
but we are now closing that gap. | 3:29:06 | 3:29:16 | |
57,000 more patients started cancer
treatment last year. When it comes | 3:29:16 | 3:29:21 | |
to cancer prevention is key. I do
welcome the increase in investment | 3:29:21 | 3:29:26 | |
in Cancer Research by the National
Institute for health research since | 3:29:26 | 3:29:29 | |
2010. And also the work that the
Pazdan along with Cancer Research UK | 3:29:29 | 3:29:37 | |
including a jointly funded effort of
18 experimental cancer medicine | 3:29:37 | 3:29:40 | |
centres aimed at driving the
development and testing new | 3:29:40 | 3:29:44 | |
anti-cancer treatments. In terms of
prevention I would like to draw | 3:29:44 | 3:29:47 | |
attention to the HPV high uptake,
high uptake of the HPV vaccination | 3:29:47 | 3:29:54 | |
amongst teenage girls which can
prevent around 600 cancers per year | 3:29:54 | 3:29:59 | |
and 99% of cervical cancer cases. I
have spoken before in this chamber | 3:29:59 | 3:30:04 | |
on Public Health England's Tobacco
control plan aiming to usher in the | 3:30:04 | 3:30:09 | |
first smoke-free generation by 2022.
Improving diagnosis is also equally | 3:30:09 | 3:30:15 | |
essential. Public health campaigns
such as be clear on cancer are vital | 3:30:15 | 3:30:19 | |
to raise awareness of early symptoms
especially amongst less common | 3:30:19 | 3:30:24 | |
cancers. Crucially the 200 million
which has been invested to ensure | 3:30:24 | 3:30:28 | |
patients received a diagnosis or the
all clear within 28 days by 2020 | 3:30:28 | 3:30:32 | |
will make a huge difference. This
would have benefited my constituent | 3:30:32 | 3:30:37 | |
Madam Deputy Speaker whose symptoms
were initially dismissed as | 3:30:37 | 3:30:41 | |
irritable bowel syndrome and then
she waited for a long time | 3:30:41 | 3:30:44 | |
protesting. She is now terminally
ill with bowel cancer. But she is | 3:30:44 | 3:30:49 | |
trying to work hard every single day
to raise awareness and help others | 3:30:49 | 3:30:52 | |
to get diagnosed quickly. Almost
everyone will survive bowel cancer | 3:30:52 | 3:30:58 | |
if diagnosed early. In fact nine in
ten people. Yet shockingly and sadly | 3:30:58 | 3:31:04 | |
only 15% of people diagnosed, are
diagnosed at this stage. She's | 3:31:04 | 3:31:12 | |
making a very powerful point, on the
question of early diagnosis, | 3:31:12 | 3:31:17 | |
prevention and screening, would she
agree that the hundred thousand | 3:31:17 | 3:31:21 | |
Geelong project we launched in the
UK focused on cancer and rare | 3:31:21 | 3:31:24 | |
disease which is seeking volunteers
for gene sequence INAUDIBLE | 3:31:24 | 3:31:30 | |
Is a brilliant way for people to get
involved and if anyone is concerned | 3:31:30 | 3:31:35 | |
get involved and in role, we still
need another 50,000 patients and | 3:31:35 | 3:31:39 | |
it's a massive way of getting access
to early diagnosis. Time did not | 3:31:39 | 3:31:45 | |
permit me to cover that so I am
grateful he has covered that. In | 3:31:45 | 3:31:50 | |
terms of bowel cancer I welcome the
new test that is going to be rolled | 3:31:50 | 3:31:57 | |
out in April, it is more sensitive
and accurate and can detect twice as | 3:31:57 | 3:32:00 | |
many cancers as the current rate.
Currently only half of those invited | 3:32:00 | 3:32:05 | |
to take part in testing do but it's
proven scientifically to increase | 3:32:05 | 3:32:09 | |
the number participating in the
programme, especially as an easier | 3:32:09 | 3:32:13 | |
and more hygienic post them current
tests. But the awareness of symptoms | 3:32:13 | 3:32:18 | |
coupled with the new test and the
ageing population is leading | 3:32:18 | 3:32:22 | |
charities within the sector to voice
concerns of a looming endoscopic | 3:32:22 | 3:32:26 | |
workforce crisis. I will cancel and
jerky and beating bowel and | 3:32:26 | 3:32:33 | |
especially as all my 48 have been
trained so far. I would like to hear | 3:32:39 | 3:32:43 | |
more from the Minister in response
to this so my constituent can be | 3:32:43 | 3:32:48 | |
assured that others may be diagnosed
earlier than she was. Madam Deputy | 3:32:48 | 3:32:53 | |
Speaker one of the key issues when
it comes to beating cancer and | 3:32:53 | 3:32:58 | |
preventing cancer is also getting
screened regularly when applicable. | 3:32:58 | 3:33:02 | |
This is especially the case of
cervical cancer. The NHS cervical | 3:33:02 | 3:33:06 | |
screening programme in England
offers screening to women aged 25-49 | 3:33:06 | 3:33:11 | |
every three years and women aged 58
and 60 for every five years. Every | 3:33:11 | 3:33:16 | |
year in the UK around 3000 women are
diagnosed with cervical cancer but | 3:33:16 | 3:33:21 | |
research shows the number of women
using the service has dropped to a | 3:33:21 | 3:33:25 | |
20-year-old time low. Over 1.2
million people are not attending | 3:33:25 | 3:33:30 | |
screening and last. A recent report
showed that embarrassment is a key | 3:33:30 | 3:33:36 | |
barrier to attendance for between
one third to one half of all women | 3:33:36 | 3:33:40 | |
as is the desire not to miss work.
There is also a severe lack of | 3:33:40 | 3:33:45 | |
understanding about the importance
of the screening. Shockingly one in | 3:33:45 | 3:33:50 | |
three women aged 25-29 Mr smear yet
cervical cancer is the most common | 3:33:50 | 3:33:54 | |
for women under the age of 35. We
must address this. I have noted that | 3:33:54 | 3:34:02 | |
imperial college have conducted a
trial to assess the effectiveness of | 3:34:02 | 3:34:06 | |
texting non-responders on improving
coverage. But I do think we should | 3:34:06 | 3:34:10 | |
just do this as it can only help. I
also welcome the Department of | 3:34:10 | 3:34:15 | |
Health behavioural insight team
which has undertaken a trial to | 3:34:15 | 3:34:18 | |
investigate the use of behavioural
insights to optimise the contact of | 3:34:18 | 3:34:21 | |
the invitation letter. I must admit
that I was one of these women, I put | 3:34:21 | 3:34:30 | |
off my screening for years, I left
it on the bottom of my to-do list. | 3:34:30 | 3:34:34 | |
Let it fit in around my job. It kept
every year. I must admit if I am | 3:34:34 | 3:34:40 | |
honest I did not realise that
cervical cancer is the most common | 3:34:40 | 3:34:43 | |
in women under the age of 35. When I
did have my screening I had to go | 3:34:43 | 3:34:48 | |
through the processes once abnormal
cells were shown. As my results | 3:34:48 | 3:34:56 | |
showed high grade abnormalities I'm
extremely thankful I went when I | 3:34:56 | 3:34:58 | |
went. I would like to take this
opportunity to praise the work with | 3:34:58 | 3:35:05 | |
the information and support provided
to women, I know personally I find | 3:35:05 | 3:35:08 | |
it extremely helpful. We seem to be
very British about cervical smear | 3:35:08 | 3:35:15 | |
tests and don't like to talk about
them much. This is not promoting | 3:35:15 | 3:35:19 | |
people going. Yes it's not nice, it
hurts a little, it is awkward and | 3:35:19 | 3:35:24 | |
embarrassing. But it could save your
life. That is the message I think we | 3:35:24 | 3:35:29 | |
need to get out. I think we need to
promote cervical screening from | 3:35:29 | 3:35:33 | |
school age so women recognise all
the risks and the importance of | 3:35:33 | 3:35:39 | |
going from age 20 five. In September
and October 2017 | 3:35:39 | 3:35:45 | |
to our squad activities they had
undertaken to increase coverage from | 3:35:51 | 3:35:54 | |
August 2016 to August 2017 along of
the outcomes. Of the 149 local | 3:35:54 | 3:36:04 | |
authorities who responded 32% had
not undertaken any activities at | 3:36:04 | 3:36:07 | |
all. I ask the Minister to
commission a review and a strategy | 3:36:07 | 3:36:14 | |
to increase the falling rates of
cervical screening is looking at the | 3:36:14 | 3:36:18 | |
availability and challenges of
reaching all women. And the need for | 3:36:18 | 3:36:22 | |
awareness of cervical cancer. To
conclude Madam Deputy Speaker | 3:36:22 | 3:36:26 | |
MacMillan claimed by 2020 47% of
people will get cancer at some point | 3:36:26 | 3:36:31 | |
in their life. That is almost one in
two. That's the scale of the problem | 3:36:31 | 3:36:37 | |
we face. So whilst we have come so
fast and twisted ten in terms of | 3:36:37 | 3:36:42 | |
diagnosis and treatment there is
still so far to go. | 3:36:42 | 3:36:44 | |
Thank you Madam Deputy Speaker. I
would like to start by thanking the | 3:36:50 | 3:36:54 | |
member of East Kilbride for bringing
this debate around, it matters a lot | 3:36:54 | 3:36:58 | |
to a lot of people. Most people will
talk about statistics but I'm going | 3:36:58 | 3:37:02 | |
to talk about the impact on the
people behind the statistics. A lot | 3:37:02 | 3:37:06 | |
of us here have been affected by
cancer, my daughter died at just 35 | 3:37:06 | 3:37:12 | |
of breast cancer and I will talk
about cancer from a patient's | 3:37:12 | 3:37:14 | |
perspective. One in eight women
develop breast cancer in their | 3:37:14 | 3:37:20 | |
lifetime and 80% survival five
years. 95% of women will survive one | 3:37:20 | 3:37:26 | |
year, my daughters survived 13
months. Recent data shows 11,500 | 3:37:26 | 3:37:33 | |
women and 18 men in the UK still die
from breast cancer. My daughter was | 3:37:33 | 3:37:38 | |
diagnosed with triple negative
breast cancer in April 2010 and died | 3:37:38 | 3:37:45 | |
13 months later. She was a very
bright girl with a degree in | 3:37:45 | 3:37:48 | |
politics and social work and worked
with underprivileged children, she | 3:37:48 | 3:37:53 | |
also had a husband and three small
children. She was treated at | 3:37:53 | 3:37:57 | |
Nottingham City Hospital. She had
chemotherapy, radiotherapy and a | 3:37:57 | 3:38:04 | |
mastectomy and her treatment was
amazing, they could not have been | 3:38:04 | 3:38:06 | |
better. As well as that she came
home for the final three weeks of | 3:38:06 | 3:38:10 | |
her life to die and the team who
came to support me and her husband | 3:38:10 | 3:38:16 | |
were amazing as well, I cannot thank
them enough. I want to talk a little | 3:38:16 | 3:38:21 | |
bit about some of the information
that breast cancer now charity have | 3:38:21 | 3:38:25 | |
made available to me, I am an
ambassador for them because I | 3:38:25 | 3:38:28 | |
decided one of the things I wanted
to do was be an ambassador for a | 3:38:28 | 3:38:33 | |
breast cancer charity. They have
said it will be challenging to meet | 3:38:33 | 3:38:36 | |
the objectives set out in the cancer
strategy and mice corrective action | 3:38:36 | 3:38:39 | |
is taken. My daughter 's cancer was
advanced, stage three when it was | 3:38:39 | 3:38:46 | |
diagnosed and screening would
probably not have helped but this | 3:38:46 | 3:38:49 | |
report has said breast screening is
a key initiative to ensure the early | 3:38:49 | 3:38:52 | |
detection and diagnosis and although
controversy still exists around | 3:38:52 | 3:38:57 | |
overdiagnosis its benefits are
recognised to outweigh its risks in | 3:38:57 | 3:39:03 | |
detecting 30% of breast cancers and
saving 1300 lives a year. This | 3:39:03 | 3:39:09 | |
report also talks about a shortage
of staff, 32% of radiologists | 3:39:09 | 3:39:14 | |
expected to retire between 2015-25.
My daughter developed a brain tumour | 3:39:14 | 3:39:20 | |
which is a common secondary of
breast cancer and she had to go for | 3:39:20 | 3:39:25 | |
radiotherapy, it is traumatic, she
saw flashing blue and white light, | 3:39:25 | 3:39:28 | |
she had to wear a mask and the
upsetting thing was because of staff | 3:39:28 | 3:39:33 | |
shortages she was often lying on a
trolley waiting for things. If you | 3:39:33 | 3:39:37 | |
can imagine what it's like lying on
a hospital trolley with cancer, it | 3:39:37 | 3:39:43 | |
is so distressing. That is the
effect on patients of short | 3:39:43 | 3:39:46 | |
staffing, it's just a phrase in the
report but that is what it means. I | 3:39:46 | 3:39:52 | |
also want to talk about the lack of
access to a clinical nurse | 3:39:52 | 3:39:56 | |
specialist in breast cancer now port
they said they are concerned about | 3:39:56 | 3:40:03 | |
the lack of access for secondary
breast cancer patients, only 21% of | 3:40:03 | 3:40:07 | |
organisations in England Scotland
and Wales report having one or more | 3:40:07 | 3:40:12 | |
dedicated to secondary breast
cancer. We now again this is access | 3:40:12 | 3:40:16 | |
which can make a big difference to
the way people with cancer | 3:40:16 | 3:40:21 | |
experience their care providing with
support and helping them manage | 3:40:21 | 3:40:25 | |
systems. This is especially
important for patients with | 3:40:25 | 3:40:29 | |
incurable secondary breast cancer
who have particularly complex needs. | 3:40:29 | 3:40:33 | |
I finally want to go back to the
third part of the report, I am sorry | 3:40:33 | 3:40:40 | |
I am not very co-ordinated, it's a
bit upsetting. Breast cancer now | 3:40:40 | 3:40:44 | |
have said we have serious concerns
about the future of the survey as | 3:40:44 | 3:40:48 | |
the result of an introduction of the
new opt out model scheduled on May | 3:40:48 | 3:40:53 | |
20 18. It has been a key driver of
improvements in cancer carers and | 3:40:53 | 3:41:01 | |
2010. I want to finish talking about
the aspiration by breast cancer note | 3:41:01 | 3:41:06 | |
that by 2050 everyone who develops
breast cancer will live. My daughter | 3:41:06 | 3:41:10 | |
used to say to me because I used to
say two hah I have had so much of my | 3:41:10 | 3:41:15 | |
life, more than you, I wish it could
be me and she used to say mum, I | 3:41:15 | 3:41:19 | |
wish it could be no one and I just
think as parliamentarians we have | 3:41:19 | 3:41:23 | |
got power to influence this and
change it and maybe we can and by | 3:41:23 | 3:41:34 | |
2015 nobody need die of breast
cancer. Thank you. Thank you Madam | 3:41:34 | 3:41:40 | |
Deputy Speaker, I would like to
thank the Honourable lady, the | 3:41:40 | 3:41:46 | |
member for East Kilbride,
Strathnaver and Lesnar Hagel for | 3:41:46 | 3:41:48 | |
opening this debate. And Peter Bute
to the excellent work over | 3:41:48 | 3:41:59 | |
I am delighted to be a supporter of
this debate. As someone who was | 3:42:04 | 3:42:10 | |
always keenly interested in the
cancer strategy I wanted to | 3:42:10 | 3:42:14 | |
highlight three particular issues,
one in relation to pancreatic cancer | 3:42:14 | 3:42:19 | |
which has been very well covered by
my dear friend the member for | 3:42:19 | 3:42:23 | |
Scunthorpe, I want to make brief
reference to that and mention | 3:42:23 | 3:42:26 | |
something about the transformation
funding and make a plea to the | 3:42:26 | 3:42:30 | |
Minister. I also want to mention
advanced radiotherapy which is a | 3:42:30 | 3:42:35 | |
hobbyhorse of mine. As some of you
may be aware, I have recently | 3:42:35 | 3:42:39 | |
recovered from a re-occurrence of
lymphatic cancer. I have got some | 3:42:39 | 3:42:45 | |
first-hand knowledge of the
importance of getting cancer | 3:42:45 | 3:42:48 | |
strategy right, not least in terms
of early diagnosis and appropriate | 3:42:48 | 3:42:54 | |
treatment. I believe delivering the
recommendations set out in the | 3:42:54 | 3:42:59 | |
cancer strategy is crucial to
improving the care and support for | 3:42:59 | 3:43:03 | |
thousands of people affected by
cancer. I am not seeking to make a | 3:43:03 | 3:43:07 | |
party political point about the
nature of policy. Essentially it | 3:43:07 | 3:43:16 | |
requires resources, it requires a
plan, a strategy and commitment. I | 3:43:16 | 3:43:20 | |
wanted to mention a little bit
pancreatic cancer, it's a type of | 3:43:20 | 3:43:28 | |
cancer that sadly has taken some
personal friends of mine and it's | 3:43:28 | 3:43:32 | |
particularly nasty. It has the worst
five-year survival rate of the 20 | 3:43:32 | 3:43:37 | |
most common cancers. At least 7%
across the UK, a figure which has | 3:43:37 | 3:43:44 | |
hardly changed in 40 years in most
other types of cancer, survivability | 3:43:44 | 3:43:51 | |
has gone up, with pancreatic cancer
it is unfairly flat and it really | 3:43:51 | 3:43:55 | |
needs some investment, it needs
urgent action. Because it looks as | 3:43:55 | 3:44:01 | |
if pancreatic cancer is set to
become the fourth biggest cancer | 3:44:01 | 3:44:06 | |
killer by 2026 on the current
trajectory. Indeed currently 80% of | 3:44:06 | 3:44:13 | |
pancreatic cancer patients are
diagnosed at the stage where the | 3:44:13 | 3:44:17 | |
disease is advanced and sadly
surgery, the only potential curative | 3:44:17 | 3:44:22 | |
treatment because you cannot get a
pancreas transplant as far as I'm | 3:44:22 | 3:44:31 | |
aware, surgery isn't an option when
the disease is in an advanced stage. | 3:44:31 | 3:44:42 | |
Diagnosing pancreatic cancer early
is key to improving those appalling | 3:44:42 | 3:44:49 | |
survival rates and ensuring patients
are able to live better for longer | 3:44:49 | 3:44:53 | |
periods following diagnosis. I
looked up the figures for my own | 3:44:53 | 3:44:55 | |
area and part of the attic --
pancreatic cancer took the lives of | 3:44:55 | 3:45:03 | |
188 people. Between 2010-2014, so it
is clear that much more work is | 3:45:03 | 3:45:12 | |
needed to deliver the kind of change
that we must see by people who are | 3:45:12 | 3:45:17 | |
affected and their families to
achieve the improvements in surprise | 3:45:17 | 3:45:20 | |
all trades that are so desperately
needed. -- survival rates. I had | 3:45:20 | 3:45:27 | |
deep pleasure of visiting a local
group of young volunteers. I think | 3:45:27 | 3:45:36 | |
many members took similar
opportunities. They were raising | 3:45:36 | 3:45:40 | |
money for a chemotherapy award
because of their own personal and | 3:45:40 | 3:45:45 | |
family experiences. They thought the
facilities available were inadequate | 3:45:45 | 3:45:49 | |
because the ward, although filled
with excellent and committed staff, | 3:45:49 | 3:45:55 | |
was grappling with the increasing
demand and lack of funds. They were | 3:45:55 | 3:46:00 | |
raising money to buy for firms to
keep the patient is cool and an | 3:46:00 | 3:46:04 | |
assortment of other things. It is an
indictment that when we are putting | 3:46:04 | 3:46:08 | |
additional money into the recovery
fund and encouraging people to get | 3:46:08 | 3:46:12 | |
through the treatment and we are
relying on charitable donations to | 3:46:12 | 3:46:18 | |
do this. At the Britain against
Cancer conference in 2016, the Chief | 3:46:18 | 3:46:25 | |
Executive of NHS England announced
200 million pounds of funding for | 3:46:25 | 3:46:29 | |
cancer along with improving earlier
diagnosis and funding stratified | 3:46:29 | 3:46:35 | |
pathways. This money was intended to
support the roll-out of the recovery | 3:46:35 | 3:46:40 | |
package. But since the funding was
announced, there have been | 3:46:40 | 3:46:44 | |
significant delays in reaching
cancer alliances, with only nine of | 3:46:44 | 3:46:49 | |
the 16 having received their
funding. As though Britain against | 3:46:49 | 3:46:55 | |
Cancer conference in December 2017,
the Secretary of State for Health | 3:46:55 | 3:46:59 | |
said the release of funding to
cancer alliances with be delayed in | 3:46:59 | 3:47:02 | |
areas that were unable to
demonstrate an improvement in their | 3:47:02 | 3:47:08 | |
62 day waiting time standard. That
was an additional requirement that | 3:47:08 | 3:47:12 | |
had not been included as part of the
original criteria set during the | 3:47:12 | 3:47:17 | |
bidding process. Every person
diagnosed with cancer, it doesn't | 3:47:17 | 3:47:23 | |
matter where they live, should be
able to rely upon timely diagnosis | 3:47:23 | 3:47:29 | |
and treatment when told they have
cancer. However, as the final report | 3:47:29 | 3:47:33 | |
from your party's report on cancer
said, the delays in funding to these | 3:47:33 | 3:47:43 | |
cancer alliances had had a
significant impact on their ability | 3:47:43 | 3:47:46 | |
to make progress. I hope that the
Minister is paying attention, | 3:47:46 | 3:47:53 | |
because this is a question I want to
ask him. I'm very glad to hear he | 3:47:53 | 3:47:58 | |
is. I know this is an issue that
estate to his heart, it is a serious | 3:47:58 | 3:48:04 | |
point. The Department of Health must
decouple the release of the | 3:48:04 | 3:48:10 | |
transformation funding to cancer
alliances from progress against the | 3:48:10 | 3:48:14 | |
62 day waiting time standard and I
hope he will address that in his | 3:48:14 | 3:48:17 | |
remarks. I look forward with
anticipation to the Minister's | 3:48:17 | 3:48:25 | |
remarks. It wouldn't be a
congregation for me on health if I | 3:48:25 | 3:48:29 | |
didn't mention advanced
radiotherapy. I want to just say | 3:48:29 | 3:48:35 | |
that I have regularly raised the
benefits and the applications for | 3:48:35 | 3:48:39 | |
further investment in research and
advanced radiotherapy. I think | 3:48:39 | 3:48:45 | |
investment and research, because the
cost should be evidence -based. But | 3:48:45 | 3:48:49 | |
there are a number of areas that are
quite exciting. In particular, | 3:48:49 | 3:48:55 | |
proton beam therapy. I visited
University College Hospital in | 3:48:55 | 3:49:01 | |
London for pardon my treatment and I
have seen the installation of the | 3:49:01 | 3:49:07 | |
proton beam therapy equipment there.
And adaptive radiotherapy based on | 3:49:07 | 3:49:17 | |
advanced imaging, which is a kind of
empire linear exurbs Loretto. And | 3:49:17 | 3:49:29 | |
indeed combinations of radiotherapy
with the drugs, bio markers which | 3:49:29 | 3:49:32 | |
have selections for radiotherapy and
strategies so that it precisely goes | 3:49:32 | 3:49:38 | |
to the cancer cells and indeed MRT.
I think it is necessary that we | 3:49:38 | 3:49:46 | |
evaluate the use of new radiotherapy
techniques and compare them with | 3:49:46 | 3:49:52 | |
conventional techniques, and
includes some surgical techniques. | 3:49:52 | 3:49:56 | |
Sometimes radiotherapy is more
effective than surgery or some types | 3:49:56 | 3:50:00 | |
of pharmaceutical products. I am
advocating the should be alongside, | 3:50:00 | 3:50:05 | |
not instead, and with considerable
evaluation. It could have better | 3:50:05 | 3:50:12 | |
outcomes and reduced treatment
costs. I would like to thank all of | 3:50:12 | 3:50:18 | |
my colleagues, honourable friends
and members of the House who serve | 3:50:18 | 3:50:24 | |
on the APPG on cancer as well of the
charities who continue to do | 3:50:24 | 3:50:29 | |
excellent work, and those working on
our National Health Service and the | 3:50:29 | 3:50:33 | |
cancer. I'd like to congratulate the
honourable member from a school | 3:50:33 | 3:50:43 | |
bride and thank her for giving us
the opportunity to come and speak in | 3:50:43 | 3:50:46 | |
this matter. Some of the
contributions have been extremely | 3:50:46 | 3:50:54 | |
touching and we should thank all of
the members for their wonderful and | 3:50:54 | 3:50:58 | |
very personal contributions today.
As everyone here can testify to come | 3:50:58 | 3:51:07 | |
cancer has touched everyone and
there wouldn't be any family who | 3:51:07 | 3:51:11 | |
isn't aware of it. I think that the
year 2020, one in two should be | 3:51:11 | 3:51:19 | |
diagnosed in their lifetime. My
father survived cancer on three | 3:51:19 | 3:51:23 | |
occasions due to the skill of the
surgeon and the care of the nurses | 3:51:23 | 3:51:28 | |
and the players he believed in. In
relation to it Northern Ireland, | 3:51:28 | 3:51:34 | |
there are many things that we have
problems with, we all know about the | 3:51:34 | 3:51:40 | |
political process, but I would
encourage the Minister to remember | 3:51:40 | 3:51:45 | |
it is a devolved matter, if they
could have some discussions or | 3:51:45 | 3:51:50 | |
coordination with the permanent
Secretary of health to see anything | 3:51:50 | 3:51:56 | |
anyway he can help and encourage
health Department there. Cancer in | 3:51:56 | 3:52:04 | |
Northern Ireland has increased by
25% in the last ten years. Cancer | 3:52:04 | 3:52:10 | |
cases have reached 9000 for the
first time ever, which gives us an | 3:52:10 | 3:52:13 | |
indication of where the problems
are. 2.5 million living with or | 3:52:13 | 3:52:18 | |
beyond cancer in the UK today. I'm
thankful to Macmillan Cancer care | 3:52:18 | 3:52:25 | |
for the information they have given.
The issue is that not all of these | 3:52:25 | 3:52:32 | |
people are living well, with many
experiencing emotional, physical and | 3:52:32 | 3:52:38 | |
financial problems of treatment.
Many face disability or poor health | 3:52:38 | 3:52:42 | |
following the treatment and it can
remain for many years after | 3:52:42 | 3:52:46 | |
treatment. It is vital that the NHS
is set up to meet the changing needs | 3:52:46 | 3:52:50 | |
of cancer patients so they are able
to access advance care when they | 3:52:50 | 3:52:54 | |
need it. I'm even more conscious of
the financial implications because | 3:52:54 | 3:52:58 | |
in the five-year for review
projections, it is expected cancer | 3:52:58 | 3:53:03 | |
sellers should grow by 9%. -- cancer
services. The rubble lady and others | 3:53:03 | 3:53:15 | |
referred to cancer prevention.
Macmillan is concerned about the | 3:53:15 | 3:53:21 | |
cancer patient experiences surveys.
We have had them in Northern Ireland | 3:53:21 | 3:53:24 | |
for a period of time and it is very
important we can see what the trusts | 3:53:24 | 3:53:29 | |
are doing and the conical
commissioning groups are doing, what | 3:53:29 | 3:53:33 | |
the cancer types are and the
different aspects of the cancer | 3:53:33 | 3:53:36 | |
journey. In England, the CPES since
22 has encourage improvement in | 3:53:36 | 3:53:46 | |
results, which is very important.
Magellan is concerned, just for the | 3:53:46 | 3:53:55 | |
record, and apologies for not
looking at you directly, and for | 3:53:55 | 3:53:59 | |
using the word you, McMillan is
concerned that they will not | 3:53:59 | 3:54:06 | |
continue to deliver the same
high-quality data as the survey | 3:54:06 | 3:54:11 | |
model is not like to be viable. It's
clear that Macmillan care have | 3:54:11 | 3:54:21 | |
concerns that we've collected all
this data, done all this | 3:54:21 | 3:54:26 | |
information, and it has been done
through the CCGs, so it's | 3:54:26 | 3:54:32 | |
continuation in its current format
is vitally important. I ask you, can | 3:54:32 | 3:54:39 | |
the Minister provide clarity on the
issues outlined to gives you the | 3:54:39 | 3:54:45 | |
continued delivery of this essential
and robust patient survey? The | 3:54:45 | 3:54:49 | |
benefits are there for that date and
I thank the Minister for that. | 3:54:49 | 3:54:53 | |
Around one in eight phase mental
problems, such as anxiety, | 3:54:53 | 3:54:59 | |
depression, post-traumatic stress.
Planning is needed to ensure | 3:54:59 | 3:55:03 | |
everyone living with cancer across
Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 3:55:03 | 3:55:05 | |
can access the right care and
support, whether this is | 3:55:05 | 3:55:11 | |
information, financial assistance,
rehabilitation or emotional support. | 3:55:11 | 3:55:13 | |
Families can get so much emotional
support, but we need to reach | 3:55:13 | 3:55:18 | |
outside of that. Just 60% of people
with cancer in Northern Ireland | 3:55:18 | 3:55:23 | |
started treatment and the referrals
and I'm very much in the early | 3:55:23 | 3:55:28 | |
diagnosis category and the need to
have that in place as well. The | 3:55:28 | 3:55:36 | |
cancer deaths in Northern Ireland
are that the highest level they have | 3:55:36 | 3:55:38 | |
ever been on my party is committed
to improving the five-year survival | 3:55:38 | 3:55:42 | |
rates. We believe tackling resources
to tackle deprivation, which is | 3:55:42 | 3:55:49 | |
another issue. There is a high level
of cancer incidence in deprivation | 3:55:49 | 3:55:52 | |
as well. More needs to be done to
ensure all supporters have support | 3:55:52 | 3:55:58 | |
and access to key information to the
treatment options that are | 3:55:58 | 3:56:03 | |
available. McMillan is funding a
second Northern Ireland survey | 3:56:03 | 3:56:08 | |
launched in spring 2018. They have
invested £7 million as a vital | 3:56:08 | 3:56:15 | |
segment of the workforce is not
keeping pace with demand. They have | 3:56:15 | 3:56:20 | |
recognised there are shortcomings
and have tried to injuries finance | 3:56:20 | 3:56:22 | |
where they can to measure things go
the right way. Cancer is the most | 3:56:22 | 3:56:30 | |
common cause of death in Northern
Ireland. The end of life choices are | 3:56:30 | 3:56:34 | |
very important and the Northern
Ireland Cancer Registry found that | 3:56:34 | 3:56:37 | |
75% would prefer to die at home.
It's not subject matter that is easy | 3:56:37 | 3:56:42 | |
to speak about, but it needs to be
looked at. Jack Miller researchers | 3:56:42 | 3:56:47 | |
found people are more likely to die
any place of their choice when there | 3:56:47 | 3:56:51 | |
were voices are recorded. We believe
improvements to end of life care | 3:56:51 | 3:56:57 | |
should be included in the
opportunity to have advance care | 3:56:57 | 3:57:01 | |
planning discussions. They have made
a number of recommendations and I | 3:57:01 | 3:57:05 | |
will conclude with this. It's
referred to as the delivering | 3:57:05 | 3:57:09 | |
together strategy. I totally respect
Macmillan's reforms, including | 3:57:09 | 3:57:17 | |
specific actions to improve care and
enhance the patient explains in all | 3:57:17 | 3:57:22 | |
trusts. Making the recovery package
available to everyone with and | 3:57:22 | 3:57:28 | |
beyond cancer. Improving cancer
detection, treatment and support. | 3:57:28 | 3:57:35 | |
Also working with the GPU
federations to ensure care is | 3:57:35 | 3:57:39 | |
provided closer to home. Long-term
workforce planning to attain a more | 3:57:39 | 3:57:46 | |
knowledgeable and skilled workforce.
And with effective recruitment | 3:57:46 | 3:57:50 | |
across disciplines and settings.
Better implementation of all those | 3:57:50 | 3:57:53 | |
things in relation to the
nonclinical support at each stage of | 3:57:53 | 3:57:58 | |
the cancer journey. Providing high
quality palliative and end of life | 3:57:58 | 3:58:06 | |
care only 24-7 bases. Cancer cases
should have end of life care | 3:58:06 | 3:58:14 | |
conversation that the earliest
stage. Increase the involvement of | 3:58:14 | 3:58:16 | |
people affected by cancer in the
development of services and | 3:58:16 | 3:58:20 | |
commitment to one going use of
datum. -- ongoing use of that. And a | 3:58:20 | 3:58:29 | |
peer review programme to identify
any gaps or inequalities in cancer | 3:58:29 | 3:58:33 | |
care and pinpoint areas for
improvement locally and benchmarking | 3:58:33 | 3:58:37 | |
across the UK. I asked them to take
on board the issues we have all | 3:58:37 | 3:58:44 | |
referred to. If that's the case,
then do what can be done to help a | 3:58:44 | 3:58:49 | |
massive amount of cancer sufferers
across the whole of the United | 3:58:49 | 3:58:52 | |
Kingdom of great Britain and
Northern Ireland to have a better | 3:58:52 | 3:58:57 | |
journey, better outcome and better
support. I'd like to thank the | 3:58:57 | 3:59:06 | |
honourable member who can't be an
seat today for being proactive and | 3:59:06 | 3:59:10 | |
getting us to debate this this
afternoon. Also the member for a | 3:59:10 | 3:59:16 | |
school pride who stepped in to open
the debate in his absence. | 3:59:16 | 3:59:18 | |
The resources available to meet
those targets a reminder to us all | 3:59:22 | 3:59:26 | |
that those in the receipt of
treatment must be involved in the | 3:59:26 | 3:59:29 | |
ongoing conversations, their
experiences proving end of life care | 3:59:29 | 3:59:39 | |
to offer the dignity appropriate at
that time. The honourable member for | 3:59:39 | 3:59:44 | |
Boswell spoke about alternative
therapies and its role that it can | 3:59:44 | 3:59:48 | |
play and I would include in that
category but I'm not putting words | 3:59:48 | 3:59:50 | |
in his mouth, the investigation into
the use of medicinal cannabis. The | 3:59:50 | 3:59:56 | |
honourable member for north-east
focused on post same cell transfer | 3:59:56 | 4:00:03 | |
care and practical race port
required and also asked if he could | 4:00:03 | 4:00:07 | |
review the 100 day cut-off date.
Spoke about breast cancer, the UK's | 4:00:07 | 4:00:13 | |
most common cancer with a survival
rate doubling in the last 20 years. | 4:00:13 | 4:00:17 | |
He also highlighted dense tissue, an
area which is new to me and the need | 4:00:17 | 4:00:24 | |
for early diagnosis and called for
better education in this area. The | 4:00:24 | 4:00:28 | |
honourable member for Scunthorpe put
down challenges about pancreatic | 4:00:28 | 4:00:34 | |
cancer and where progress has been
made and it seems to be an area | 4:00:34 | 4:00:37 | |
where minimal progress has been made
over the years. I draw attention to | 4:00:37 | 4:00:41 | |
the workforce programme and ask nice
if they can possibly clarify some | 4:00:41 | 4:00:46 | |
decisions. The honourable member for
Dumfries and Galloway talked about | 4:00:46 | 4:00:52 | |
blood cancer and clinical research
and the honourable member for | 4:00:52 | 4:00:58 | |
Bristol West spoke about young
people in cancer and the role | 4:00:58 | 4:01:04 | |
fulfilled given to me by a young man
in my constituency this time last | 4:01:04 | 4:01:08 | |
year. The honourable member for
Chippenham highlighted the desire | 4:01:08 | 4:01:12 | |
the government prior Toros Cancer
Research and we've come a long way | 4:01:12 | 4:01:16 | |
but we have still got a long way to
go. She also highlighted the need | 4:01:16 | 4:01:22 | |
for early diagnosis, occurring theme
we have heard throughout this | 4:01:22 | 4:01:25 | |
afternoon. The honourable member for
Lincoln spoke very movingly about | 4:01:25 | 4:01:30 | |
the people behind the statistics
including her own daughter. She also | 4:01:30 | 4:01:34 | |
highlighted the reality of staff
shortages and what they would need | 4:01:34 | 4:01:37 | |
to patients. The honourable member
for Islington spoke with first-hand | 4:01:37 | 4:01:43 | |
knowledge of overcoming cancer and
as many speakers have said survivors | 4:01:43 | 4:01:48 | |
experience should be hugely
influential on developing better | 4:01:48 | 4:01:52 | |
treatments, who could possibly have
a better understanding? The | 4:01:52 | 4:01:57 | |
honourable member for Strangford
mentioned that every family is | 4:01:57 | 4:02:01 | |
touched in some way by cancer. He
also touched on financial | 4:02:01 | 4:02:05 | |
implications and I shall take up the
topic later on. Despite our progress | 4:02:05 | 4:02:11 | |
cancer remains a lingering, stubborn
foe and as policymakers we have to | 4:02:11 | 4:02:16 | |
report a respected health services
as they seek to improve the | 4:02:16 | 4:02:20 | |
treatment patients receive. We have
undoubtedly taken great strides in | 4:02:20 | 4:02:24 | |
our progress from a historical
perspective as well a steady | 4:02:24 | 4:02:28 | |
improvements. For individuals
months, weeks even days become | 4:02:28 | 4:02:32 | |
precious as they grapple with
uncertainties that this illness | 4:02:32 | 4:02:36 | |
brings to their life. Patients come
to terms with emotional and physical | 4:02:36 | 4:02:40 | |
impact of diagnosis and must also
continue to manage everyday | 4:02:40 | 4:02:45 | |
practicalities of life. Chief
amongst those can be finances and | 4:02:45 | 4:02:51 | |
research commissioned by Macmillan
Cancer Support shows four out of | 4:02:51 | 4:02:53 | |
five people with cancer are on
average £570 worth worse off as a | 4:02:53 | 4:02:59 | |
result of the diagnosis. I believe
you can improve the situation by | 4:02:59 | 4:03:03 | |
introducing a duty of care for
financial services as this would | 4:03:03 | 4:03:06 | |
allow cancer patients to do with
organisations such as the bank, it | 4:03:06 | 4:03:11 | |
is clear more needs to be done to
give cancer sufferers greater | 4:03:11 | 4:03:15 | |
security. Signposted financial
advice to avoid problem debts are | 4:03:15 | 4:03:23 | |
some of the ways banks might be able
to assist, I encourage the | 4:03:23 | 4:03:30 | |
government to introduce a legal duty
of care as a matter of urgency so | 4:03:30 | 4:03:34 | |
those recovering from cancer are
afforded greater support. | 4:03:34 | 4:03:44 | |
Satisfactory measures to share best
practice. The North did concluding | 4:03:44 | 4:03:53 | |
Scotland has a unique system of
safety and patient care, the leader | 4:03:53 | 4:04:03 | |
of the for, the lead author of the
report sorry said Scotland's other | 4:04:03 | 4:04:12 | |
than nations of the UK so we are
urging health care leaders from | 4:04:12 | 4:04:15 | |
England Wales and Northern Ireland
to think about what they might want | 4:04:15 | 4:04:19 | |
to import from Scotland and I am
sure the Scottish NHS will be | 4:04:19 | 4:04:24 | |
watching with interest as the NHS in
England continues to boom and the | 4:04:24 | 4:04:28 | |
cancer task force five-year strategy
for cancer care, share knowledge is | 4:04:28 | 4:04:32 | |
a vital tool for future progress.
Madam Deputy Speaker earlier this | 4:04:32 | 4:04:37 | |
year I hosted the world cancer day
drop along with the member for | 4:04:37 | 4:04:40 | |
Cambridge. It was heartening to
listen to Cancer Research UK's | 4:04:40 | 4:04:45 | |
ambassadors and reflect on the many
unsung heroes who assist cancer | 4:04:45 | 4:04:49 | |
sufferers or who have experienced
cancer themselves. I hope the | 4:04:49 | 4:04:53 | |
government is listening to the third
sector as they have through their | 4:04:53 | 4:04:56 | |
effort and commitment gathered a
huge and a valuable knowledge. The | 4:04:56 | 4:05:01 | |
honourable member for Dumfries and
Galloway talked about blood cancer | 4:05:01 | 4:05:03 | |
and child cancer and I want to
combine the two with a story about a | 4:05:03 | 4:05:07 | |
young man from my constituency, a
very young man called Nathan. He is | 4:05:07 | 4:05:12 | |
now the ripe old age of seven. He
has the love and support from his | 4:05:12 | 4:05:16 | |
mum and dad and sister and is
completing a three years of | 4:05:16 | 4:05:23 | |
treatment for lymphoblastic
leukaemia, he can save a lot better | 4:05:23 | 4:05:25 | |
than I can. Do in different
cocktails of chemotherapy, six bone | 4:05:25 | 4:05:30 | |
marrow procedures, three surgeries,
16 blood platelet transfusions. He | 4:05:30 | 4:05:38 | |
has a bead of courage for every
procedure he goes through, he has | 4:05:38 | 4:05:43 | |
earned 1500 beads of courage. Nathan
and other brave children have led | 4:05:43 | 4:05:47 | |
and others will follow. Finally may
I say that honourable members will | 4:05:47 | 4:05:52 | |
join with me in reaffirming our
commitment to these areas, consider | 4:05:52 | 4:05:58 | |
legislation help to support cancer
patients and different aspects of | 4:05:58 | 4:06:00 | |
their life including finances,
provide health services with the | 4:06:00 | 4:06:05 | |
financial support they require and
ensure that the expertise and | 4:06:05 | 4:06:10 | |
knowledge of academia around the
globe is fully utilised to formulate | 4:06:10 | 4:06:14 | |
government policy. | 4:06:14 | 4:06:16 | |
Thank you very much mud and 50
Speaker. I would like to start by | 4:06:20 | 4:06:23 | |
thanking my honourable friend, the
honourable member for East Kilbride | 4:06:23 | 4:06:35 | |
for leading this debate and for her
excellent speech. I also want to | 4:06:35 | 4:06:39 | |
thank the honourable member for
Basildon and Billericay for securing | 4:06:39 | 4:06:44 | |
this debate. He is not currently in
his seat but I want to thank him for | 4:06:44 | 4:06:48 | |
his excellent contribution to the
work of the all-party group for | 4:06:48 | 4:06:53 | |
cancer over many years. His
expertise and passion for this | 4:06:53 | 4:06:56 | |
matter is what has made it so
successful. I also want to thank the | 4:06:56 | 4:07:02 | |
other honourable members who have
spoken, I was co-chair of the | 4:07:02 | 4:07:08 | |
all-party for breast cancer and the
important issue of breast density | 4:07:08 | 4:07:13 | |
was raised and that is something we
have to make progress on as he said. | 4:07:13 | 4:07:18 | |
Also the honourable members for
Dumfries and Galloway, chipping, | 4:07:18 | 4:07:23 | |
Strangford and Inverclyde who speak
for the SNP. My honourable friends | 4:07:23 | 4:07:30 | |
for Coventry North East, Scunthorpe,
Bristol West, Lincoln who made such | 4:07:30 | 4:07:36 | |
a powerful speech, he is not in
place now, and emotional speech | 4:07:36 | 4:07:39 | |
about her daughter who I am sure
would be so proud of her bravery | 4:07:39 | 4:07:44 | |
today as I am sure the grandchildren
will be and I hope they and the | 4:07:44 | 4:07:48 | |
whole family were watching. Also
paid tribute to my honourable friend | 4:07:48 | 4:07:52 | |
the member for Easington who I think
is actually has fought cancer twice, | 4:07:52 | 4:07:58 | |
three times? It's amazing to see him
in his place and long may he stay. | 4:07:58 | 4:08:06 | |
They have all attended this debate
and made excellent contributions on | 4:08:06 | 4:08:11 | |
this important issue. Cancer is
understandably are very emotional | 4:08:11 | 4:08:16 | |
topic to discuss. One into people in
the UK will be affected by cancer in | 4:08:16 | 4:08:21 | |
a lifetime. As we have heard from
almost all honourable members who | 4:08:21 | 4:08:24 | |
have spoken in the house today we
have all affected in some way | 4:08:24 | 4:08:29 | |
ourselves. From my case I lost my
mother in law when my children were | 4:08:29 | 4:08:35 | |
very small to breast cancer and it's
one of the reasons I joined the | 4:08:35 | 4:08:38 | |
all-party group for breast cancer
and have worked on that and I'm | 4:08:38 | 4:08:42 | |
still a vice chair to that all-party
group to this day. It's this emotion | 4:08:42 | 4:08:47 | |
that really does encourage us and
encourage us all to come together to | 4:08:47 | 4:08:53 | |
tackle cancer. Over the years we've
seen a steady improvement in cancer | 4:08:53 | 4:08:57 | |
survival rates in England. But we
still lag behind the improvements of | 4:08:57 | 4:09:03 | |
our European counterparts and the
number of new cancer cases in | 4:09:03 | 4:09:07 | |
England does continue to rise
year-on-year. If these trends | 4:09:07 | 4:09:12 | |
continue it is estimated that by
2020. That is why the government | 4:09:12 | 4:09:22 | |
must take urgent steps so that
cancer diagnosis care and outcomes | 4:09:22 | 4:09:27 | |
in England can be improved. I will
start by saying that the cancer | 4:09:27 | 4:09:31 | |
strategy was a welcome step forward
to achieving the best cancer care | 4:09:31 | 4:09:35 | |
and outcomes in the world and we on
this side of the house are fully | 4:09:35 | 4:09:39 | |
committed to delivering and helping
deliver this strategy in full. As | 4:09:39 | 4:09:43 | |
has already been mentioned there are
some concerns across the house about | 4:09:43 | 4:09:48 | |
the progress of the strategy. I am
pleased some of the targets have | 4:09:48 | 4:09:51 | |
already been met but I am under no
illusion that many are now closer to | 4:09:51 | 4:09:55 | |
being reached than they were almost
three years ago. With the Minister | 4:09:55 | 4:09:59 | |
today committed to publishing a
detailed progress update on each of | 4:09:59 | 4:10:05 | |
the 97 cancer strategy
recommendations by the end of this | 4:10:05 | 4:10:08 | |
financial year so that we are all
able to celebrate success but also | 4:10:08 | 4:10:12 | |
focus our intention on more pressing
challenges were needed? There are | 4:10:12 | 4:10:19 | |
many challenges the government must
face before achieving world-class | 4:10:19 | 4:10:23 | |
cancer outcomes but I will only
touch upon a few today. They are in | 4:10:23 | 4:10:27 | |
early diagnosis, waiting times, the
workforce and finally prevention. I | 4:10:27 | 4:10:31 | |
will start with early diagnosis
because we know that if cancer is | 4:10:31 | 4:10:37 | |
diagnosed early treatment is more
likely to be successful. For cancers | 4:10:37 | 4:10:41 | |
such as ovarian cancer and lung
cancer it's often too late. The | 4:10:41 | 4:10:47 | |
National Cancer registration service
found that over a quarter of women | 4:10:47 | 4:10:51 | |
with ovarian cancer and I should
state at this point I am chair of | 4:10:51 | 4:10:55 | |
the all-party group for ovarian
cancer, a quarter of women are | 4:10:55 | 4:10:59 | |
diagnosed through an emergency
presentation and of those women just | 4:10:59 | 4:11:06 | |
45% survived for a year or more
compared to over 80% of women | 4:11:06 | 4:11:10 | |
diagnosed with a feral by their GP.
Similarly research by the British | 4:11:10 | 4:11:16 | |
Lung foundation found that more than
a third of lung cancer cases in | 4:11:16 | 4:11:20 | |
England are diagnosed after
presenting as an emergency and as a | 4:11:20 | 4:11:24 | |
result the Roy Castle lung cancer
foundation found that if caught | 4:11:24 | 4:11:28 | |
early person has up to 73% chance
surviving five years or more. | 4:11:28 | 4:11:36 | |
However the current five-year
survival rate Lung cancer is just | 4:11:36 | 4:11:40 | |
10%. Sadly one in 21 sufferers were
not diagnosed until they had | 4:11:40 | 4:11:45 | |
actually died. Cancer rate 's have
doubled but these are shocking | 4:11:45 | 4:11:54 | |
statistics. I ask the minister what
his department will be doing to | 4:11:54 | 4:11:59 | |
ensure cancers are detected even
earlier so patients are no longer | 4:11:59 | 4:12:04 | |
pushed from pillar to post to
sometimes try to find the diagnosis. | 4:12:04 | 4:12:08 | |
Unfortunately we know that once a
patient has been diagnosed they then | 4:12:08 | 4:12:12 | |
have an agonising wait for
treatment, even if it was just a | 4:12:12 | 4:12:17 | |
week it would be agonising but the
62 day target between urgent GP | 4:12:17 | 4:12:23 | |
referral and treatment has not now
been met for two years. Meaning that | 4:12:23 | 4:12:28 | |
patients are having to wait much
longer than they should for | 4:12:28 | 4:12:30 | |
treatment. | 4:12:30 | 4:12:40 | |
Cancer patients should not be
expected to wait so long. I | 4:12:42 | 4:12:46 | |
therefore ask the Minister what his
department is doing to address this | 4:12:46 | 4:12:50 | |
issue. It's no secret the NHS and
the NHS workforce are under extreme | 4:12:50 | 4:12:57 | |
pressure due to underfunding and
understaffing by this government. I | 4:12:57 | 4:13:01 | |
want to place on record that we on
this side of the house do not take | 4:13:01 | 4:13:05 | |
the NHS workforce for granted and
are incredibly grateful to them for | 4:13:05 | 4:13:09 | |
the hard work, support and kindness
to patients and their families. They | 4:13:09 | 4:13:15 | |
are doing an incredible job despite
the circumstances we find ourselves | 4:13:15 | 4:13:18 | |
in currently. We should never stop
thanking them for the work they do | 4:13:18 | 4:13:23 | |
to diagnose, treat and care for
patients. The cancer workforce | 4:13:23 | 4:13:27 | |
really are the backbone of the
cancer strategy. The improvement of | 4:13:27 | 4:13:35 | |
early diagnosis and waiting times
relies on an efficient cancer | 4:13:35 | 4:13:38 | |
workforce so the Minister must take
these concerns as a top priority if | 4:13:38 | 4:13:41 | |
the target any cancer strategy are
to be fulfilled. A report by | 4:13:41 | 4:13:46 | |
Macmillan Cancer Support and that
over half of GPs and nurses surveyed | 4:13:46 | 4:13:50 | |
in the UK say that given current
pressures on the NHS workforce they | 4:13:50 | 4:13:55 | |
are not confident the workforce is
able to provide adequate care to | 4:13:55 | 4:14:00 | |
cancer patients. This is deeply
worrying. The NHS workforce should | 4:14:00 | 4:14:05 | |
be suitably equipped to diagnose,
support and care for cancer patients | 4:14:05 | 4:14:09 | |
during and beyond cancer. Through my
work with the all-party group on | 4:14:09 | 4:14:14 | |
breast cancer I have heard as I am
sure the Minister did during his | 4:14:14 | 4:14:18 | |
time as co-chair of the overwhelming
support cancer nurse specialists can | 4:14:18 | 4:14:23 | |
bring to a breast cancer patient and
family. | 4:14:23 | 4:14:25 | |
But patients with secondary breast
cancer are likely to have access to | 4:14:30 | 4:14:36 | |
the cancer nursed specialist.
Research shows that 42% of hospital | 4:14:36 | 4:14:41 | |
trusts and health boards in England,
Scotland and Wales do not provide a | 4:14:41 | 4:14:45 | |
dedicated specialist nursing care
for people with secondary breast | 4:14:45 | 4:14:49 | |
cancer. Even though they will often
have complex emotional and | 4:14:49 | 4:14:54 | |
supportive care needs. Patients with
secondary breast cancer are | 4:14:54 | 4:14:57 | |
therefore subject to a postcode
lottery when it comes to having a | 4:14:57 | 4:15:02 | |
cancer nurse specialist. What steps
is the minister taking to ensure | 4:15:02 | 4:15:06 | |
that every cancer patient has access
to a clinical nurse specialist? | 4:15:06 | 4:15:10 | |
There is no doubt that if the cancer
workforce had the time, resources | 4:15:10 | 4:15:15 | |
and support it so desperately needs
the recommendations in the cancer | 4:15:15 | 4:15:19 | |
strategy would be achieved. I know
that this is something the cancer | 4:15:19 | 4:15:23 | |
workforce plan published in December
last year aimed to address. Will the | 4:15:23 | 4:15:29 | |
Minister did the House on the
progress in this plan and outline | 4:15:29 | 4:15:32 | |
how much funding the Government will
be granting to ensure the proposals | 4:15:32 | 4:15:36 | |
in the plan soon become a reality?
The NHS cancer workforce care for | 4:15:36 | 4:15:41 | |
and support their patients every
day, so we really need the | 4:15:41 | 4:15:46 | |
Government to fully support the
workforce, too. I move onto the | 4:15:46 | 4:15:51 | |
first issue raised in cancer
strategy prevention. The World | 4:15:51 | 4:15:56 | |
Health Organisation estimates that
one third of deaths due to cancer | 4:15:56 | 4:15:59 | |
are a result of the five leading
behavioural and dietary risks, so | 4:15:59 | 4:16:05 | |
that's high body mass index, no
fruit and vegetable intake, lack of | 4:16:05 | 4:16:11 | |
physical activity, tobacco and
alcohol. Alcohol was raised so | 4:16:11 | 4:16:16 | |
powerfully by my amazing friend, the
member for Bristol West. Coming to | 4:16:16 | 4:16:22 | |
tobacco, this was identified as the
most important risk factor | 4:16:22 | 4:16:26 | |
responsible for approximately 22% of
cancer deaths. It is therefore | 4:16:26 | 4:16:31 | |
estimated that between 30-50% of
cancers can be prevented if you take | 4:16:31 | 4:16:36 | |
all of these five are risk factors
into account. The Government's | 4:16:36 | 4:16:43 | |
Tobacco control plan which the
minister pushed to be published in | 4:16:43 | 4:16:48 | |
his first weeks in the job, and the
childhood obesity plan, are both | 4:16:48 | 4:16:56 | |
welcome, but will not go far enough
if the Government continues to slash | 4:16:56 | 4:17:01 | |
public health budgets. So will the
minister commit to strengthen the | 4:17:01 | 4:17:05 | |
public health budget so that fit and
healthy lifestyles can be encouraged | 4:17:05 | 4:17:09 | |
across all our communities and help
contribute to cancer prevention? I | 4:17:09 | 4:17:13 | |
know that the Minister is passionate
to make sure England is one of the | 4:17:13 | 4:17:18 | |
world leaders when it comes to
cancer outcomes, but we are | 4:17:18 | 4:17:21 | |
currently lagging behind but the
cancer strategy, with the right | 4:17:21 | 4:17:25 | |
funding and support from the
Government, has the potential to do | 4:17:25 | 4:17:29 | |
just that. I hope the Minister will
take all but we have heard today on | 4:17:29 | 4:17:35 | |
board and go back to his apartment
with an action plan of how best to | 4:17:35 | 4:17:38 | |
move forward so that we can achieve
world-class cancer outcomes in 2020. | 4:17:38 | 4:17:49 | |
Thank you very much, Madam Deputy
Speaker and thank you to my shadow, | 4:17:49 | 4:17:55 | |
my friend, the Shadow minister, for
her remarks. I will start by | 4:17:55 | 4:18:00 | |
congratulating the members of the
all-party group. I will leave it as | 4:18:00 | 4:18:10 | |
the member for a school pride -- is
cobranded so I don't make a fool of | 4:18:10 | 4:18:19 | |
myself. I want to thank them for
their work on the all-party group. | 4:18:19 | 4:18:26 | |
Just all of the constant work they
do. I extend my appreciation to | 4:18:26 | 4:18:34 | |
members on all sides who cheer a
different cancer all-party groups | 4:18:34 | 4:18:39 | |
for the important work they do, as
has been mentioned I was a former | 4:18:39 | 4:18:44 | |
coach with the shadow minister and
the former Lady for mid Dorset and | 4:18:44 | 4:18:50 | |
north pole. We were quite a team. We
cheered that group together for five | 4:18:50 | 4:19:02 | |
years and I was so proud to do that.
We met some amazing people and I | 4:19:02 | 4:19:08 | |
think we did some good. I was also
vice-chair to the all-party group on | 4:19:08 | 4:19:15 | |
ovarian cancer with the shadow
minister, which she still chairs. I | 4:19:15 | 4:19:20 | |
know how important it is that
Parliament allocates time to this | 4:19:20 | 4:19:25 | |
subject both upstairs and here in
the chamber. If you look at the | 4:19:25 | 4:19:30 | |
gallery, you see how many people are
there and in the House, it's the | 4:19:30 | 4:19:36 | |
quality more than the quantity, and
I would say to people watching who | 4:19:36 | 4:19:40 | |
thing, this is a debate on the
cancer strategy, it is so important. | 4:19:40 | 4:19:45 | |
It is, so why is Parliament not
forth? Because it is about what goes | 4:19:45 | 4:19:52 | |
on all over the place and is as what
goes on in here for so many members, | 4:19:52 | 4:19:58 | |
and I didn't know the shadow
minister's motivation. I have never | 4:19:58 | 4:20:04 | |
said mine and one day I will. I
realise now where she was so | 4:20:04 | 4:20:08 | |
passionate. I would say the lady
from a school pride summed it up in | 4:20:08 | 4:20:14 | |
the first line in the first page of
this debate when she said we are all | 4:20:14 | 4:20:18 | |
on the same site when it comes to
cancer. What a brilliant way to put | 4:20:18 | 4:20:23 | |
it. The other point I just want to
say is the lady from Coventry North | 4:20:23 | 4:20:29 | |
East said about her husband who
lives with cancer. In every cancer | 4:20:29 | 4:20:36 | |
debates, I always say, and Macmillan
have been brilliant with their | 4:20:36 | 4:20:41 | |
advertising around this, a mum with
cancer is still a mum. There are so | 4:20:41 | 4:20:47 | |
many people who are living with and
beyond cancer and survivorship they | 4:20:47 | 4:20:53 | |
should call us in America, and I
think we should remember that. Let | 4:20:53 | 4:20:57 | |
me start by reassuring the House
that cancer is a huge priority for | 4:20:57 | 4:21:03 | |
me, the secretary of state and this
Government, as has been set by a | 4:21:03 | 4:21:09 | |
number of members. Cancer survival
rates have never been higher, the | 4:21:09 | 4:21:13 | |
latest figures show an estimated
7000 more people surviving cancer | 4:21:13 | 4:21:18 | |
after successful NHS treatment
compared to three years prior and | 4:21:18 | 4:21:21 | |
our aim is to save 30,000 more lives
by 2020 through the cancer strategy | 4:21:21 | 4:21:27 | |
we are debating today. However, my
more than anybody knows there is | 4:21:27 | 4:21:31 | |
still so much more to do. There are
still so much more potential. That | 4:21:31 | 4:21:37 | |
is why we accepted all 96
recommendations in the cancer | 4:21:37 | 4:21:40 | |
strategy. We have backed this
commitment with over £600 million of | 4:21:40 | 4:21:46 | |
additional funding up to 2021. We
are just two years into the | 4:21:46 | 4:21:50 | |
implementation of the strategy and
the fantastic NHS cancer doctors and | 4:21:50 | 4:21:55 | |
nurses supporting us have made
tremendous progress in many areas. I | 4:21:55 | 4:22:00 | |
would echo what many members have
said and support for them. Many | 4:22:00 | 4:22:04 | |
mentioned will report back on how
we're doing? In October we published | 4:22:04 | 4:22:11 | |
the two-year report, imaging --
energising and published it. That | 4:22:11 | 4:22:21 | |
was our latest progress report and
we will be doing that again, I hope, | 4:22:21 | 4:22:26 | |
later this year. I would say, I know
that NHS England's national director | 4:22:26 | 4:22:34 | |
who is based at the Morriston and is
an incredible lady who I enjoy | 4:22:34 | 4:22:39 | |
working with very much is leading
the firm intention of the cancer | 4:22:39 | 4:22:42 | |
strategy. She is in agreement that
there are many areas where we agree | 4:22:42 | 4:22:47 | |
with the report and don't shy away
from scrutiny. That's exactly why we | 4:22:47 | 4:22:51 | |
are here. But there are lots of
areas of progress where we didn't | 4:22:51 | 4:22:57 | |
think sufficient provenance was
given in the analysis of progress | 4:22:57 | 4:22:59 | |
and we said that at the enquiry. I
think it's important I put that on | 4:22:59 | 4:23:03 | |
the record. The measure of success
of the strategy will be about | 4:23:03 | 4:23:10 | |
significant improvements in early
diagnosis. Obviously in treatment | 4:23:10 | 4:23:14 | |
and office the research. But I am
increasingly aware in this job that | 4:23:14 | 4:23:20 | |
what we need to do to make cancer
services even better beyond 2020, | 4:23:20 | 4:23:26 | |
and for this thing is to be a much
greater focus on the fourth pillar, | 4:23:26 | 4:23:31 | |
which is of course prevention. Of
course we want to be the best in the | 4:23:31 | 4:23:36 | |
world at delivering positive
outcomes for patients after a | 4:23:36 | 4:23:39 | |
diagnosis, but we have to
understand's I did a debate earlier | 4:23:39 | 4:23:43 | |
this week with members from
Oxfordshire, there has been a 120% | 4:23:43 | 4:23:48 | |
increase in the number of people
presenting with cancer in | 4:23:48 | 4:23:52 | |
Oxfordshire alone in recent years,
so the number of people presenting | 4:23:52 | 4:23:54 | |
continues to rise. We can do very
well on those first three pillars | 4:23:54 | 4:24:00 | |
and we are, but I think it has to be
prevention where we are going to | 4:24:00 | 4:24:06 | |
really move the dial as well. That's
why my whole mission as the Minister | 4:24:06 | 4:24:14 | |
for health has been about putting in
place a comprehensive system of | 4:24:14 | 4:24:18 | |
measures to reduce the risks of
cancer as well as treating it when | 4:24:18 | 4:24:21 | |
it occurs. My noble friend
mentioned, is that the shadow | 4:24:21 | 4:24:27 | |
minister, one of my first acts was
to launch the Tobacco control plan. | 4:24:27 | 4:24:33 | |
I was so keen because it is the
biggest preventable killer in our | 4:24:33 | 4:24:38 | |
country today. We have done so well
in the previous Labour Government | 4:24:38 | 4:24:43 | |
and this Government with the
legislative framework and it is all | 4:24:43 | 4:24:45 | |
about supporting local areas to
continue to bring down the number of | 4:24:45 | 4:24:49 | |
people have smoke -- who smoke. Last
year we also launched air quality | 4:24:49 | 4:25:01 | |
plans and that is really important
as well. The plan was significant to | 4:25:01 | 4:25:09 | |
reduce the pathogens in the air we
breathe, which has a big impact on | 4:25:09 | 4:25:12 | |
developing disease. Furthermore, we
published a child obesity strategy | 4:25:12 | 4:25:18 | |
in 2016. This was just the start of
a conversation about how we will | 4:25:18 | 4:25:23 | |
reduce child obesity over the next
decade. Our overarching focus is | 4:25:23 | 4:25:28 | |
that our children are supported to
live healthy, active and happy lives | 4:25:28 | 4:25:32 | |
to grow into adults who are less
likely to develop cancer. We have | 4:25:32 | 4:25:37 | |
always said that the child obesity
strategy was constantly under | 4:25:37 | 4:25:41 | |
review, it is part one and we will
go further if we need to to build on | 4:25:41 | 4:25:45 | |
this. As has been mentioned, the
biggest game changer in preventing | 4:25:45 | 4:25:50 | |
cancer is the world leading work on
genomics going on in our country. | 4:25:50 | 4:25:57 | |
The 20 16th annual report published
around the time I was first on the | 4:25:57 | 4:26:02 | |
year before I was appointed,
generation gene, set out the huge | 4:26:02 | 4:26:06 | |
potential for genomics to help us
understand the inherited causes of | 4:26:06 | 4:26:12 | |
cancer and shape the future research
and future personalised cancer | 4:26:12 | 4:26:16 | |
treatment. I think that is so
important, it's something we should | 4:26:16 | 4:26:19 | |
talk more about. Let me touch on so
many of the subjects that have been | 4:26:19 | 4:26:24 | |
raised. I'm grateful to you, Madam
Speaker, for giving me a chance to | 4:26:24 | 4:26:30 | |
do that. And the workforce,
absolutely, and I've always said | 4:26:30 | 4:26:39 | |
this, the workforce is the key to
our strategy. We've already | 4:26:39 | 4:26:46 | |
committed to investing in and
expanding our diagnostic workforce | 4:26:46 | 4:26:50 | |
to improve survival rates by
diagnosing cancer earlier. We set | 4:26:50 | 4:26:58 | |
out how we will expand our workforce
numbers but also continue to invest | 4:26:58 | 4:27:02 | |
in the skills of the stuff we have
and use their times and expertise | 4:27:02 | 4:27:06 | |
where it is most needed. We have
already committed to training 746 | 4:27:06 | 4:27:12 | |
more cancer consultants and 890 more
diagnostic and therapeutic | 4:27:12 | 4:27:16 | |
radiographers which we know are in
short supply by 2021. The plan | 4:27:16 | 4:27:21 | |
further commits to the expansion of
capacity and skills, including 200 | 4:27:21 | 4:27:26 | |
additional clinical endoscopist and
a 300 reporting radiographers by 21 | 4:27:26 | 4:27:30 | |
as well. We will also expand the
number of clinical nurse specialists | 4:27:30 | 4:27:39 | |
and develop common consistency and
ages competencies with a clear route | 4:27:39 | 4:27:42 | |
into training to ensure every cancer
patient has access to a CNS or other | 4:27:42 | 4:27:48 | |
support worker by 2021. That and it
was constantly brought up when I was | 4:27:48 | 4:27:55 | |
cheering the group. We will follow
with the longer plan and strategy | 4:27:55 | 4:28:00 | |
later this year beyond 2021. We have
talked about transformation funding | 4:28:00 | 4:28:10 | |
is already, and the link with the 62
days standard and the performance | 4:28:10 | 4:28:16 | |
and the phasing of transmission
funding. Cancer alliances are very | 4:28:16 | 4:28:21 | |
important mechanism for improving
performance on a 62 the sergeant | 4:28:21 | 4:28:25 | |
grid standard. They bring together
commissions from primary and | 4:28:25 | 4:28:30 | |
secondary care, they ensure there is
a collective responsibility with the | 4:28:30 | 4:28:34 | |
cancer services that they provide
and they provide the necessary | 4:28:34 | 4:28:37 | |
leadership for the transformation of
services. 76 million funding has | 4:28:37 | 4:28:44 | |
already been allocated to the cancer
alliances. It is imperative they | 4:28:44 | 4:28:48 | |
have the operational rigour to
achieve the translation we need. It | 4:28:48 | 4:28:53 | |
is our constituents, taxpayers not
acrimony that is being allocated and | 4:28:53 | 4:28:58 | |
I I have to say, it is only right
and proper that the alliances can | 4:28:58 | 4:29:06 | |
demonstrate their preparedness for
this funding. That is not to say | 4:29:06 | 4:29:10 | |
that the 62 days standard is a
requirement, but it gives the basis | 4:29:10 | 4:29:14 | |
on which NHS England can improve,
along with senior clinical advice, | 4:29:14 | 4:29:22 | |
can make an assessment of their
readiness. | 4:29:22 | 4:29:27 | |
Quickly on that specific point,
those who do not achieve a 62 day | 4:29:27 | 4:29:34 | |
target, it seems completely perverse
that individuals suffering from | 4:29:34 | 4:29:38 | |
cancer in those areas are penalised
for lack of funds from the | 4:29:38 | 4:29:41 | |
transformation fund. Is the minister
singles cancer alliances can still | 4:29:41 | 4:29:47 | |
apply for that funding in measures
we put in place to ensure they do | 4:29:47 | 4:29:50 | |
reach the target? It's not hard and
fast Madam Deputy Speaker and I | 4:29:50 | 4:29:57 | |
noted that NHS England have written
to me as an MP and all MPs today | 4:29:57 | 4:30:02 | |
with details of cancer alliances
that members have in their | 4:30:02 | 4:30:07 | |
individual areas and I bang on about
this every time but I do implore | 4:30:07 | 4:30:12 | |
members to engage with the local
cancer alliances. I suspect the | 4:30:12 | 4:30:16 | |
people in this debate do but I would
hazard a guess that many members | 4:30:16 | 4:30:19 | |
don't. Members should know who the
cancer alliances are in their areas | 4:30:19 | 4:30:23 | |
and should have a relationship with
them and I think they should know | 4:30:23 | 4:30:26 | |
them. Let me talk about the cancer
patients experience survey which the | 4:30:26 | 4:30:34 | |
member for Strangford raised and the
honourable lady for Lincoln. I will | 4:30:34 | 4:30:40 | |
say on the honourable lady for
Lincoln, I said to my officials | 4:30:40 | 4:30:44 | |
before this debate that there is
always one speech during these kind | 4:30:44 | 4:30:47 | |
of debates, and the shadow menaced
was that person a few weeks ago in | 4:30:47 | 4:30:52 | |
the other debate, there is always
someone who leaves not a dry eye in | 4:30:52 | 4:30:55 | |
the house and that today was the
honourable lady for Lincoln. I know | 4:30:55 | 4:30:59 | |
she's not in her place now and I do
not blame her but I think the whole | 4:30:59 | 4:31:03 | |
house wanted to run over and give
her a hug and many on dead. What an | 4:31:03 | 4:31:13 | |
amazing speech. We totally recognise
how important the National Cancer | 4:31:13 | 4:31:20 | |
patient experience survey is in our
continued drive to improve cancer | 4:31:20 | 4:31:25 | |
treatment and care and monitor that
progress. I have always, I have | 4:31:25 | 4:31:29 | |
always been clear that I want any
future survey to continue to deliver | 4:31:29 | 4:31:33 | |
the high quality data, it will
continue in its current form in | 4:31:33 | 4:31:41 | |
1819, it will be engaging with the
cancer community to ensure any | 4:31:41 | 4:31:44 | |
decisions about future delivery and
the model to be adopted should the | 4:31:44 | 4:31:48 | |
commission ranging speech revised
uninformed by all patients and | 4:31:48 | 4:31:52 | |
ultimately protect the integrity of
the survey and the quality of the | 4:31:52 | 4:31:54 | |
data. I saw Dame Fiona in Oxford and
discussed the subject with her. It | 4:31:54 | 4:32:07 | |
left us with a challenge. We will be
meeting all of the major cancer | 4:32:07 | 4:32:14 | |
charities at the second round table
and we will be discussing that with | 4:32:14 | 4:32:17 | |
them but I think and I hope members
in the house now that it remains | 4:32:17 | 4:32:20 | |
very much on the top of my agenda.
Let me touch an early diagnosis, | 4:32:20 | 4:32:25 | |
because everyone else has and it's
one of the most important shows in | 4:32:25 | 4:32:30 | |
town. In every conversation I have
had about how we can beat cancer it | 4:32:30 | 4:32:37 | |
early diagnosis. Survival rates have
always liked behind the best | 4:32:37 | 4:32:40 | |
performing countries in Europe and
around the world and a primary | 4:32:40 | 4:32:44 | |
reason for this is no question, late
diagnosis. The man who will stand | 4:32:44 | 4:32:51 | |
down shortly who I had the privilege
of having lunch with a few weeks | 4:32:51 | 4:32:56 | |
ago, I asked him about where we
should think about the next cancer | 4:32:56 | 4:32:58 | |
strategy and he said the rock upon
which you build your church is early | 4:32:58 | 4:33:04 | |
diagnosis and I will not be
forgetting that. It's one of the key | 4:33:04 | 4:33:10 | |
priorities of the strategy, to
diagnose cancer earlier when the | 4:33:10 | 4:33:13 | |
disease is more treatable. How are
we doing that? As part of our drive | 4:33:13 | 4:33:18 | |
we are introducing 28 day faster
diagnostic standards from GP | 4:33:18 | 4:33:22 | |
referral to diagnosis or the all
clear. I have often said and I will | 4:33:22 | 4:33:29 | |
repeat now, 28 days is not a target,
it is a maximum. I will know that | 4:33:29 | 4:33:35 | |
when people have a cancer worry 28
minutes seems like a lifetime, let | 4:33:35 | 4:33:41 | |
alone 28 days. I think the 28 day
standard is important. Five pilot | 4:33:41 | 4:33:47 | |
sites have started testing the new
clinical pathways to ensure patients | 4:33:47 | 4:33:51 | |
find out within 20 days if they have
cancer or the all clear. Today | 4:33:51 | 4:33:56 | |
Public Health England which I have
ministerial response body for has | 4:33:56 | 4:34:01 | |
launched its campaign to be clear on
cancer which focuses on breast | 4:34:01 | 4:34:05 | |
cancer in women aged over 70
something my friend from North | 4:34:05 | 4:34:10 | |
Warwickshire mentioned. That will
run until the end of March, the | 4:34:10 | 4:34:17 | |
campaign focuses on age related
risk, encouraging older women to be | 4:34:17 | 4:34:22 | |
breast aware. Particularly of
non-lump symptoms which have | 4:34:22 | 4:34:27 | |
understandably lower levels of
awareness. The other point I want to | 4:34:27 | 4:34:32 | |
make an early diagnosis is we know
the hardest cancers to detect those | 4:34:32 | 4:34:36 | |
with early symptoms which can be
vague. Often symptomatic of less | 4:34:36 | 4:34:41 | |
serious else's. That is why we are
piloting ten multidisciplinary | 4:34:41 | 4:34:51 | |
diagnostic centres as part of the
wave two of what we call the ace | 4:34:51 | 4:34:56 | |
programme, Excel rate coordinate and
evaluate. Patients can be referred | 4:34:56 | 4:35:04 | |
for multiple tests one after the
other and receive a diagnosis or the | 4:35:04 | 4:35:07 | |
all clear on the same day. The
initial findings are incredibly | 4:35:07 | 4:35:14 | |
exciting. I don't get easily excited
Madam Deputy Speaker but I am | 4:35:14 | 4:35:19 | |
excited about this. I had the
pleasure of visiting one of the ace | 4:35:19 | 4:35:23 | |
pilots in Oxford at the Churchill
Hospital last Tuesday and I have to | 4:35:23 | 4:35:28 | |
say the enthusiasm and feedback I
got from the patients I spoke to | 4:35:28 | 4:35:31 | |
about the potential of these centres
is quite incredible. I look forward | 4:35:31 | 4:35:35 | |
to seeing the analysis in the coming
months. The Shadow man is to talk | 4:35:35 | 4:35:40 | |
about presentations which is
something I remember being quite | 4:35:40 | 4:35:47 | |
shocked by, emergency room
preparations, presentations were | 4:35:47 | 4:35:49 | |
cancer are horrible but I think that
is why the 20 day standard is | 4:35:49 | 4:35:57 | |
important because when I talk to
GPs, they will fair and then there | 4:35:57 | 4:36:02 | |
will be a wait. Patients are
understandably terrified and may | 4:36:02 | 4:36:07 | |
present themselves to accident and
emergency at which point they then | 4:36:07 | 4:36:10 | |
maybe diagnosed with the primary
cancer. What that does is hit the | 4:36:10 | 4:36:14 | |
stats around emergency room
presentations were cancer. It does | 4:36:14 | 4:36:18 | |
not mean they have been carried in,
they have often walked in. But it is | 4:36:18 | 4:36:23 | |
all why we need to grip early
diagnosis better than ever. My | 4:36:23 | 4:36:28 | |
honourable friend Herb Bosworth
talked about the Baroness Joel | 4:36:28 | 4:36:36 | |
speech -- Baroness Tessa Joel speech
and it was incredibly powerful | 4:36:36 | 4:36:40 | |
speech. The investment in brain
cancer research has been limited by | 4:36:40 | 4:36:47 | |
a pretty low volume of research
proposals focused on the topic in | 4:36:47 | 4:36:52 | |
recent years and we'd been working
with charities, academics and the | 4:36:52 | 4:36:56 | |
pharmaceutical industry to address
this the last 12 months so to | 4:36:56 | 4:36:59 | |
accelerate our efforts in brain
tumour research the Secretary of | 4:36:59 | 4:37:04 | |
State has today announced alongside
Cancer Research UK and brain gym | 4:37:04 | 4:37:07 | |
research package to boost research
and investment into this most | 4:37:07 | 4:37:09 | |
harrowing form cancer. | 4:37:09 | 4:37:20 | |
£25 million of their money over five
years in major research centres and | 4:37:22 | 4:37:28 | |
programmes dedicated to brain
chillers and I think that's an | 4:37:28 | 4:37:31 | |
incredibly positive announcement
today. -- brain tumours. I am | 4:37:31 | 4:37:35 | |
grateful to the minister giving way,
I was not here at the beginning but | 4:37:35 | 4:37:41 | |
my constituent has a very rare form
of cancer and has had to self fund | 4:37:41 | 4:37:46 | |
his treatment both in Germany and
Southampton but he has run out of | 4:37:46 | 4:37:50 | |
money. The treatment meant he did
not die within the weeks he was | 4:37:50 | 4:37:54 | |
given but he is now needing top up
therapy but his IFR has been | 4:37:54 | 4:38:02 | |
refused, without this treatment he
will not live. Could the minister | 4:38:02 | 4:38:05 | |
look into this? I will not comment
on the case, I was going to suggest | 4:38:05 | 4:38:11 | |
she gets the clinicians to make an
IFR but by all means bring that case | 4:38:11 | 4:38:15 | |
to me. Let me return to breast
density, the UK National screening | 4:38:15 | 4:38:22 | |
committee commissioned Warwick
University study to investigate the | 4:38:22 | 4:38:25 | |
link between breast density and
breast cancer. Once complete if the | 4:38:25 | 4:38:29 | |
reviews suggest should be changes in
the UK National screening committee | 4:38:29 | 4:38:33 | |
which we work with will consider
less under its modification | 4:38:33 | 4:38:37 | |
programme. I am in touch with the
charity breast density matters which | 4:38:37 | 4:38:42 | |
is a small charity, small but
perfectly formed so I'm in touch | 4:38:42 | 4:38:46 | |
with them quite a lot. | 4:38:46 | 4:38:47 | |
We had a very good at Westminster
whole debate last month led by my | 4:38:50 | 4:38:55 | |
honourable friend for Crawley, many
patients with blood cancer diagnosis | 4:38:55 | 4:39:00 | |
was sadly never be cheered, what we
have heard today is watch and wait, | 4:39:00 | 4:39:08 | |
but things progress to the point
where treatment needs to begin and | 4:39:08 | 4:39:12 | |
this can take a psychological toll
on the patient and their family. By | 4:39:12 | 4:39:16 | |
2020 every patient will receive
holistic needs assessment as part of | 4:39:16 | 4:39:20 | |
the recovery package. That is
excellent. Blood cancer patients | 4:39:20 | 4:39:24 | |
this person's recovery plan will be
personalised to take account of the | 4:39:24 | 4:39:28 | |
unique characteristics of blood
cancer including their mental health | 4:39:28 | 4:39:31 | |
needs. That is why the Secretary of
State announced the additional £1.3 | 4:39:31 | 4:39:35 | |
billion last July to expand the
mental health workforce. My | 4:39:35 | 4:39:40 | |
honourable friend the member for
Dumfries and Galloway made this | 4:39:40 | 4:39:42 | |
point very well I thought in his
speech. As they passed me a note, I | 4:39:42 | 4:39:46 | |
love notes. I will not because I'm
going to finish. The member for | 4:39:46 | 4:39:54 | |
Dumfries & Galloway touched on the
cancer dashboard including rare | 4:39:54 | 4:39:59 | |
cancers. NHS England and Public
Health England are currently | 4:39:59 | 4:40:02 | |
considering next steps on how we can
expand the dashboard. They know I am | 4:40:02 | 4:40:06 | |
frustrated about it being limited to
the top four and I want to see us | 4:40:06 | 4:40:10 | |
expand it and do better, in a clear
direction from me on that. The | 4:40:10 | 4:40:15 | |
honourable lady for Bristol West
spoke brilliantly and what a | 4:40:15 | 4:40:19 | |
brilliant advertisement for her
all-party group on their enquiry. If | 4:40:19 | 4:40:22 | |
there is anything I can do, I do not
know about the cost of cancer | 4:40:22 | 4:40:31 | |
report, I would love to see that if
she can send it to me and any help | 4:40:31 | 4:40:35 | |
she needs she only needs to ask. The
member for Scunthorpe talked about | 4:40:35 | 4:40:38 | |
pancreatic cancer, NHS services
pancreatic cancer has significantly | 4:40:38 | 4:40:40 | |
improved in recent years with clever
diagnostic pathways, decisions made | 4:40:40 | 4:40:46 | |
and decentralisation of pancreatic
surgery with specialised teams. On | 4:40:46 | 4:40:49 | |
the 7th of February NICE published
the final guidance on the diagnosis | 4:40:49 | 4:40:53 | |
and management of pancreatic cancer
in adults. A more quick and accurate | 4:40:53 | 4:41:00 | |
diagnosis and better access to
psychological support. He talked | 4:41:00 | 4:41:04 | |
about 2-macro myelin tests, a
decision will be made on that | 4:41:04 | 4:41:08 | |
underwater NICE to write to me on
that decision and I was sure that | 4:41:08 | 4:41:11 | |
with him. I am just including. Let
me pay tribute to the staff patient | 4:41:11 | 4:41:22 | |
groups and charities who are working
so hard as part of team cancer | 4:41:22 | 4:41:25 | |
because we are all on the same team
when it comes to cancer, to | 4:41:25 | 4:41:28 | |
implement the strategy and save
lives. We are on track to deliver we | 4:41:28 | 4:41:32 | |
think but we need to make more
progress especially in the area of | 4:41:32 | 4:41:37 | |
progress and looking further forward
on the subject of prevention. Thank | 4:41:37 | 4:41:41 | |
you for the members speaking today,
the fight goes on. Thank you. Thank | 4:41:41 | 4:41:47 | |
you so much Madam Deputy Speaker. I
think today's debate has been so | 4:41:47 | 4:41:53 | |
profound and amazing, so many
personal contributions. I have been | 4:41:53 | 4:41:58 | |
absolutely astounded by the depth
and breadth of knowledge from across | 4:41:58 | 4:42:02 | |
the house and the absolute
dedication to the cancer strategy, | 4:42:02 | 4:42:06 | |
right across the benches. I am
assured we will be working together, | 4:42:06 | 4:42:11 | |
taking things forward very
positively and making a difference. | 4:42:11 | 4:42:15 | |
It's been important that we have
discussed that cancer is across the | 4:42:15 | 4:42:20 | |
life span and to recognise the
serious issues for young people who | 4:42:20 | 4:42:25 | |
are experiencing cancer. Also, not
just the physical aspects but the | 4:42:25 | 4:42:29 | |
mental health aspects and the
support required, that treatment has | 4:42:29 | 4:42:32 | |
to be holistic and evidence -based.
Just to also commend the absolute | 4:42:32 | 4:42:42 | |
value of the contribution of
charities, of our NHS staff, it | 4:42:42 | 4:42:45 | |
absolutely invaluable. They are at
the front line. To mention the very | 4:42:45 | 4:42:53 | |
personal contribution of the
honourable member for Lincoln, she | 4:42:53 | 4:42:56 | |
has made such an amazing speech
today, I am sure she will go on to | 4:42:56 | 4:43:01 | |
support and assist so many people
given her experience and I am | 4:43:01 | 4:43:06 | |
delighted she is a cancer ambassador
and I am sure that so many people | 4:43:06 | 4:43:10 | |
will benefit from that in the
future. Once again, to thank | 4:43:10 | 4:43:15 | |
particularly. Thank everybody today,
I look forward to working with | 4:43:15 | 4:43:18 | |
everybody on this going forward. The
question is that this house is | 4:43:18 | 4:43:25 | |
considered the cancer strategy as
many of that opinion say aye of the | 4:43:25 | 4:43:31 | |
country no. I think the ayes habit.
The ayes have it. I beg to move that | 4:43:31 | 4:43:39 | |
this house now adjourned. The
question is that the house now | 4:43:39 | 4:43:44 | |
adjourned. Kate hallway. Thank you
Madam Deputy Speaker. | 4:43:44 | 4:43:49 | |
I would rather not be here this
evening speaking on this adjournment | 4:43:51 | 4:43:58 | |
debate not because I don't care
about the issue and particularly | 4:43:58 | 4:44:02 | |
about my constituent Mr Clifford
Bale but it's such a simple matter | 4:44:02 | 4:44:05 | |
and it should have been resolved
years ago. It has not been and I did | 4:44:05 | 4:44:10 | |
give a commitment to my constituents
that I would bring this to the house | 4:44:10 | 4:44:14 | |
in an adjournment debate. | 4:44:14 | 4:44:18 | |
I want to begin by setting out the
facts before moving on to the | 4:44:18 | 4:44:24 | |
problems that I in seeking to
resolve it and the basic relevant | 4:44:24 | 4:44:29 | |
policy concern. My constituent
worked for the City of London | 4:44:29 | 4:44:33 | |
Corporation as a security and
services assistant from September | 4:44:33 | 4:44:37 | |
1989 until he suffered an injury
only six November 2000. He slipped | 4:44:37 | 4:44:42 | |
on a metal screw by what down some
marble stairs. He fell and hit his | 4:44:42 | 4:44:48 | |
head and was knocked unconscious.
His health deteriorated while he was | 4:44:48 | 4:44:52 | |
on subsequent ill-health leave. As
he went on to suffer from the loss | 4:44:52 | 4:44:56 | |
of hearing in his right ear, and
certainly in the blood dizziness, | 4:44:56 | 4:45:01 | |
loss of balance and a series of
blackouts that occurred without | 4:45:01 | 4:45:06 | |
warning, four of which led to his
hospitalisation. One tenth of | 4:45:06 | 4:45:10 | |
December 2001, the City of London
made a claim on his behalf to the | 4:45:10 | 4:45:14 | |
Department for Work and Pensions to
pay him industrial injury benefits | 4:45:14 | 4:45:17 | |
and he was assessed by a doctor. If
every 2002, he was notified he had | 4:45:17 | 4:45:24 | |
been diagnosed with a loss of mental
equilibria and loss of neurological | 4:45:24 | 4:45:29 | |
function and awarded industrial
injury benefits. For 12 months | 4:45:29 | 4:45:32 | |
before a further examination, he
continued to be awarded annual | 4:45:32 | 4:45:39 | |
industry injury benefits until 2008
when he was judged to be qualified | 4:45:39 | 4:45:43 | |
to receive industrial injury
benefits for life. On the tenth June | 4:45:43 | 4:45:48 | |
2002, he met with the City of London
Corporation about his long-term | 4:45:48 | 4:45:51 | |
absence from work and submitted a
written application for an early | 4:45:51 | 4:45:57 | |
retirement ill-health pension, but
was informed two days later it was | 4:45:57 | 4:46:00 | |
being turned down because the City
of London's in his doctor could not | 4:46:00 | 4:46:05 | |
say that his injuries were
permanent. He informed them that | 4:46:05 | 4:46:10 | |
their two at options of either early
retirement on a basic pension or | 4:46:10 | 4:46:13 | |
alternative work were not acceptable
to him and the City of London deemed | 4:46:13 | 4:46:18 | |
him no longer to be an employee from
the 24th September 2002. After | 4:46:18 | 4:46:26 | |
months of resistance, he was finally
provided with a copy of an | 4:46:26 | 4:46:29 | |
additional accident report the City
of London his helped send to the | 4:46:29 | 4:46:33 | |
health and secondary executive 17
month after his accident that said | 4:46:33 | 4:46:38 | |
they found it difficult to believe
that he could have slipped only | 4:46:38 | 4:46:41 | |
screw whilst wearing Doctor Martens
and safety issues and there are a | 4:46:41 | 4:46:47 | |
number of staff that suspect the
incident, if it really happened as | 4:46:47 | 4:46:52 | |
described, may have been
exaggerated. Not only do vague | 4:46:52 | 4:46:58 | |
beliefs and suspicions have no place
in an accident report but I | 4:46:58 | 4:47:01 | |
reiterate that he was diagnosed
annually by the apartment of work | 4:47:01 | 4:47:05 | |
and pensions for eight years before
being awarded lifetime industrial | 4:47:05 | 4:47:09 | |
injury benefits in 2008. In June
2004, Mr Bell filed a grievance | 4:47:09 | 4:47:15 | |
against the City of London for its
handling of this case and in 2005 he | 4:47:15 | 4:47:19 | |
signed a compromise agreement for
the City of London's insurers to | 4:47:19 | 4:47:23 | |
consider his case under the local
government discretionary payments | 4:47:23 | 4:47:29 | |
regulations 1996. The insurers
failed in his favour and awarded him | 4:47:29 | 4:47:33 | |
a termination package of around
£50,000, but not in ill-health | 4:47:33 | 4:47:37 | |
pension. This is the time and so Mr
Bell's case. As far as he was aware, | 4:47:37 | 4:47:46 | |
these were the relevant facts until
in 2012, he discovered the local | 4:47:46 | 4:47:50 | |
government pensions committee
circular 252, which noted the local | 4:47:50 | 4:47:57 | |
government pension scheme should
have been relevant in his case. | 4:47:57 | 4:48:05 | |
Regulation 979 states, before making
a decision as to whether a member | 4:48:05 | 4:48:08 | |
may be entitled under regulation 27
or under regulation 31 on the ground | 4:48:08 | 4:48:15 | |
of ill-health, the scheme employer
must obtain a certificate from an | 4:48:15 | 4:48:21 | |
independent registered medical
practitioner asked whether in his | 4:48:21 | 4:48:26 | |
opinion the member is permanently
incapable of discharging officially | 4:48:26 | 4:48:30 | |
the duties of the relevant local
government employment because of | 4:48:30 | 4:48:34 | |
ill-health or infirmity of or body.
Regulation 98 sets out he should | 4:48:34 | 4:48:40 | |
have received a written notification
of the decision by the eye RMP as | 4:48:40 | 4:48:48 | |
soon as possible. Giving the reason
for the decision and setting it has | 4:48:48 | 4:48:53 | |
appeal rights under regulation and
then to. The LGPS amendment | 4:48:53 | 4:49:00 | |
regulations further specified, the
independent registered medical | 4:49:00 | 4:49:06 | |
practitioner must be in a position
to certify and must include in his | 4:49:06 | 4:49:11 | |
certification a statement that he
has not previously advised are given | 4:49:11 | 4:49:16 | |
an opinion on or otherwise been
involved in a particular case for | 4:49:16 | 4:49:20 | |
which a certificate had been
requested and he is not acting and | 4:49:20 | 4:49:23 | |
has not at any time acted as the
representative of the member, the | 4:49:23 | 4:49:28 | |
scheme employer or any other party
in relation to the same case. Not | 4:49:28 | 4:49:33 | |
one of these regulations were
followed. In Mr Bell's research at | 4:49:33 | 4:49:39 | |
that time, he discovered two
relevant appeals, 869, that saw the | 4:49:39 | 4:49:45 | |
strategy of state emphasise the
importance of the opinion of the | 4:49:45 | 4:49:48 | |
independent registered medical
practitioner, including the one | 4:49:48 | 4:49:53 | |
judgment against the City of London
in 2008. By the time Mr Bell | 4:49:53 | 4:49:58 | |
discovered the Jakarta months that
had not been followed, he was well | 4:49:58 | 4:50:01 | |
out of time for consideration by the
pensions of Bosman -- on ombudsman. | 4:50:01 | 4:50:11 | |
He contacted me and I wrote my first
of many letter to the City of London | 4:50:11 | 4:50:17 | |
Corporation seeking to understand
why the rules had not been followed | 4:50:17 | 4:50:19 | |
in his case. I wrote to the City of
London on the 20th of October 2014, | 4:50:19 | 4:50:25 | |
26th of May 2015, the 6th of July
2015, the 12th of October 2015 on | 4:50:25 | 4:50:31 | |
the 4th of November 2015. Each time,
to the head of the human relations | 4:50:31 | 4:50:37 | |
department who had held dealt with
his case. On each occasion, they | 4:50:37 | 4:50:42 | |
responded by setting Mr Bell was not
eligible for an ill-health pension | 4:50:42 | 4:50:46 | |
by making reference to the 2011
local government pensions committee | 4:50:46 | 4:50:51 | |
's circular 252 and the details of
his compromise agreement he had | 4:50:51 | 4:50:55 | |
signed an ignorance of his actual
rights. Despite my reviews of the | 4:50:55 | 4:51:05 | |
asking why the rules had not been
followed in his case, they were just | 4:51:05 | 4:51:09 | |
not answered. On the 27th of January
2016, I wrote to the Chief Executive | 4:51:09 | 4:51:14 | |
of the City of London quoting Bill
97 nine of the 1997 regulations | 4:51:14 | 4:51:21 | |
simply asking why these and similar
2001 regulation should not apply in | 4:51:21 | 4:51:25 | |
this case. In his answer on the 26th
of February, he stated that in May | 4:51:25 | 4:51:35 | |
2002, the corporation's occupational
health team said there was no | 4:51:35 | 4:51:42 | |
evidence of permanent incapacity due
to ill health, so medical retirement | 4:51:42 | 4:51:45 | |
is not an option at this point. This
view was confirmed on the 11th of | 4:51:45 | 4:51:52 | |
June 2002 when a daughter who was a
corporation's in corporate doctor, | 4:51:52 | 4:51:58 | |
advised he was able to state Mr Bell
had any form of medical condition or | 4:51:58 | 4:52:02 | |
illness that would result in his
parental ability to work for the | 4:52:02 | 4:52:05 | |
corporation in his current position.
In this medical opinion meant that | 4:52:05 | 4:52:09 | |
it was not possible for Mr Bell to
be retired on the grounds of | 4:52:09 | 4:52:14 | |
ill-health. It appears that Mr Bell
has understood the application, it | 4:52:14 | 4:52:22 | |
quotes, referred to in your letter.
Rule 97 was not engaged and there | 4:52:22 | 4:52:26 | |
was no requirement for an IRMP
because the daughter's advice was | 4:52:26 | 4:52:33 | |
that Mr Bell did not, then
requirements for ill-health | 4:52:33 | 4:52:36 | |
retirement. As indicative Speaker, I
admit to becoming very frustrated at | 4:52:36 | 4:52:44 | |
this point. The suggestion was
because the internal doctor did not | 4:52:44 | 4:52:48 | |
give improvement, the independent
doctor must not be as further | 4:52:48 | 4:52:53 | |
opinion, which strikes me as a whole
point of the protections set out in | 4:52:53 | 4:52:57 | |
those regulations. In seeking to
make sense of this, I wrote to the | 4:52:57 | 4:53:03 | |
then Minister for local government
in 2016, setting out the case and | 4:53:03 | 4:53:07 | |
stating that the answer was as clear
as mud since the role clearly states | 4:53:07 | 4:53:11 | |
that independent analysis must be
obtained before such a decision is | 4:53:11 | 4:53:15 | |
made. I asked him to first confirmed
that the legal position remains as I | 4:53:15 | 4:53:23 | |
have stated in this letter,
secondly, whether they would be any | 4:53:23 | 4:53:26 | |
exemption to the requirement that
independent analysis be obtained | 4:53:26 | 4:53:30 | |
before a decision would be taken on
an individual's eligibility, and | 4:53:30 | 4:53:34 | |
thirdly, what records Mr Bell could
follow to get what he is entitled | 4:53:34 | 4:53:37 | |
to. As expected, the minister did
not go into detail, about my | 4:53:37 | 4:53:46 | |
constituent's individual case but
confirmed that the regulations were | 4:53:46 | 4:53:48 | |
in effect at the time and did not
indicate any scope for extension. I | 4:53:48 | 4:53:55 | |
wrote again on the 12th of December
2016 asking him to review his | 4:53:55 | 4:54:00 | |
decision based on the confirmation
given by the Minister. He did not | 4:54:00 | 4:54:04 | |
reply to this letter and so I had to
chase him. Not literally! He | 4:54:04 | 4:54:09 | |
eventually replied on the 30th of
May 2017 to state that, the city's | 4:54:09 | 4:54:16 | |
position as set out in previous
correspondence remains unchanged and | 4:54:16 | 4:54:20 | |
they did not believe they had any
obligation to inform Mr Bell of his | 4:54:20 | 4:54:25 | |
rights at the time. He concluded,
the city Corporation remains of the | 4:54:25 | 4:54:32 | |
view that it is acted properly and
fairly in its handling of this case | 4:54:32 | 4:54:38 | |
and believes that they are no
grounds for it to consider this | 4:54:38 | 4:54:41 | |
matter further. Mr Bell has tried
over many years since 2000 to pursue | 4:54:41 | 4:54:49 | |
down many avenues since the original
injury in 2000, but because he did | 4:54:49 | 4:54:55 | |
not discover the details of the 1997
regulations until 2000 wealthy, he | 4:54:55 | 4:55:02 | |
has by that point already exhausted
his appeal options. I had stated to | 4:55:02 | 4:55:09 | |
the City of London Corporation on
several occasions that if they could | 4:55:09 | 4:55:11 | |
not satisfactorily explain why the
rules should not have applied in | 4:55:11 | 4:55:15 | |
this case, I would have to raise the
matter in this House, and that's why | 4:55:15 | 4:55:20 | |
I believe that I've had no option
but to do so now. There are two | 4:55:20 | 4:55:27 | |
alternatives, either the City of
London is refusing to apply the | 4:55:27 | 4:55:31 | |
rules properly by the regulations as
they exist do not work to give | 4:55:31 | 4:55:36 | |
assurance of an independent
assessment as they should. | 4:55:36 | 4:55:40 | |
Industrial injuries are by their
nature unexpected, disturbing and | 4:55:40 | 4:55:44 | |
painful events. If they are to lead
to an in health requirement, it is | 4:55:44 | 4:55:50 | |
quite right that they should follow
assessment by an independent doctor | 4:55:50 | 4:55:53 | |
as soon as possible and a process
that sets out the details clearly. | 4:55:53 | 4:55:59 | |
Surely this process cannot, should
not be used short-circuited by an | 4:55:59 | 4:56:06 | |
organisation, particularly an
organisation such as the City of | 4:56:06 | 4:56:09 | |
London Corporation to use and in his
doctor and not allow the worker to | 4:56:09 | 4:56:12 | |
have their injuries are satisfied by
an independent practitioner. I | 4:56:12 | 4:56:18 | |
apologise to the Minister unto the
House for very detailed tale which I | 4:56:18 | 4:56:23 | |
wanted to put on record and ask
fundamentally, is he happy with the | 4:56:23 | 4:56:28 | |
way in which these regulations
operate? Is he aware of other cases | 4:56:28 | 4:56:36 | |
where organisations have used a
decision of an in-house doctor to | 4:56:36 | 4:56:39 | |
override the need to get the opinion
of one IRMP? If he is aware, does he | 4:56:39 | 4:56:49 | |
intend to tighten the process to
prevent this? Is he concerned about | 4:56:49 | 4:56:55 | |
organisations particularly like the
City of London Corporation, not | 4:56:55 | 4:56:58 | |
giving workers details of their
rights in instances like this one? | 4:56:58 | 4:57:03 | |
Is he aware of other complaints
about the City of London court, in | 4:57:03 | 4:57:08 | |
particular not their obligations
under these regulations because they | 4:57:08 | 4:57:12 | |
have not been forthcoming with
details to me? And possibly most | 4:57:12 | 4:57:16 | |
difficult, can he recommend any
further steps that my constituent Mr | 4:57:16 | 4:57:22 | |
Bell can follow to have his case
finally considered by an independent | 4:57:22 | 4:57:27 | |
medical professional? He is even
willing to pay for that independent | 4:57:27 | 4:57:32 | |
medical professional himself to
receive this opportunity of looking | 4:57:32 | 4:57:34 | |
at this case. Mr Bell and his
family, for 17 years, have been | 4:57:34 | 4:57:41 | |
relentlessly pursuing what seems to
me to be a grave injustice. In my | 4:57:41 | 4:57:47 | |
view, that grave injustice having
been perpetrated by one of the | 4:57:47 | 4:57:50 | |
richest local authority is in the
country makes it even more | 4:57:50 | 4:57:55 | |
disgraceful. I hope that the
Minister today will be able to give | 4:57:55 | 4:57:58 | |
me some assurance that I can give my
constituent that this will change | 4:57:58 | 4:58:02 | |
and he will get justice. Thank you.
Can I start by congratulating the | 4:58:02 | 4:58:13 | |
Honourable member for Vauxhall on
securing this debate? I had the | 4:58:13 | 4:58:17 | |
pleasure of fighting alongside her
in the referendum campaign and I can | 4:58:17 | 4:58:20 | |
see that she has applied the same
tireless and to nature 's | 4:58:20 | 4:58:25 | |
campaigning instincts that she has
two this particular case on behalf | 4:58:25 | 4:58:29 | |
of her constituent for many years
and I commend her for those efforts. | 4:58:29 | 4:58:33 | |
I particularly welcome the chance to
respond to the point is that she met | 4:58:33 | 4:58:37 | |
today and indeed share her regret
that we need to do so on the floor | 4:58:37 | 4:58:40 | |
of this House. I start off by
acknowledging that pensions are not | 4:58:40 | 4:58:45 | |
just about regulations and
procedures, they are about security | 4:58:45 | 4:58:49 | |
and peace of mind. We all want to be
able to retire only decent income | 4:58:49 | 4:58:53 | |
and as we live longer and healthier
lives, we want to be able to save | 4:58:53 | 4:58:57 | |
more and make the most of our
retirement. Public sector schemes | 4:58:57 | 4:59:01 | |
that is the local government pension
scheme also includes insurance style | 4:59:01 | 4:59:05 | |
benefits that help to cushion us
against the most unfortunate events. | 4:59:05 | 4:59:22 | |
Throughout the course of the last
100 years developed as a national | 4:59:22 | 4:59:27 | |
scheme to become a valuable and
integral part of local government | 4:59:27 | 4:59:32 | |
valued by millions. That said I can
attest to this personally as there | 4:59:32 | 4:59:36 | |
recently ensconced Minister for
local government pensions it's not a | 4:59:36 | 4:59:40 | |
simple scheme. Some of that
complexity comes from the need to | 4:59:40 | 4:59:44 | |
cover a wide range of possible
scenarios. The provisions dealing | 4:59:44 | 4:59:48 | |
with injuries at work such as those
suffered by Mr were interrupted by | 4:59:48 | 4:59:56 | |
employees own procedures and
implement law. Injuries can lead to | 4:59:56 | 5:00:00 | |
periods of sickness, permanent or
temporary incapacity and justice | 5:00:00 | 5:00:05 | |
comes from treating like cases are
like. But also in making fine | 5:00:05 | 5:00:11 | |
judgments and distinctions between
cases where appropriate. I of course | 5:00:11 | 5:00:15 | |
want to see the best possible
administration of this scheme. I | 5:00:15 | 5:00:19 | |
think it's been a key aim of the
government to improve transparency | 5:00:19 | 5:00:22 | |
and accountability in the making of
decisions by public bodies such as | 5:00:22 | 5:00:27 | |
this. The ill GPS is a national
scheme setting out in regulations | 5:00:27 | 5:00:33 | |
but it's important it is
administered locally and it's been a | 5:00:33 | 5:00:37 | |
long-standing feature of the scheme
and is one of its strengths. Local | 5:00:37 | 5:00:42 | |
authorities are independent bodies
and in the first in primary | 5:00:42 | 5:00:46 | |
instances are accountable to the
electorate through the ballot box | 5:00:46 | 5:00:49 | |
rather than central government. That
said there are routes for | 5:00:49 | 5:00:56 | |
independent redress where local
authorities fail in obligation. For | 5:00:56 | 5:01:01 | |
example through the councils own
complaints procedure, the local | 5:01:01 | 5:01:05 | |
government ombudsman or the pensions
ombudsman and potentially and | 5:01:05 | 5:01:10 | |
finally through the court by
judicial review. It's a feature of | 5:01:10 | 5:01:15 | |
any legal system of redress that
there are administrative deadlines | 5:01:15 | 5:01:19 | |
associated with each of these and I
am sure the honourable member will | 5:01:19 | 5:01:23 | |
recognise that all sides in a
dispute often benefit from the | 5:01:23 | 5:01:27 | |
certainty these afford. However I
also believe local authorities if | 5:01:27 | 5:01:33 | |
they are to retain the trust of the
people they serve should always seek | 5:01:33 | 5:01:38 | |
to act honourably and correct
mistakes even when they may be under | 5:01:38 | 5:01:43 | |
no legal obligation to do so. And
where I feel I need to college | 5:01:43 | 5:01:48 | |
mistakes, I will also do so, from
this dispatch box if necessary and I | 5:01:48 | 5:01:54 | |
hope my voice in these matters would
not be without some moral force. It | 5:01:54 | 5:01:59 | |
gives me comfort but in general the
LGPS is a well administered scheme. | 5:01:59 | 5:02:06 | |
The vast majority of complaints are
involved internally, it pays out | 5:02:06 | 5:02:11 | |
benefits each year and despite this
I am told there are fewer than 91 | 5:02:11 | 5:02:16 | |
complaints to the pensions
ombudsman. But clearly some stakes | 5:02:16 | 5:02:23 | |
will be made and the impact of those
mistakes could be hugely significant | 5:02:23 | 5:02:29 | |
for people particularly vulnerable
or of limited means who rely on | 5:02:29 | 5:02:33 | |
their pensions to sustain their
dignity and standard of living in | 5:02:33 | 5:02:35 | |
old age. With this in mind I turn in
the back to the details in the case | 5:02:35 | 5:02:44 | |
of Mr Bell. The case was made
forcefully and the City of London | 5:02:44 | 5:02:49 | |
has not complied with its statutory
obligations or delivered justice to | 5:02:49 | 5:02:54 | |
Mr Bell in this case. As the
honourable member would of course | 5:02:54 | 5:02:58 | |
expect my officials have been in
touch with the City of London to | 5:02:58 | 5:03:01 | |
hear the explanation of these
events. At the outset it's worth | 5:03:01 | 5:03:07 | |
stressing the obvious difficulty in
understanding in precise detail | 5:03:07 | 5:03:11 | |
events which happened almost 20
years ago. But from hearing both | 5:03:11 | 5:03:17 | |
sides it strikes me as common ground
that as a consequence of the | 5:03:17 | 5:03:21 | |
accident on the 6th of November 2000
Mr Bell suffered some degree of | 5:03:21 | 5:03:27 | |
incapacity. The question appears to
be about the degree of severity and | 5:03:27 | 5:03:33 | |
permanence of that incapacity. I
expect it's difficult for any | 5:03:33 | 5:03:37 | |
medical expert to give a very
definite answer to those questions. | 5:03:37 | 5:03:41 | |
And it's that very reason I would
expect this to be settled as a | 5:03:41 | 5:03:46 | |
question of fact by someone that
both parties can have confidence in. | 5:03:46 | 5:03:51 | |
That is the plain meaning and intent
of regulation 97. I can see no good | 5:03:51 | 5:03:57 | |
reason why the Corporation of London
chose not to instruct an independent | 5:03:57 | 5:04:01 | |
registered medical practitioner who
could have either confirmed or | 5:04:01 | 5:04:06 | |
corrected the judgment which was
reached no doubt in good faith by | 5:04:06 | 5:04:11 | |
the Corporation's operational health
team. But not only was it not | 5:04:11 | 5:04:17 | |
instructed but other consequences
followed the failure to consider the | 5:04:17 | 5:04:21 | |
decision of any kind was due in
respect of the application of | 5:04:21 | 5:04:27 | |
ill-health retirement. The
protections and regulations whereby | 5:04:27 | 5:04:31 | |
a member is informed of his right of
appeal and a reference to the | 5:04:31 | 5:04:35 | |
pensions advisory service appear all
so not to have kicked in as one | 5:04:35 | 5:04:41 | |
might reasonably have expected. Of
course I cannot see what conclusions | 5:04:41 | 5:04:48 | |
would have been reached or whether
indeed an appeal would have been | 5:04:48 | 5:04:51 | |
successful. What I can say is that
Mr Bell does seem to have suffered | 5:04:51 | 5:04:57 | |
an injustice by being denied an
independent assessment of this case. | 5:04:57 | 5:05:03 | |
But I must note that Mr Bell did
received legal advice from a | 5:05:03 | 5:05:08 | |
reputable firm of lawyers in
settling the terms of his dismissal | 5:05:08 | 5:05:11 | |
for a limited efficiency in 2002. In
coming to a decision on how best to | 5:05:11 | 5:05:17 | |
pursue his case and whether to
accept the terms of settlement I | 5:05:17 | 5:05:20 | |
would hope the legal advice he
received was complete and accurate. | 5:05:20 | 5:05:25 | |
Let me know address directly the
question the honourable member for | 5:05:25 | 5:05:32 | |
box but to me and closing. I am
happy to place on record my concern | 5:05:32 | 5:05:37 | |
that the regulations do not seem to
have been followed in this case. My | 5:05:37 | 5:05:42 | |
view is that the facts available to
me at this time, it ought to have | 5:05:42 | 5:05:47 | |
been engaged in 2002. If the
honourable member for Foxhall | 5:05:47 | 5:05:53 | |
believes it may serve some purpose I
would be happy to write to the | 5:05:53 | 5:05:58 | |
Corporation and ask them to justify
this permission to me. Next to her | 5:05:58 | 5:06:04 | |
other questions more generally I
personally and the Department are | 5:06:04 | 5:06:07 | |
not aware of any other such cases
where this practice was followed, | 5:06:07 | 5:06:12 | |
nor of any other specific complaints
about the Corporation's | 5:06:12 | 5:06:17 | |
administrations practices. I would
hope that if there were similar | 5:06:17 | 5:06:21 | |
cases, then they would have found
their way correctly and | 5:06:21 | 5:06:25 | |
appropriately to the pensions
ombudsman. They are I believe the | 5:06:25 | 5:06:29 | |
arguments advanced would have
received a strong hearing. Next the | 5:06:29 | 5:06:34 | |
honourable member asked if I wished
to tighten the rules in this area. | 5:06:34 | 5:06:40 | |
Having reviewed its Madam Deputy
Speaker, to my mind the regulations | 5:06:40 | 5:06:44 | |
then as now are clear about the
process to be followed. The | 5:06:44 | 5:06:49 | |
regulations then as now place the
correct emphasis on the need for | 5:06:49 | 5:06:52 | |
decisions to be taken in a timely
way based on independent advice and | 5:06:52 | 5:06:57 | |
with further avenues for advice or
appeal clearly signposted. I think | 5:06:57 | 5:07:03 | |
having reflected on it that the
issue at stake here is not that the | 5:07:03 | 5:07:06 | |
regulators themselves are at fault
but whether they were properly | 5:07:06 | 5:07:09 | |
adhered to and followed. But if they
were not then at this point sadly I | 5:07:09 | 5:07:18 | |
cannot see any specific further
steps which I can take to pursue | 5:07:18 | 5:07:21 | |
this case on her behalf and a half
of Mr Bell. If we were having this | 5:07:21 | 5:07:29 | |
conversation at the time of the
incident in question Mr Bell would | 5:07:29 | 5:07:32 | |
have had the Avenue of appeal and
address through the own two stage | 5:07:32 | 5:07:37 | |
appeal process. Following that we
could have gone to the pensions | 5:07:37 | 5:07:41 | |
ombudsman, the Secretary of State or
indeed the courts through judicial | 5:07:41 | 5:07:44 | |
review. But as I said earlier, there
are good and necessary reasons why | 5:07:44 | 5:07:50 | |
we have time on its and limitations
in the determination of rights and | 5:07:50 | 5:07:57 | |
liabilities. Statute of limitations
are common across civil and criminal | 5:07:57 | 5:08:01 | |
law in this country and across the
world. Patters must be allowed to | 5:08:01 | 5:08:07 | |
know in a matter has been settled
and given where we are now 18 years | 5:08:07 | 5:08:12 | |
after the incident unfortunately the
ability to access any of these | 5:08:12 | 5:08:16 | |
avenues has unfortunately expired.
Of course at that time in question | 5:08:16 | 5:08:22 | |
Mr Bell received legal advice and
sought a settlement with his | 5:08:22 | 5:08:24 | |
employers. I very much hope his
solicitors at this time discussed | 5:08:24 | 5:08:30 | |
with him these vary avenues which
may well have been available at that | 5:08:30 | 5:08:35 | |
time. And provided advice to him on
the best course of action. It made | 5:08:35 | 5:08:40 | |
well be worth Mr Bell or the
honourable member discussing this | 5:08:40 | 5:08:44 | |
again with the solicitors to make
sure all correct procedures and | 5:08:44 | 5:08:47 | |
avenues were explored. Due to the
separation of powers of central and | 5:08:47 | 5:08:54 | |
local government I cannot intervene
in the day-to-day activities of | 5:08:54 | 5:08:57 | |
local authorities except where a
specific provision is made by | 5:08:57 | 5:09:01 | |
Parliament. I am not aware of any
specific basis on which I could | 5:09:01 | 5:09:05 | |
intervene directly in this case. I
thank the Minister of giving way, I | 5:09:05 | 5:09:11 | |
know he's coming to the end of his
speech, I want to thank him for the | 5:09:11 | 5:09:15 | |
thoughtful way he has dealt with
this. Does he still not accept or | 5:09:15 | 5:09:22 | |
does he accept that it should have
been up to the City of London | 5:09:22 | 5:09:28 | |
Corporation, a hugely rich in
personnel counsel, to actually give | 5:09:28 | 5:09:35 | |
Mr Bell his rights, to tell him
about his rights? It should not have | 5:09:35 | 5:09:39 | |
been up to a solicitor a few years
later, surely there is a moral duty, | 5:09:39 | 5:09:44 | |
is not a legal duty and I think
there should be a legal duty and I | 5:09:44 | 5:09:48 | |
think the regulations give a legal
duty, to inform Mr Bell and allow | 5:09:48 | 5:09:53 | |
that independent medical
practitioner that is where it went | 5:09:53 | 5:09:56 | |
wrong, something so simple. Does he
now agree that the moral case is | 5:09:56 | 5:10:01 | |
there for the City of London
Corporation and I would welcome | 5:10:01 | 5:10:04 | |
Madam Deputy Speaker him writing to
the City of London on my behalf and | 5:10:04 | 5:10:08 | |
on the half of Mr Bell. Thank you, I
can tell my honourable friend that | 5:10:08 | 5:10:13 | |
not only is there a moral duty but
she is right there is a legal duty | 5:10:13 | 5:10:18 | |
both have used an independent
medical practitioner but also to | 5:10:18 | 5:10:21 | |
have informed Mr Bell of his rights
at the time. That said Mr Bell would | 5:10:21 | 5:10:29 | |
have been aware of those rights
through the many other | 5:10:29 | 5:10:31 | |
communications which would have
happened to him as a member of the | 5:10:31 | 5:10:34 | |
scheme but at the point where it
became relevant under the articles | 5:10:34 | 5:10:37 | |
and provisions he should have been
made aware at that time again. | 5:10:37 | 5:10:41 | |
Although it is of course of limited
comfort to Mr Bell and the | 5:10:41 | 5:10:45 | |
honourable member on means being
reviewed for resolving disputes | 5:10:45 | 5:10:52 | |
locally and is looking at
simplifying the rules around | 5:10:52 | 5:10:56 | |
ill-health retirement. I'm expecting
some recommendations for them in | 5:10:56 | 5:10:59 | |
relation to these matters in due
course and the hearing of this | 5:10:59 | 5:11:03 | |
particular matter will weigh on my
mind as I review those | 5:11:03 | 5:11:07 | |
recommendations. In conclusion Madam
Deputy Speaker whilst we have | 5:11:07 | 5:11:11 | |
discussed process I don't want to
lose sight of the individual at the | 5:11:11 | 5:11:14 | |
centre of all of this, Mr Bell. The
accident which caused him to lose | 5:11:14 | 5:11:19 | |
his job seems such a small and
random piece of bad luck. We are | 5:11:19 | 5:11:24 | |
still talking about it today and
that shows how the unfairness of any | 5:11:24 | 5:11:30 | |
kind of fate or administration can
be hard to accept and live with. I | 5:11:30 | 5:11:35 | |
don't know if Mr Bell is adequately
supported today and living if a | 5:11:35 | 5:11:40 | |
filling and satisfying life but I
sincerely hope so. Finally I want to | 5:11:40 | 5:11:45 | |
know in the honourable member for
her tireless work and advocating so | 5:11:45 | 5:11:49 | |
forcefully on the half of her
constituents. I know she will keep | 5:11:49 | 5:11:53 | |
pushing the City of London
Corporation to examine a fresh if | 5:11:53 | 5:11:57 | |
they believe they have acted fairly
and in good conscience. I will | 5:11:57 | 5:12:03 | |
support her in those efforts and I
wish her and Mr Bell every success | 5:12:03 | 5:12:07 | |
as she pursues this case. The
question is that this house now | 5:12:07 | 5:12:14 | |
adjourn as many it that opinion see
aye, the ayes have it. Order. | 5:12:14 | 5:12:24 |