Danny Chambers MP: speeches

Speeches

• 4 Jun 2026 · Water Quality · Hansard source

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  The Government’s own Veterinary Medicines Directorate is really concerned that pet flea treatments sold in supermarkets are washing pesticides into Britain’s lakes, waterways and chalk streams and killing aquatic life. Those treatments include ingredients such as fipronil and imidacloprid, which is banned from agricultural use to protect bees. Millions of pets are blanket-treated every month, whether they need it or not, and we already require professional advice before selling similar products to treat parasites in farm animals. Will the Minister commit to reclassifying these products so that they can no longer be sold off a supermarket shelf without professional advice? A chemical that is too dangerous for use in agriculture probably should not be available over a counter.

• 3 Jun 2026 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Q10. The Conservatives repeatedly promised us 40 new hospitals that we knew were never going to happen, but the current Government are now promising us a new hospital in Hampshire in 20 years’ time, if it gets built at all. My constituents really rely on our A&E and maternity services, but our current hospital has a huge repair backlog and rainwater leaking into clinical areas. Will the Prime Minister please break this cycle of governing parties promising us hypothetical hospitals and simply commit to fixing our actual hospital in Winchester?

• 2 Jun 2026 · Community Pharmacies · Hansard source

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  It is an absolute honour to serve under your chairship, Ms Jardine. I commend my hon. Friend the Member for Tiverton and Minehead (Rachel Gilmour) for securing this fantastic and timely debate. I also note the expertise of my friend the hon. Member for North Somerset (Sadik Al-Hassan). Not only did he provide some really good insights—I thought his point about the importance of a single patient record all the way from pharmacy to hospital was especially meaningful—but I love how enthusiastically he agrees with everyone else’s points.

• 2 Jun 2026 · Community Pharmacies · Hansard source

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  I completely agree. All businesses need predictability and stability. It appears that, week to week, pharmacists are trying to work out how to source drugs with changing prices, and there is an NHS contract that is not meeting their needs. When we talk about community healthcare and provision, it is important to remember that having good, well-run pharmacies means that people are being kept out of GP practices and that they are less likely to turn up at A&E. That is even better value for money for the NHS and, ultimately, for the taxpayer. There is no downside from a Government point of view to investing and heavily supporting community pharmacy, because the savings made upstream will be hugely significant. At the moment, we are treating people with conditions that should be treated in the community with the most expensive part of the NHS, in A&E and hospital, when they could quite possibly have avoided going there in the first place.

• 2 Jun 2026 · Community Pharmacies · Hansard source

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  That is another legitimate point, and it was made in my second to last words, so I thank my hon. Friend for contributing. I thank the Minister for listening to our concerns.

• 2 Jun 2026 · Community Pharmacies · Hansard source

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  Yes, the good ones. There has been a general consensus that pharmacies are often overlooked as a source of care for those in the community. I have visited many pharmacies in my Winchester constituency: there is Eric, who runs Springvale pharmacy up in Kings Worthy; there is Colden Common pharmacy in Colden Common; and there is the Wellbeing pharmacy on Winchester High Street, which gives me my flu jab every year. The people there actually make having a flu jab a lot of fun; we always have a great laugh. I never thought having a vaccine would be something I would look forward to, but I love going in and seeing them. We know about the 8 am rush for GP appointments, so the fact that a high street service exists where one can drop in for advice and consultations is absolutely brilliant. Pharmacies allow us to siphon off some of the pressures on GP services, but—as pharmacists have been telling me repeatedly since well before I was elected—pharmacies are currently under immense pressure. Adding to that pressure is the increase in national insurance contributions, which has saddled pharmacies and GP surgeries with additional costs. As a consequence, many local pharmacies have had to limit opening times and staff numbers. In Alresford in my constituency, the hard-working staff at Wessex Pharmacies have had to close shop on Saturday afternoons. That service will be sorely missed, particularly by those who are in full-time education or work during the week and who relied on being able to pick up their prescriptions at the weekend. In addition, shorter opening times mean that if a patient sees their GP later in the day, the required prescription is delayed by a day if the paperwork is not registered in time. For a patient with an urgent need for medication, that extra day can be extremely frustrating and worrying. Although we really do welcome the recent 10% increase in Government funding to community pharmacies, it is worth pointing out that that is giving with one hand and taking with the other. In the wake of rising costs for energy, staff and medicines, this funding increase was the first in 10 years, so it was sorely needed, but unfortunately, it did little to alleviate the extreme pressures heaped on community pharmacies in the Budget. That point comes into focus when we consider the rise in drug costs: a 20% to 30% rise for things like paracetamol and hay fever medications, and an elevenfold rise in the cost of cancer drugs since February, while the funding provided to community pharmacies has dropped by more than 20% in real terms since 2015. That is why we are calling on the Government to invest in pharmacies in smaller towns, particularly in villages and rural areas such as mine in the Meon valley. In places such as Bishop’s Waltham and Colden Common, people need access to a community pharmacy, and not only for convenience: Conservative-run Hampshire county council has cut vital bus services to the nearest big towns, which means that people without a vehicle, especially older people, absolutely rely on local pharmacies for their medication. We are also calling for a new, long-term, sustainable model for pharmacies and an expansion of Pharmacy First to give patients more accessible routine services so that we can free up GPs’ time. We want an exemption for pharmacies from the national insurance contributions increase so that funds can be spent on patients and vital medications. I come to my final, key point. I have spoken to many pharmacists since I was elected and before that, and I have had very long, in-depth conversations with them. I have also attended events in Parliament organised by the Royal College of Pharmacy and the National Pharmacy Association and I have discussed their issues with the NHS pharmacy contract. Given my professional background, I am used to sourcing, dispensing and prescribing drugs. However, the contract is so complicated that, despite my extensive conversations with those organisations, I do not fully understand it. The key message that comes out is that it costs pharmacists to dispense NHS medication in many cases, and that NHS medication is sometimes being subsidised by other sales in shops. I even met two pharmacists who said that their personal finances are subsidising some NHS dispensation. That is clearly not tenable in the long run.

• 1 Jun 2026 · Draft Agriculture (Delinked Payments) (Reductions) (England) Regulations 2026 · Hansard source

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  It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Sir Desmond. I thank the Minister for her speech. Liberal Democrats will also support the long-term move towards a fairer farming system that rewards sustainable food production, nature recovery and climate resilience rather than relying solely on an outdated subsidy model. However, we are deeply concerned that the Government are accelerating the withdrawal of support before replacement schemes are fully available, adequately funded and trusted by farmers. We are particularly concerned that England is now the only country in the UK and Europe that does not financially support farmers in the production of food. Farmers are being asked to absorb rising costs, including increased fuel and fertiliser costs caused by war. They face uncertainty in environmental land management schemes and in the closure of the sustainable farming incentive, while facing the prospect of losing almost all remaining delinked payments in 2026 and 2027. That risks creating yet another cliff edge for the farming sector after years of Conservative mismanagement and continuing Labour uncertainty. We are also concerned that the Government continue to characterise these payments simply as “delinked subsidies” despite the fact that farmers still had to demonstrate cross-compliance with environmental standards to get the basic payment. The Liberal Democrats believe that the Government must ensure a fair transition by properly funding ELMS, restoring confidence in environmental schemes, providing long-term certainty for farmers and recognising the vital role that farmers play in producing food, restoring nature and supporting rural economies. That is why we are calling for an additional investment of £1 billion in the farming budget to support that transition. We will therefore vote against the draft regulations.

• 14 May 2026 · Getting Britain Working Again · Hansard source

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  One of the main barriers to people getting back into work is poor mental health. We have very long mental health waiting lists, with a million people on them. Many of those people would rather be in work, and it is also good for their mental health to be in work. I want to highlight a initiative in Winchester that I have brought up before. It has won awards, including NHS awards. It involves Winchester citizens advice providing a person for two days a week in the local mental health unit, which is called Melbury Lodge, to help in-patients with all their life admin. People who are suffering from mental health issues, especially in-patients, are more likely than average to have debt, housing issues and other life admin problems such that, when they get discharged, they are back in the same situation as when they were admitted in the first place, and their mental health can deteriorate. The initiative is fantastic. It has been proven, through published peer-reviewed papers, that the people involved have a shorter duration of stay, are less likely to be readmitted and are more likely to engage with social services once they are discharged. Ministers will find it particularly interesting that every £1 spent on the project saves the NHS £14.08 through cost avoidance. I have met the team several times. Rolling it out in every mental health unit in the country seems like an absolute no-brainer. Given that it saves so much money and that the saving is so quick, there is no question that it cannot be afforded. This is not an investment that takes five, six or seven years to pay off; the savings are seen within months. I urge the Government to look at the project. I would be keen to have a meeting with the relevant Minister—whoever the relevant Minister turns out to be—and the team who are running this project, Winchester citizens advice and the Melbury Lodge unit. It could be hugely impactful in helping many thousands of people to get back into work. That is good for the staff, the patients and the taxpayer. We were heartened that the previous King’s Speech specifically stated that mental health would be treated as seriously as physical health. We were disappointed there was not a specific mention of mental health in this year’s King’s Speech. We urge the Government to remember to put the issue at the forefront of their efforts to try to get people back into work.

• 14 May 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Women trying to flee domestic abuse are sometimes coerced into staying by their partner’s threatening to harm their pet, especially their dog or cat. May I pay tribute to organisations such as the Dogs Trust, which runs a dog fostering service for women while they find a new permanent home, so that they do not have to give up their pet permanently, and Trinity Winchester, which has opened new rooms for women fleeing domestic abuse, and lets them bring their pets with them? This is really needed; it breaks down another barrier that prevents women from fleeing domestic abuse.

• 29 Apr 2026 · Agriculture: Government Support · Hansard source

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  I was speaking to farmers in Winchester just two weeks ago, and planning is a huge issue, whether they want to put in a new slurry lagoon or repurpose a barn, with a wait of more than 18 months. The process is very opaque and there is no set timeline. It is impossible to make business decisions if no timeline is given as to when they might even be told when they will have to supply information to get the planning permission.

• 27 Apr 2026 · Animal Testing · Hansard source

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  It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Mr Stuart. I thank the hon. Member for North Ayrshire and Arran (Irene Campbell) for securing the debate and for her tireless championing of animal welfare in Parliament. This is not the first debate to be secured on animal welfare issues, and it really is making a difference. We rarely have the Gallery full, but the fact that it is today shows how many people support animal welfare and care about Herbie’s law and ending animal testing. Like other Members, I have been contacted by many constituents about this subject. I will not repeat everyone’s arguments, because they were all expressed very eloquently and put very well, but I will reiterate that an animal’s intelligence has no relation to its capacity to suffer. A sentient animal will experience pain, emotions, suffering and mental distress in the same way that we do. All the research that has been done has shown that animals have the same range and even depth of emotions as humans. They may get excited or scared about different things, but their lived experience is as real to them as ours is to us. Many people mentioned their pets. We have a labrador called Moose. When he hears the fridge door open, he comes flying into the kitchen in excitement, and if he is caught on the sofa when he is not meant to be there, he clearly feels guilt. As a vet, having seen a variety of animal species—horses, cattle, dogs, cats, chickens—in states of distress, injury or sickness, I know that the emotion and suffering they feel is as strong as any person’s. I served for years on the British Veterinary Association’s policy committee, and it very much supported the reduce, refine and replace model. That was several years ago, but we are now in a very exciting time, because it feels as though we finally have the technology that means that we really could move away from animal testing in a meaningful way and very quickly. Members have talked about computer modelling, organs on a chip and AI—the way it can model protein folding, and test various treatments and pharmaceuticals without having to use animals, potentially with even more valuable results. It is a really exciting time. We as a country, and the Government, must ensure that we are supporting our life sciences industry to do that. Life sciences are coming forward with some of the most exciting breakthroughs in medicine to help solve a whole load of diseases that we never thought could be treated, including cancers and rare diseases. They are also vital to growing the economy. As we do all we can to support the life sciences industry, both in developing new technologies and in moving away from testing on animals, can the Minister say whether any work is being done to make sure that we do not inadvertently offshore animal testing? As upsetting as it is to have animal testing in the UK, standards are higher here than anywhere else in the world. What I would hate to see happen—I am sure that everyone is united on this—is for us to ban animal testing and move away from it here, and for it simply to be offshored to somewhere with less regulation and even more suffering to be caused as a consequence. I also want to bring up the licensing of drugs that have already been tested. Currently, drugs are tested on animals; if they pass animal testing, they go on to humans; and if they pass human testing, they get a licence. The drugs have been proven to work in animals, yet they do not have a licence for the animals and cannot be used in them. It seems to me that if something has passed safety tests and been proven to work in animals, there should be automatic licensing, or what we call dual licensing, to ensure that the animals on which there has been testing have the benefit of the drug. Currently, that is not the case. We also have situations in which drugs pass animal tests but fail human tests and then cannot be used on the animals, even though they passed those tests. Although we want to move away from animal testing, it seems wrong that animals cannot mutually benefit, from a legal perspective, from the testing that has already been done. I hosted an event last week for the Humanimal Trust, which is calling for dual licensing. Its academics are from the vet school at the University of Surrey. I would be very keen for the Minister, if he is interested, to meet that team, because they have done a lot of work on this issue as well. We are looking at updating the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966. There is currently a cascade for the prescription of drugs for animals, and sometimes pharmaceutical companies can get a retrospective licence. For example, there might be a human drug that is used in animals and is working really well. The drug company will then do the research and get a licence for that specific drug, and then no one else can use it and it becomes very expensive. We would like to look at how the Act, and the cascade for prescribing for animals, can mean that drugs that have been proven to work in humans and animals are more easily prescribed. This is a really good example that many people will have encountered: they go to the vet, who prescribes paracetamol that costs a lot of money, but then they discover that paracetamol is 16p in a shop. As vets, we are not allowed to prescribe that paracetamol for a dog. We are not trying to fleece people; it is not legal, and a vet prescribing it would be struck off. That is how the law works at the moment. I am really keen that, along with the desperately needed update to the Veterinary Surgeons Act, we look at prescribing rules and licensing as a big, holistic piece of work. I am very proud that the Liberal Democrats, in coalition, managed to bring forward the work to stop the testing of household products on animals. I am very proud to be an honorary senior lecturer at Bristol University vet school in the area of One Health. For anyone who does not know, that is the recognition that human health, animal health and environmental health are all completely interlinked. There are many diseases and things like antimicrobial resistance that affect humans and animals. We know that 75% of new and emerging infectious diseases that could potentially cause a pandemic are of animal origin. They are often related to farming practices as well. It is impossible to improve human health, environmental health or animal health without seeing the three as completely linked and addressing them all. Moving away from animal testing but having more accurate testing, and the right licensing and regulation, to ensure that animals and humans can mutually benefit from scientific advances is not only an opportunity but the morally right thing to do.

• 22 Apr 2026 · Junior Doctors’ Foundation Programme · Hansard source

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  It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Mrs Barker. I congratulate the hon. Member for Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket (Peter Prinsley) for another insightful speech; this time I will avoid comparing the anatomy of human and dog ear canals—we have covered that already. We always rightly start these speeches by paying tribute to NHS staff, doctors, nurses and everyone involved in patient care, especially given the pressures on them as a result of sheer patient numbers and working in systems that can make the job even more stressful and pressurised than it already is. They are caring for severely injured or very ill people at the toughest moments of their lives. The emotional burden of caring for people who could be dying is difficult in itself, but resident doctors work in a system that adds extra pressures and conditions that can add stress alongside that. We cannot pay enough tribute to them for even surviving in those areas. One of the best books highlighting the plight of resident doctors that I have read is Adam Kay’s “This is Going to Hurt”. It did a lot to help the public to understand just how difficult it is for a doctor to not know where their training place is going to be. It is where they are going to be forced to live and work for several years—a place where they may not have any friends or family; they might be taken away from family and spouses. They might have dependants and children. It is really difficult to plan a career, especially such a difficult and challenging career, when working with that level of uncertainty. I lived with medical students when I was a student at Liverpool University and have followed their careers since. The challenges that the hon. Member set out have been reflected in their lives and careers. I support the Government’s ambition to increase medical school placements. That is important. We have a recognised workforce shortage in the NHS, so that is an obvious thing to do, but we must ensure that we do not carry on falling into the same trap. The previous Government, under Boris Johnson, said that they would increase medical school placements—and they did, but without providing the infrastructure for training resident doctors who want to go on to specialised training. That obvious bottleneck was going to filter through. No mechanism was put in place to ensure that the NHS would have the capacity to train those extra medical students when they finished their F1 and F2. In Winchester I speak to many resident doctors, and even to their parents. Those resident doctors have gone through university, sometimes getting themselves in a fair amount of student loan debt, and are working hard on their F1 and F2. The stress of not knowing whether they will get a training placement is overwhelming, frustrating and for us, as a society, ridiculous because we are short of doctors. How have we ended up in a situation where we are training students and resident doctors, but cannot give them the further training places to continue? I urge the Government to ensure that any training places will filter all the way through for the rest of that person’s career. We know that the last Government not only thought it sounded good for winning votes to say that they would increase medical school placements, but said that they would build 40 new hospitals, though there was absolutely no funding—putting votes before a genuine long-term plan for the NHS. We then come up against a brick wall of reality. People working in the NHS end up suffering and the people who rely on the NHS—everyone—end up not getting the service that they voted for. The Liberal Democrats welcome the Minister’s statement about increasing training numbers, especially for people from more disadvantaged backgrounds. It is important that we look at the diversity of the professions. Certainly within the veterinary profession, socioeconomic diversity is not what it should be; it does not reflect society. A profession—whether the medical profession or another—offers a better service to society if it better reflects it. I once heard someone say that talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not. It is the job of all professions to ensure that we get the people with the talent enrolled on courses so that they can have fulfilling careers and offer much back to society. The statement is a really good first step, but it is a bit vague. The Minister writes about underserved parts of the UK seeing new medical spaces; how many will there be, and how will that be delivered? Will current medical schools increase their capacity? Will new teaching hospitals open to support it? The target is to place “up to 25% of students at participating medical schools…to local foundation training places”. How many medical schools have indicated that they want to participate? That will be fundamental to how this policy gets delivered. To reiterate what the hon. Member for Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket said, we need to treat medical students and resident doctors like people; they are not just numbers. Working conditions are as important as pay, and to improve working conditions we need to double down on improving social care to avoid delayed discharge and corridor care. The doctors delivering treatment will feel that they are doing a better job, and will not feel under pressure as a result of being unable to deliver the care that they want and that patients deserve. We also need to ensure that we have a happy, resilient, passionate and excited workforce going forward. The Minister has been asked constructive questions. I ask him not to repeat the previous Government’s mistakes of talking about increasing hospital numbers and medical students, while creating a whole generation of doctors who cannot go on to serve their communities and have a fulfilling career.

• 20 Apr 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.

• 20 Apr 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Last week in my Winchester office, I held a meeting for parents of children with special educational needs and disabilities, and some were in tears when discussing the fight they have had to get the care to which they are entitled. Can we assure parents that any reforms made to the SEND system—which are much needed—will not cause the absolutely crippling mental health anguish, stress and anxiety that the current system has been causing?

• 16 Apr 2026 · NHS Federated Data Platform · Hansard source

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  It is an honour to serve under your chairpersonship, Dame Siobhain. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Newton Abbot (Martin Wrigley) for his tenacity and expertise in this subject. He has done a huge amount of research, and made an absolutely excellent speech. At a moment of rising global instability, it is extraordinary that we are prepared to trust the health of our citizens and the functioning of our NHS to a US corporation that does not share our values or interests. Outsourcing the storage, handling and analysis of NHS data to a foreign company, rather than securing the national and economic benefits of this work being done by a British or UK-led organisation, is yet another example of our unnecessary reliance on others to keep our vital infrastructure running. Doctors and the public have made it clear that they do not trust this company. Fewer than half of NHS trusts have begun using this technology, in large part because of the concern from patients and clinicians. If, as the Health Secretary says, the federated data platform is “absolutely critical to the future of the NHS”, placing it in the hands of a company that staff and patients do not trust risks undermining that future from the outset. This is the central issue: we hold doctors and nurses to the highest ethical standards, and rightly so. We expect them to protect confidentiality, to act with integrity and to put patients first. So why are we asking them to use a system they do not trust and stake their professional reputations on it? Palantir is not a neutral contractor. It is a company that is deeply embedded within the political ecosystem of Donald Trump, a convicted felon whose Administration has repeatedly undermined the international rule of law. It is a company that has worked hand in glove with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, whose behaviour is morally and legally outrageous and whose agents have operated like masked vigilantes in the deportation of individuals. We are all aware of the tragedies that that rogue Trump organisation has left in its wake. Why are we allowing a Trump-aligned company to sit at the heart of Britain’s most precious public service? Why are we comfortable placing NHS data in the hands of a company whose values are so clearly at odds with those of the British public? This is not a technical decision—this is a political choice. The NHS is not only one of our most important public services but one of the largest areas of public spending. Therefore, it is deeply concerning that Palantir’s contract for the federated data platform is so heavily redacted that it makes scrutiny almost impossible.

• 16 Apr 2026 · NHS Federated Data Platform · Hansard source

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  That is an important point. Amnesty International, whose representatives I believe are present, and others including voices within the NHS have been raising serious concerns about the potential misuse or inappropriate sharing of sensitive data. The Government must come clean about how the contract was awarded in the first place and what steps they will be taking to bring it to an end. We should be building NHS data processing capacity here in the United Kingdom, strengthening our resilience, backing our own expertise and building sovereignty in a more dangerous world. Instead, we are exporting control of one of our most valuable national assets. I ask the Government today to use the break clause, stand with NHS staff, protect patient trust and keep Donald Trump and his allies out of our NHS.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Women’s Health Strategy · Hansard source

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  The Liberal Democrats welcome the strategy, and its specific recognition of the socioeconomic and racial disparities in women’s healthcare, which it is important to put front and centre. We also appreciate the specific recognition of endometriosis and similar conditions. My partner, Emma, suffers from endometriosis, and on many occasions I have seen her unable to stand up or barely get off the sofa, having been told for years that her symptoms are completely normal and that there is nothing wrong with her. Given that at least one in 10 women suffer from endometriosis and there are over 500,000 people on gynaecology waiting lists, clearly her experience is not unique. The picture around maternity safety is deeply troubling. Maternal mortality has increased by over 20% in the past 15 years, and there have recently been some high-profile media discussions about women and babies being let down, sometimes with devastating consequences. That is why the Liberal Democrats have been calling for one-to-one midwifery care and specialist doctors on every unit. I welcome the Government’s specific commitment on treatments for morning sickness. My hon. Friend the Member for Lewes (James MacCleary) has campaigned on that issue for a long time, and it is right that we end the postcode lottery for these medicines. The condition can be debilitating for some people, and it is not fair that women have different experiences simply because of where they live. Given that this is not the first women’s health strategy to be brought to this place—the previous Government brought one through in 2022—and the fact that many women we speak to do not feel that there has been any meaningful change, a lot of people are saying that we cannot just keep announcing strategies while women are waiting for basic care. Given the failure of the last Government to deliver meaningful change, can we have reassurances that this will not simply be another strategy announcement and that women will feel a difference in the care that they receive?

• 16 Apr 2026 · Community Spaces · Hansard source

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  9. What assessment she has made of the adequacy of access to community spaces.

• 16 Apr 2026 · Community Spaces · Hansard source

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  The charity St John’s Winchester runs a brilliant community space for people with dementia; I have attended it myself and sung songs with them, including Motown. It is also one of the oldest charities in the UK and provides almshouses for vulnerable people. It has been running for 900 years and has survived the plague and the civil war, which was particularly ferocious in Winchester. It has specifically cited the increase in employment costs as a reason why it has had to deregister from the Care Quality Commission. What are the Government doing to support charities that provide social care and healthcare? We know that if these charities struggle, the costs will go on to councils and the NHS.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I will bring up one more time the state of our roads, particularly in Hampshire. I was a horse vet before I was elected, so there is probably not a single road I have not driven down. Thankfully I had a 4x4, because I genuinely needed that for the roads, not just the farm tracks. Where I live in Shawford, they are not just potholes, but craters; it is like driving on the surface of the moon. Hampshire county council, run by the Conservatives, is saying that it has no money to fix the potholes. I know that council budgets are not the remit of central Government, but potholes have become such a problem. Is there the opportunity to have a debate or a review, so that we can have some emergency funding to fix these roads? It is not fair that our constituents need to pay for financial mismanagement.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and Craniocervical Instability · Hansard source

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  It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Ms Furniss. I thank the hon. Member for Cannock Chase (Josh Newbury) for securing this important debate. Many people have to come watch in the Public Gallery, and I do not underestimate how much effort that will have taken some of them. We really do appreciate them being here today. We have heard from everyone the frustration of having a relatively rare disease with non-specific clinical signs, meaning that so many patients have been waiting years and years, in awful situations, even to get a diagnosis. What we are equally upset about is that once they have a diagnosis, the support is not available to ensure that they live the most fulfilled life possible or even, in many cases, get the most basic care that they require. On that note, I commend the hard work of EDS UK in supporting and providing training for clinicians and healthcare professionals and campaigning for standardised guidance, improved NHS services and clinical pathways to meet the needs of EDS patients. The lack of national policy has left a postcode lottery for EDS patients across the country. This is another NHS area suffering the frustratingly long diagnostic delays and lack of joined-up, multidisciplinary care that we see for certain conditions. That means that people are battling with the unexplained symptoms and pain of EDS all through childhood, and that those patients have often been told repeatedly that their tests are normal and their symptoms must be psychosomatic. It means waiting decades for an overarching diagnosis for multiple complaints and being stuck in a system that incorrectly believes that EDS is a very rare condition rather than a realistic possibility. I was interested to hear my friend the hon. Member for Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket (Peter Prinsley) acknowledge that he probably has treated patients with this disease, having not recognised it, which is something that we are all guilty of sometimes with rarer diseases. Diagnosis is only the first step. Care is too often fragmented or non-existent, and patients struggle to get a GP appointment in the usual 8 am scramble. As a result of fragmented care, those with EDS are left to manage their own symptoms, unable to access a holistic and collaborative point of care. For many, a huge part of the burden of living with EDS comes from the lack of awareness of the condition. Unlike the situation for more visible disabilities, employers, schools and even friends and family are too often unaware of the debilitating and changing nature of this condition. Negotiating accommodations or seeking disability benefits for a condition that is little understood and largely invisible presents a huge challenge. People with EDS and those around them need clear guidance on the nature of the condition. A constituent of mine in Winchester, Dr Emma Reinhold, worked as a GP in the local community, where she became increasingly aware of EDS, with its commonly associated conditions, and how they were overlooked. That led to her development of the EDS toolkit, written in conjunction with the Royal College of General Practitioners and funded by EDS UK. That toolkit is incredible and has been shared all over the world. I first heard about it when I was knocking on doors and she popped her head out of her upstairs window to say hello. We spoke about the toolkit for about 20 minutes—me on the street and her up in her bedroom. She had been a GP in Winchester for many years and then she became seriously unwell with EDS, which was why she was at home. That was at the age of just 42. Like so many others, she had to stop working; eventually, she had no option but to take ill health retirement, so the NHS lost another GP far too soon. One patient who Dr Reinhold told me about—I think it was through that window conversation—was a woman who was in her 70s when she finally got the diagnosis that she had been looking for over many years to explain her symptoms. This is a genetic condition that she had had since birth, but it took 70 years to ensure that she got the answers that she deserved and appropriate support for her many symptoms. Emma’s open access toolkit on EDS—for anyone who is interested, it is worth googling—ought to be promoted enthusiastically by the Government as a means of promoting greater awareness on the part of all medical professionals, as well as better understanding and sensitivity on the part of everyone, so that we can ensure that all those with EDS and other hidden disabilities remain welcomed and cared for in education, the workplace and their day-to-day lives. Dr Reinhold explains that we need a co-ordinated, holistic approach to multisystem conditions such as EDS, rather than the current disjointed care that facilitates diagnosis falling into gaps between specialists, who do not always have the collective training to spot connections between apparently unrelated symptoms. Patients need national leadership, so we urge the Government to address the policy gap by working towards joined-up, multidisciplinary care across primary and secondary services, as well as supporting and promoting the existing training for staff, to ensure that those with EDS can access the care that they deserve. EDS and HSD must be integrated into NHS service specifications and long-term condition strategies as a matter of urgency. The Liberal Democrats want everyone with a chronic illness, including EDS, to have a named GP. That would improve their quality of care and allow better join-up between the range of services that they can access. We must champion the work of the Overlapping Illness Alliance and EDS UK to raise awareness of these often hidden conditions so that those in need of support are able to access it. Before the last general election, Ministers from the former Government offered to meet EDS UK, and then the election was called so the meeting never happened. Will the Minister commit to meeting EDS UK and patients, including Dr Reinhold, to better understand what would be helpful to improve their outcomes?

• 24 Mar 2026 · Defence · Hansard source

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  Does my hon. Friend agree that one immediate action the Government could take to reverse some of the damage that the Conservatives have done to our armed forces is on the Conservative decision to shut down Winchester’s Army training regiment, which trains 20% of our troops. No replacement for that facility will open in the next few years. That decision needs to be reversed.

• 24 Mar 2026 · Endometriosis Services · Hansard source

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  I can reiterate that point; my partner Emma has severe endometriosis. She is regularly crippled—barely able to get off the sofa and in absolute agony. She has been told for years that this is normal and that there is nothing wrong. She had to fight repeatedly to get the diagnostic surgery that she needed, which confirmed that she has endometriosis. It is a very common story, and it is completely outrageous that people are told that crippling pain, meaning that they cannot get off the sofa, is just a normal cycle.

• 23 Mar 2026 · Tobacco and Vapes Bill · Hansard source

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  I also welcome the hon. Member for Washington and Gateshead South (Mrs Hodgson) to her position as Minister for Public Health. I had the privilege to serve on the Bill Committee, as other hon. Members did—indeed, I see some familiar faces in the Chamber. One of the things that struck me most was when the chief medical officer gave his evidence: he said that the Bill was not only the most significant piece of public health legislation in 30 years, but probably the single of piece of legislation that will most help to address inequality. Inequality is multifactorial, but one of the main factors in the difference in life expectancy between certain wealthier areas and certain more deprived areas is the rate of smoking. This Bill will have a huge impact, especially on the communities for which we are really trying to improve life expectancy. I am very pleased that the Government accepted so many amendments in the Lords. Some of the amendments that the Liberal Democrats are really keen on are regarding fixed penalty notices and require all the money from those fines to go to local public health initiatives, as directed by local authorities. We know that public health is so important, yet funding for such organisations is usually extremely limited, given the pressures on local authorities. Without the Lords amendments on fixed penalty notices, the money would go straight back to the Exchequer. We fundamentally believe that if we are serious about making a meaningful difference to people’s lives, that money must be used in local smoking-cessation initiatives. As the mental health spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats, I am acutely aware of the benefits of the Lords amendments that support those with long-term mental health conditions, who have higher rates of smoking than the general public. We know that going cold turkey is simply unrealistic and can even be dangerous. The exemption on vape vending machines in secure mental health hospitals ensures that people are supported professionally in quitting in a sustainable and maintained way that will not further damage their mental health. I welcome the Lords amendments on regulating filters, which have cross-party support. Not only are filters an environmental issue, but they provide a false perception of safety to smokers. Ensuring that there is awareness of the lack of protection that these filters provide and of smoking as a whole is imperative if we are to ensure that people can make informed decisions about their health and wellbeing. I am very pleased to support this Bill as it goes through Parliament; it is momentous and significant. We really appreciate the Government’s accepting the Liberal Democrat Lords amendments, which will slightly improve how the Bill will be delivered. We are very pleased that this will be a strong and impactful Bill. We hope that it will deliver meaningful change on public health for generations to come and that we will have a smokefree generation growing up.

• 23 Mar 2026 · Tobacco and Vapes Bill · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman raises legitimate points about the pressures facing small businesses at the moment, but does he not agree that there must be better ways of supporting small businesses than facilitating children to get cancer?