Alex Norris: My hon. Friend makes an important point. This Secretary of State must be the first in the history of the NHS who came into that important role saying that he was expecting waiting times to grow to the extent that they are. That is of course pandemic-related, but it also has a reality far beyond this extraordinary last 18 months. There are more than 125 clauses in the Bill and the Government...
Alex Norris: There is a danger that the right hon. Gentleman has missed the point. The reality is that for a decade there has been historically low investment in our health service, which of course has Barnett consequentials for Wales. That is the reality and why the system is as distressed as it is. I do not think he can put that at the door of the Welsh Government. Let me come back to public health....
Alex Norris: I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for that intervention. I completely agree with him. I would be the last one to police people’s consumption habits in the night-time economy for fear of being a hypocrite, but I do think that we should all have informed choice. What we have at the moment is inconsistent and unclear. We know that that frustrates people. A recent survey has shown that: 75%...
Alex Norris: My hon. Friend will be delighted to hear that I will be coming on to the modesty of the Government’s plans for tackling obesity, but I have to finish my remarks about new clause 16. New clause 16 compels the Secretary of State to publish an annual statement about the spend and impact of alcohol treatment funding. After a decade of reduced commitment in this vital area, the Secretary of...
Alex Norris: I think that a solution might be a little from column A and a little from column B, but I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for making that point. We have heard about the modesty of the strategy from the hon. Member for Buckingham. The reality is that any benefits from the obesity strategy will be outstripped by losses in the nation’s health caused by the impact of the cut to universal...
Alex Norris: Yes, I agree. I look with real sadness at the loss of exercise-on-prescription schemes that were part of the public health grant but have gone over the last decade. Similarly, on swimming, the decisions in the Budget relating to local authorities will lead to councils, which are setting their budgets as we speak, closing more leisure centres and swimming pools. We should mourn those losses,...
Alex Norris: The hon. Gentleman tempts me, but my problem is that I want to know that the conversations have taken place and that the proposal has been considered as an option. I would not say today that I think it is the best option, but I am surprised that that conversation has not taken place, which is why I have highlighted it. There is still time for the Minister to reconsider, and he should. I was...
Alex Norris: The vaccination programme has lost momentum over the summer and autumn. To ensure that everyone who is eligible gets their booster jab by Christmas, we need to be vaccinating half a million people a day, but we are currently not near that figure. We need to reboot the national effort in Shipley and beyond—[Interruption.] Always just for you, Mr Speaker. We need to be mobilising retired...
Alex Norris: It is a pleasure to speak in this important debate and to follow such powerful contributions by colleagues. I commend in particular the hon. Member for St Ives (Derek Thomas) on securing the debate and on the way in which he led it. He said he wanted to start a new conversation. That was an elegant way to put it and is a good challenge to us all; we should all work in that spirit, and his...
Alex Norris: I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of his statement and for his kind words about the shadow Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Leicester South (Jonathan Ashworth), which we all share on this side of the House. We have been critical of the Government in the past for taking too long to protect our borders from new variants, particularly when delta was left to...
Alex Norris: I am grateful for the opportunity to speak for the Opposition on this very important Bill. I commend the right hon. Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox) for using his precious private Member’s Bill slot on this important matter, and I understand this is his first success in the ballot in 29 years, so roll on 2050 for the next one. The right hon. Gentleman said plenty that will have moved...
Alex Norris: I am grateful for that intervention. Members on both sides of the House share a commitment and an ambition to make significant advances in the mental health of the British people. We know that there are barriers for people with the most profound physical health conditions because, traditionally, we have not looked beyond those conditions to evaluate the mental health aspect. I hope that the...
Alex Norris: I am very grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for that, although I am not sure that it was a carrot as much as a stick. However, I know that noble Lords will be taking the same interest in the Health and Care Bill, and I absolutely share his confidence in that sense. To finish, I look forward to seeing this Bill in its next stages, and we want gains to be made in the four areas in the...
Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will increase (a) its policy focus on and (b) the funding allocated to tackling malnutrition in Integrated Care Systems.
Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will produce guidance on how Integrated Care Partnerships can improve services for people at risk of malnutrition through improved partnerships, joint working, and improved planning of services.
Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the ability of the Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances to facilitate product innovation and patient choice.
Alex Norris: It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Hosie. I am grateful for the chance to speak for the Opposition in this important debate. I start, like others, by paying tribute to the young chef Lauren Reid, whose tragic passing last year has led to this debate. Described by her mum as “the most amazing, kind, beautiful and caring person”, may we turn this family’s heartache into...
Alex Norris: What recent assessment she has made of the human rights situation in Cameroon.
Alex Norris: The Biya Government’s hard-handed approach to calls for reform from those living in the Anglophone region has led to violence, 765,000 persons being displaced from their homes, and 800,000 children out of school. We have a long-standing connection to Cameroon and I am glad to hear from the Minister about efforts so far, but will she make a full-throated commitment today to a peaceful...
Alex Norris: It is a pleasure to speak for the Opposition in this important debate. The omicron variant is a sobering reminder that this pandemic is not over. We need to act with speed to bolster our defences to keep the virus at bay, and to keep each other safe throughout the difficult winter period. We on these Benches were critical of the Government’s slow response to the delta variant—slow to...