Results 1-20 of 567 for (in the 'Commons debates' OR in the 'Westminster Hall debates' OR in the 'Lords debates' OR in the 'Northern Ireland Assembly debates') speaker:Howard Stoate

[Hugh Bayley in the Chair] — Health Inequalities (12 Nov 2009)

Howard Stoate: My right hon. Friend has basically agreed with what I said earlier, which is that it is more to do with perceptions. There are far more deeply rooted factors than simply wealth inequality. It is about how people perceive themselves and their role in society. That can have just as big an effect as material wealth in itself.

[Hugh Bayley in the Chair] — Health Inequalities (12 Nov 2009)

Howard Stoate: May I say how welcome are the significant changes the Government have made since the Acheson report and the real improvements in policy? However, does the Minister share my regret that the previous Government's burial of the Black report and of the subsequent report by Margaret Whitehead in 1985 puts us at least 20 years behind the improvements that could have been made had we taken the...

[Hugh Bayley in the Chair] — Health Inequalities (12 Nov 2009)

Howard Stoate: Is the hon. Gentleman aware that one of the main reasons why we do not have uniform food labelling, which I am in favour of, is that many manufacturers and large supermarkets will not agree on a system that they can put up with? How does he think we could compel them to sort that out?

[Hugh Bayley in the Chair] — Health Inequalities (12 Nov 2009)

Howard Stoate: I must take issue with the hon. Gentleman on that; most of the QOF measures are evidence-based. They are evaluated by NICE, which is now responsible for negotiating QOF on an annual basis. Most of them are to do with outcomes, such as lowering cholesterol. The number of people whose blood pressure is controlled, and the number whose diabetes is controlled in the long term is not a matter of...

[Hugh Bayley in the Chair] — Health Inequalities (12 Nov 2009)

Howard Stoate: It is a pleasure to take part in this debate. I am a practising GP and take a great deal of interest in issues around the health of my constituents as well as my patients. In recent years, the debate on health inequalities has focused almost exclusively on what we eat, drink and do—or, more specifically, what we do not do in terms of physical activity. Hardly any attention has been paid...

Power Cuts (North-West Kent) (20 Oct 2009)

Howard Stoate: I thank the hon. Member for Bexleyheath and Crayford (Mr. Evennett) and the Minister for allowing me to contribute to this debate. As they will know, my constituents in Dartford were particularly badly affected by this incident. Tens of thousands of houses were out of power for the full 64 hours and had no back-up power, not even intermittent supplies—absolutely nothing. The hon....

New Member: New Clause 1 — Purchase of tobacco on behalf of children (12 Oct 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

New Member: New Clause 1 — Purchase of tobacco on behalf of children (12 Oct 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: Just to help my right hon. Friend with the figures, 120,000 people die each year from smoking-related diseases, which is about 400 a day—the equivalent of the number on a jumbo jet falling out of the sky. That is the number of young people whom the tobacco companies need to recruit just to maintain the level of smokers in our society.

New Member: New Clause 12 — De-authorisation of NHS foundation trusts (12 Oct 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: Will my right hon. and learned Friend ensure that foundation trust board meetings are held in public? At the moment, the vast majority are held privately and therefore do not reassure the public that there is transparency in foundation trusts as currently constituted.

Business of the House: Swine Flu Update (2 Jul 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: May I join my right hon. Friend in recognising the almost unique ability of British primary care to deal with such an outbreak, and thank him for his kind words on all the hard work that staff do? Of course, that includes GPs, practice nurses, pharmacists and any other support staff. There is a problem, however, as primary care could become overwhelmed if the pandemic takes off as predicted....

Bill Presented: Health Bill [ Lords] (8 Jun 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: It gives me great pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for North-West Hampshire (Sir George Young), who talks with great authority about smoking and comes up with extremely important points. As he rightly noted, he is well ahead of his Front-Bench colleagues on the issue, and all power to him. I am sure he will support the measures, as he has promised to do. One of the advantages of a...

Bill Presented: Health Bill [ Lords] (8 Jun 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: I bow to my hon. Friend's great judgment on the issue. He is a real expert on IT, particularly in the public sector, and I defer to him. I sometimes wish that there was some more snake oil poured into my computer; it might then work a bit faster. As things are, it cranks along. Things are not always straightforward, and I shall give some examples. Only about half of all services in my area...

Bill Presented: Health Bill [ Lords] (8 Jun 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: May I be the first to congratulate my right hon. Friend on his new post? I am sure that he will do a splendid job, building on the amazing work that has already happened in the health service. Far from 18 weeks being the target, many people in my area are seen well before that. When I, as a practising GP, see somebody with suspected cancer, I can often get them seen in a few days. That was...

Bill Presented: Health Bill [ Lords] (8 Jun 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: While my right hon. Friend is on the subject of direct payments, will he clarify what would happen if a patient decided to spend their budget on a clinically ineffective regime that did not deliver the goods? Might not that result in a fall-back on the NHS, which would have to pick up the pieces or repair the damage caused by ineffective or harmful treatments?

Oral Answers to Questions — Prime Minister: Engagements (3 Jun 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: At last year's Union for the Mediterranean summit, my right hon. Friend gave his backing to concentrated solar power as a means of providing almost limitless clean energy for Europe. Given that more than 170 Members of this House have signed an early-day motion supporting concentrated solar power and the development of a high-voltage, direct-current supergrid, what active steps is my right...

Oral Answers to Questions — Prime Minister: Engagements (13 May 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 13 May.

Oral Answers to Questions — Prime Minister: Engagements (13 May 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: I associate myself—as, I am sure, does the whole House—with the condolences paid by my right hon. Friend to the families of the brave soldiers who have lost their lives in Afghanistan. The whole country is deeply concerned about MPs' expenses, and public anger is surely heightened because of people's own financial and economic circumstances. Laing O'Rourke, a major construction...

Opposition Day — [7th Allotted Day]: European Working Time Directive (10 Mar 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: This is an important debate and I think it is good that we are airing our personal views, but let me begin by correcting the hon. Member for North Norfolk (Norman Lamb), who seemed to think that I wanted to impose my will on other people. That is not the case. I am not against the opt-out; what I am against is the possibility that it could be used as a measure of coercion rather than...

Opposition Day — [7th Allotted Day]: European Working Time Directive (10 Mar 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: I do not wish to turn this into a personal argument. I cited, initially, what had been said by the British Medical Association. The hon. Gentleman asked the Government to take careful note of the views of the professional bodies that look after doctors' interests, such as the colleges and the BMA. I merely quoted from what the BMA had sent me—a statement, which other Members will have...

Opposition Day — [7th Allotted Day]: European Working Time Directive (10 Mar 2009) has video

Howard Stoate: The hon. Gentleman is very generous with his time. I would like to quote the British Medical Association: "The BMA is strongly supportive of the August deadline. Although the 11-year transitional phase for trainees was crucial in ensuring health service delivery was not put at risk unduly, we consider it is now time that junior doctors receive the same level of protection of their health and...