Caroline Johnson MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 9 Jun 2025 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  The Minister talks about the NHS, and I wonder whether he recognises the number of elderly people who had to use the NHS as a result of having been cold because of his policies. I want to ask him a very specific question. He said: “All pensioners with incomes up to and including £35,000 will benefit from support”. He also said: “Individual pensioners with taxable income above £35,000 will have any winter fuel payment automatically recovered” through the tax system. Where a household has two individuals over the eligible age, what happens when one earns more than £35,000 and the other earns less? Will they get some, all or half of the winter fuel payment?

• 5 Jun 2025 · Free School Meals · Hansard source

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  I am delighted that more children will have school meals at lunch time. It is great for pupils to be well fed—as a paediatrician, I see the value of that. However, I want to ask about transitional protection and money. The transitional protection will take 1.2 million children out of this category; some may go back into it with UC. However, the robbing of the money from pupil premiums will leave schools £1.5 billion short. How does the Minister intend to replace that £1.5 billion for schools so that children can get a good education as well as school meals?

• 2 Jun 2025 · Government Announcements · Hansard source

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  It is not just by giving statements to the media that this Government disrespect the House. Just before we went into recess, we had a farcical situation where the shadow Secretary of State for Education had to bring forward an urgent question asking for a written statement to be made earlier in the day. The Government very clearly decided to make a written statement later in the day, and sent a Minister to come here, not answer hon. Members for the whole urgent question and refuse to say what the content of the written statement was—a statement that the Government had already written and intended to publish later that day. That was done simply to avoid scrutiny. What representation did the Leader of the House make on that day to ensure that information was given to the House in a timely fashion so that it could be scrutinised, rather than the Government hiding away?

• 2 Jun 2025 · Strategic Defence Review · Hansard source

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  Sleaford and North Hykeham is home to RAF Cranwell, RAF Digby, much of RAF Waddington and Beckingham training ranges. This defence review will be read with interest across the constituency. Many of my constituents serve in the armed forces, are veterans or work in the defence industry. Will the right hon. Gentleman give a commitment to the expansion of RAF Digby that is planned? Will he ensure that he supports the Greater Lincolnshire regional defence and security cluster, which was established in 2023?

• 22 May 2025 · Access to NHS Dentistry · Hansard source

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  I will not because there is not much time at all. I met Eddie Crouch from the BDA recently, who talked about the national insurance costs. Before today’s announced pay rise, dental practices were facing a 9.5% increase in staff costs, again pushing more of them further to private practice. Will the Minister ask the Chancellor to exempt NHS dentists from the national insurance contribution rise? There has also been discussion about compelling dentists to do a proportion of their work in the NHS, either by compelling dentists who are newly trained or by incentivising with the use of student loan repayments. Have the Government considered that? We have many overseas trained dentists—some are British students who were trained overseas, some are foreign nationals—but the overseas registration exam has 2,000 people on its waiting list. Somewhat bizarrely, those who pass can work in the private sector, but not in the NHS without supervision. That seems somewhat incoherent. Does the Government have confidence in the exam or not? It is illogical to allow a person to practise as a private dentist but not in the NHS. It is also a clear disincentive to NHS practice. What good discussions have the Government had with the General Dental Council about this issue? My right hon. Friend the Member for Herne Bay and Sandwich (Sir Roger Gale) has repeatedly raised the issue of Ukrainian dentists. There are 200 Ukrainians dentists in the UK. Why not assess them and allow them to work? It is better for them and for us. Dentists form part of a wider team of hygienists, nurses, technicians and therapists. What are the Government doing to help people in each of those roles practise at the top of their skill range to provide greater dental care? What are the Government doing to support rural areas since they cancelled the mobile dental vans? What are they doing to ensure they deliver the 700,000 promised appointments a year, since they have delivered hardly any of them so far?

• 22 May 2025 · Access to NHS Dentistry · Hansard source

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  I will not give way because there is very little time. It has been clear today that the NHS is not fit for purpose when it comes to dentistry. The Government need to get grip of this, and soon.

• 22 May 2025 · Access to NHS Dentistry · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the hon. Member for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes (Melanie Onn) on securing this debate. Dentistry is important. Dentists do not just deal with our teeth; they deal with our mouth and gums, they identify physical diseases that include cancer and they prevent sepsis. Last month, I visited The Dental Design Studio in Sleaford to celebrate its 20th anniversary of great dentistry and I met some fabulous, committed professionals. Somewhat unexpectedly, given the venue, I was asked to help judge a cake competition. Members and my dentist will be pleased to know that I brushed my teeth very well afterwards. Access to NHS dentistry has been a problem for a very long time. When I moved house in 2001, there was no NHS dentist available and I travelled two hours to Redcar to see the wonderful dentist Mr Dixon for many years until he retired. After that, there was no dentist at all. Are we therefore short of dentists? No, we are not. The Conservative Government increased the number of new trainee places and the number of new dentists, and although the population increased, there are still more per capita than in 2010. As the Minister for Care has said, “The issue is not the number of dentists…but the paucity of dentists who are doing NHS work.” —[ Official Report , 25 March 2025; Vol. 764, c. 766.] I encourage the Minister for Secondary Care to consider more dental places, because we see that one in 15 of the youngsters who want to become a dentist is turned away and, as such, they go overseas to train or train to do something else. Will she commit to a dental school not just in Norwich, but in other underserved areas, such as Lincoln? The main problem, as many have identified, is the 2006 contract with the UDA bands for procedures, and there are several issues with that. First, the amounts vary between practices based on historical volume data; secondly, there is a disincentive to treat new or high-need patients; and thirdly, the UDA simply do not cover all the costs. The Conservatives improved that a little bit, ironing out some of the bizarre UDA contract terms and setting a new, higher floor for minimum UDAs. Yet there is much more to do, as we have heard today, to reform it completely. How are the Government getting on with that? Will the Minister give us an update, please? As the Public Accounts Committee notes, “NHSE and DHSC do not yet know what that reform might look like or to what timescales it can be delivered”, beyond a vague assertion that some reform is imminent.

• 22 May 2025 · School Teachers’ Review Body: Recommendations · Hansard source

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  For the Government to come here today, fulling knowing their pay rise intentions but refusing to say so until this afternoon to avoid scrutiny, is disrespectful to this House, to every Member, to every constituent and to every teacher. If I may say so, it is somewhat cowardly. Schools across my constituency find themselves short of money to cover national insurance bills. Five schools in my constituency that have approached me are £176,000 short between them. Does the Minister know how many schools are short of money to pay their national insurance bills?

• 22 May 2025 · Independent Sentencing Review · Hansard source

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  Crimes against children are among the worst crimes humanity can commit. There is relatively little, if anything at all, about offences against children in this review. Could the Lord Chancellor confirm that those who have abused children will not be allowed out early?

• 22 May 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Billinghay swimming pool in my constituency is a much-cherished local facility, which has sadly fallen into disrepair and been unable to open for the community this year. A very good local group is trying to raise funds to restore it. What can the Minister do to help?

• 21 May 2025 · Immigration · Hansard source

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  I visited Rwanda, and I was impressed by the facilities being built for the migrants due to go there. Does my right hon. Friend agree that, had the Rwanda scheme not been cancelled by the current Government, the people due to go there would be being cared for and would be setting up new and successful lives, and we would not have people dying in the channel?

• 21 May 2025 · Immigration · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Gentleman, who is making an interesting speech, for giving way. He talks about the importance of safe and legal routes, of which there are several, but does he accept that if those safe and legal routes are capped to some extent, there will still be people for whom there is not a safe and legal route, who may then risk their life in the channel?

• 21 May 2025 · Immigration · Hansard source

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  Will the Minister give way?

• 21 May 2025 · Immigration · Hansard source

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  On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. The history lesson of who was which Minister in which Government when is obviously all available on the internet, if people want to look. How does it relate to the matter we are discussing today, which is what the current Government are doing to tackle migration?

• 21 May 2025 · Immigration · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is making an important speech. My right hon. Friend the Member for South Holland and The Deepings (Sir John Hayes) talked earlier about the five cities-worth of people being brought into the country. What that essentially means is that we have to build five more cities to accommodate them. Has that not increased house prices and, in fact, made many young people poorer and meant they find it more difficult to get on the housing ladder?

• 21 May 2025 · Immigration · Hansard source

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  Will the hon. Member give way?

• 21 May 2025 · Immigration · Hansard source

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  Will my right hon. Friend give way?

• 21 May 2025 · Immigration · Hansard source

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  Will the Minister give way?

• 21 May 2025 · Immigration · Hansard source

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  Will my hon. Friend give way?

• 21 May 2025 · Business and the Economy · Hansard source

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  The Minister mentioned talking to businesses, but I would urge him to do a little bit more listening to them. My right hon. Friend the Member for Stone, Great Wyrley and Penkridge (Sir Gavin Williamson) asked how much in additional taxes and spending commitments was raised in the Budget, but I did not hear an answer. Can he please give the House an answer? If he does not know, will he agree to write to my right hon. Friend and leave a copy in the Library, so that we can all know the answer?

• 21 May 2025 · Business and the Economy · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady is talking about the effect of the Government’s winter fuel payment cuts. Does she agree that the cuts were not just cruel and unpleasant for the elderly people who have suffered, but economically illiterate because of the increased cost to the NHS from individuals becoming sick as a result of being cold?

• 21 May 2025 · Chronic Urinary Tract Infections · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Desmond. I congratulate the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Luke Taylor) on an excellent speech that graphically explained how this condition has a horrific impact on those who suffer with it. I also congratulate him on securing this important debate to raise awareness. As we have heard, urinary tract infections are common infections affecting the bladder and kidneys, and the tubes connected to them. Anyone can get them, but they are particularly common in women. The NHS estimates that 14 million people in the UK experience some kind of urinary incontinence, too, a figure that is expected to rise due to an ageing population. Most urinary tract infections, although painful, clear up in a few days and can be treated with antibiotics. The earlier a urinary tract infection is identified, and the earlier a patient can receive appropriate treatment, the more they will be able to manage their condition, maximise their quality of life and reduce the risk of chronic infection. For many, UTIs are not a fleeting inconvenience but a chronic, recurrent, life-limiting illness. Short-term antibiotic treatments fail, standard urine tests might not detect infections, and persistent symptoms can severely diminish a patient’s quality of life. I hope this debate will raise awareness of the issue of chronic UTIs, which some patients have said have shaped their whole lives. We know that women are 30 times more likely to get a urinary tract infection than men, and that UTIs are agonising and occasionally fatal. NHS data shows that there were over 1.8 million hospital admissions involving UTIs between 2018-19 and 2022-23. UTI rates increase when women reach 45 and are in the perimenopause. Studies suggest that over half of all women will experience a UTI at some point in their lives, with many enduring recurrent infections. There are several physiological and hormonal factors that make women more susceptible to UTIs, including that they have a shorter urethra than men. Hormonal fluctuations during menopause lead to a decrease in protective vaginal flora, making older women more prone to infections. Pregnancy’s shifts in hormones and pressure on the bladder also exacerbate vulnerability. The Chronic Urinary Tract Infection Campaign estimates that up to 1.7 million women suffer from chronic UTIs, yet as we heard, this is a neglected area of research—indeed, women’s conditions in general are not as researched and treated as they ought to be. The last Government recognised the need to target women’s health conditions specifically and launched the women’s health strategy in 2022, which was successful in tackling issues that disproportionately affect women. Will the Minister commit to the continuation of that programme? I want to briefly discuss children—I should declare that I am a children’s doctor in the NHS. The hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam talked about his constituent, who was three when symptoms first occurred. Urinary tract infections are common in children; symptoms vary in severity and treatment requires different approaches depending on age, sex, and each individual patient’s condition. There are NICE guidelines on this issue, which also recommend imaging for children with UTIs, including a DMSA scan and an ultrasound depending on their condition. Can the Minister say what she has done to assess the number of children being treated for UTIs, the waiting times for scans, and whether there are sufficient radiology staff to both perform and report these procedures within the timeframes recommended by NICE? The Government have recently pointed to research being carried out by NHS England, along with the industry, to horizon-scan for new innovations in point-of-care tests for diagnosing UTIs, in order to guide better treatment options. With the impending abolition of NHS England, will that research continue, and if so, who will now be responsible for leading it? In 2023, the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency launched a campaign to raise awareness of UTI symptoms and available NHS treatments. Will the Government continue that initiative, to ensure ongoing public awareness of UTIs and prevent hospital admissions? Has the Minister evaluated that campaign’s success in improving early detection, reducing hospital admissions and reducing the incidence of chronic UTIs? For those suffering from UTIs, their first point of contact with the healthcare system is often their local pharmacy. Those services are conveniently located in the heart of many communities and are staffed by highly skilled professionals with years of experience under their belts. As we have already heard, the previous Government launched the Pharmacy First initiative, through which community pharmacists can treat women aged 16 to 64 with uncomplicated UTIs, offering rapid treatment and advice. A report from the Company Chemists’ Association in January 2025 found that nearly a third of all Pharmacy First consultations each week are for urinary tract infections. What assessment has the Minister made of the impact of Pharmacy First on people affected by UTIs and other common conditions? My hon. Friend the Member for Farnham and Bordon (Gregory Stafford) has called on the Government to provide financial incentives for GPs to work with community pharmacies to support referrals into Pharmacy First. As the spending review draws near, will the Government consider that proposal, so that more people affected by UTIs can access support from Pharmacy First? At the time of its inception, concerns were raised about the Pharmacy First initiative, relating to an increased risk of antimicrobial resistance to standard antibiotics. Now that it has been running for a year, does the Minister have any assessment of whether that is a risk that we should continue to be concerned about? The Chronic Urinary Tract Infection Campaign estimates that 20% to 30% of patients do not improve with initial antibiotic treatment. What research are the Government planning to carry out to see what further treatment can be offered to those patients? The hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam raised the issue of NICE and SIGN guidance. I can say as a clinician that both are very useful to doctors and other clinicians in guiding their practice, and they are written by experts in the field. Does the Minister plan to speak to those running NICE about whether specialists in this field could come up with some consensus-based, evidence-based guidance on chronic UTIs? As we have heard today, that could support patients who are suffering terribly. I want to touch on continence care. Adopting a personal, clinician-led approach to product provision can allow users to manage their conditions and lead to improved outcomes for both patients and the wider healthcare system. What steps are the Government taking to prioritise patient dignity and outcomes in continence care? The Government have also stated that support for those affected by UTIs is currently commissioned by integrated care boards. However, we know that ICBs are facing budget reductions of 50%, and many are planning to merge over the next two years. Can the Minister confirm whether the responsibility for supporting those affected by UTIs will remain with ICBs, or whether she intends for this function be transferred elsewhere? To close, UTIs can be managed with increased public awareness of symptoms and treatment, early diagnosis, preventive measures, research and improvements in NHS care. We have heard how life-changing that could be for many, particularly women. All those factors could reduce the burden of chronic and recurrent infections and ensure that every patient receives the care they deserve. I hope the Minister will take all this into account, because she could help to alleviate the suffering of many women and other people.

• 20 May 2025 · UK-EU Summit · Hansard source

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  Some of the free trade deals we already have require us to have autonomy over our regulation. The Prime Minister has said today that we will not be a rule taker because we can discuss the rules in this place, but discussion is not the same as control. Can he confirm that he has not ceded control to disapply or diverge from regulations in Europe?

• 19 May 2025 · NHS and Care Volunteer Responders Service · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Mr Speaker, for granting this urgent question. At the start of the covid pandemic, NHS volunteer responders were set up to support vulnerable people. Following its success, the previous Government expanded the scheme into adult social care, forming a joint NHS and care volunteers programme. That service has mobilised more than 750,000 ordinary citizens who have completed more than 2.7 million tasks and shifts, including more than 1.1 million telephone support calls, 1 million community response tasks and almost 400,000 steward shifts. I saw at first hand as a volunteer and doctor during the pandemic that NHS and social care teams benefit from volunteer support, and I put on record my thanks to all those who give up their time to support those around them. Out of nowhere, the Labour Government have decided to cancel this service at the end of the month. No tasks allocated after 31 May will be completed, seemingly leaving patients in the lurch. Has the Minister thought about the real-world implications of the additional pressure placed on NHS local authorities, the loss of institutional knowledge and the impact on vulnerable patients? What alternative measures are being put in place to support the people who were supported by volunteers? The Minister said that something would be put in place later this year, but when? Why leave a gap? The telephone helpline is open only until 31 May, so what happens if people need support after that? Will the Minister explain why the decision was taken so suddenly and which Minister signed it off? The volunteer website says that the decision was taken due to financial pressures, so can the Minister tell us how much the scheme costs? What is that cost as a proportion of the total NHS budget? The Public Accounts Committee report published last week on the reorganisation of NHS England was damning. The Secretary of State said he would “devolve more resources and responsibility to the frontline, to deliver…a better service for patients.” —[ Official Report , 13 May 2025; Vol. 763, c. 1286.] However, cancelling the volunteer programme takes services away from the frontline. This seems to be yet another example of Labour rushing into decisions without thinking them through properly, and yet another promise broken by this Government at the expense of the most vulnerable people.

• 19 May 2025 · NHS and Care Volunteer Responders Service · Hansard source

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  (Urgent Question): To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care if he will make a statement regarding the volunteer and care service.