Luke Evans MP: speeches

Speeches

• 27 Mar 2025 · Hughes Report: First Anniversary · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your stewardship, Ms Furniss. As a GP who has seen patients with valproate and mesh injuries, standing here with a chance to raise this issue is humbling for me. I am grateful to the hon. Member for Washington and Gateshead South (Mrs Hodgson) for proposing this debate. It is yet another important topic that she has brought to the House. She is in danger of rivalling the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) for securing so many Westminster Hall debates on health. The fact that we have two worthy champions fighting it out to be the person in the country doing the most for health is a true testament to the dynamics we have; I congratulate the hon. Member for Washington and Gateshead South on that. I remember her powerful contributions to last month’s Westminster Hall debate on women’s health, and she has done the same today. With her personal experience of her mother’s situation, and as the chair of the APPG first do no harm, she is a true champion. Now that we are past the first anniversary of the Hughes report, this debate is an important opportunity for the women and families affected by valproate and pelvic mesh to get clarity from the Government on what progress is being made on the recommendations of the report and a way forward more broadly. It is heartening to see how the Chamber has come together to ask unanimously for that progress. I welcome the fact that the previous Government took productive steps and asked the Patient Safety Commissioner, Dr Henrietta Hughes, to undertake work in this area. Her report was issued a year ago, and it is clear that the victims are anxious for some form of redress for the harms that have been caused. The report states: “The first point to make clear is that the Commissioner thinks that there is a clear case for redress based on the systemic healthcare and regulatory failures revealed by the First Do No Harm review in 2020. The Commissioner supports a restorative practice-based redress scheme, co-designed with affected patients, and which is, therefore, very different from court proceedings which seek to attribute blame.” Of course an election halts progress, but now, with new Ministers and a new Government nine months in, it is right to continue keeping the spotlight on this topic. To that end, my questions echo many of those raised by others. Could the Minister clarify the Government’s position on the recommendation for financial redress, and could she give a timeframe for when they will respond to the report? Has the Minister met with Dr Hughes and campaigners to discuss the report, and will she commit to communicating with all those affected, as that is so important to help reduce some of the anxiety? It has already been a long and painful journey for victims, so continuing to take steps forward to address the fallout is important. Further to the Hughes report, I am glad that the last Government took several actions to begin addressing the injustices suffered by victims of valproate and pelvic mesh. The former Health Secretary, my right hon. Friend the Member for Godalming and Ash (Jeremy Hunt), established the Cumberlege review, and significant progress was rightly made before the election on implementing seven of Dr Hughes’s recommendations. Those included an unreserved apology to the women and children affected, and their families, on behalf of the healthcare system, for the time the system took to listen and respond. I am pleased to see that the hon. Member for Gorton and Denton (Andrew Gwynne), the new Minister at the time, reiterated that apology when these issues were last debated in December 2024. Progress also included the appointment of Dr Hughes as the first Patient Safety Commissioner to advocate for patients and improve the safety of medicines and medical devices, and a network of specialist centres established to provide comprehensive treatment, care and advice for those affected by implanted mesh. Hon. Members have already referenced the Westminster Hall debate on these issues last December. Looking at the record of that debate, I was pleased to see from the hon. Member for Gorton and Denton that the Government were committed to implementing the remaining three recommendations as a priority. He said: “It is a priority for this Government. We are working at pace, and we remain focused on making meaningful progress. This is a complex area of work, involving several Departments, but we are committed to providing an update at the earliest opportunity. I have heard the desire for urgency today, and I hope that we can make the progress that Members want to see.” —[ Official Report, 5 December 2024; Vol. 758, c. 175WH.] I know that there has been a change in personnel in the ministerial team since that debate, but can the Minister confirm that it remains a priority for the Government regardless? Given that it is now four months since the last debate, and the Minister recognises the desire for urgency, what new update can she provide on the progress that has been made in implementing these recommendations since December? As stated, I was in the debate on women’s health last month, in which the hon. Member for Washington and Gateshead South raised the issue. The Minister’s response was: “On sodium valproate and pelvic mesh, the Cumberlege review made nine recommendations, of which the then Government accepted seven. I can confirm that the national pause remains in place.” —[ Official Report, 27 February 2025; Vol. 762, c. 518WH.] I also note that the Minister frequently quotes the following lines in her response to written parliamentary questions from colleagues: “The Government will be providing an update to the Patient Safety Commissioner’s Report at the earliest opportunity.” So could she say whether today is “the earliest opportunity”? If it is not, would she be kind enough to give an estimate of when that might be? During that December debate, the shadow Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Sleaford and North Hykeham (Dr Johnson), also raised concerns about the experiences of some of the women within the specialist mesh centres, and urged Ministers to look into that. I would be grateful if the Minister could set out whether she shares those same concerns. If so, what steps has her Department taken to address these and look into them? Finally on sodium valproate, we have heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Harrow East (Bob Blackman) and the hon. Member for Bexleyheath and Crayford (Daniel Francis) about the difficulty we have when it comes to valproate, given the damage it can cause but its importance as an epilepsy drug in supporting people to keep seizure free. The report itself states: “However, the Commissioner continues to have concerns about incomplete adherence to the Pregnancy Prevention Programme requirements. As a result, in November 2023, she recommended that NHS England create a fully funded and resourced system for improving the safe use of the most potent teratogenic medications, beginning with the safe use of valproate.” With that being said, could the Minister update this House on the workstream regarding teratogenic medications? More importantly, given the news of the abolition of NHS England, what safeguards are being put in place to ensure that this system is resourced adequately? “One year on” is a milestone to be celebrated—for getting this far after such a torrid journey in raising concerns, having them heard and getting them responded to—but it is just that: a milestone on a journey, not a destination. For those so affected, and their families, they will be keen to know what redress they are due and the mechanisms to deliver it, so that their cases might finally be fully rectified. After all, we cannot undo the past, but we can make amends for it, and I hope that the Government will continue to act on the recommendations to do so.

• 27 Mar 2025 · PIP Changes: Impact on Carer’s Allowance · Hansard source

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  To help families, the last Government put in place the household support fund, which this Government have continued. However, it is due to run out in 2026, when the Minister’s changes are coming in. What hope is there for households who need emergency support if the household support fund will be dropped when his changes come in?

• 26 Mar 2025 · Spring Statement · Hansard source

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  The Chancellor has created a storm and is now complaining about the rain. She increased spending to £70 billion, she increased borrowing by £30 billion, and she increased tax by £40 billion, yet the economy shrank in January. She talked about change and the abolition of NHS England. In a written question I asked the Department how much that would cost, and it said that there would be some up-front costs but could not specify what they would be. Could she tell me the estimated cost of this top-down change to abolish NHS England?

• 25 Mar 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Since 14 January, I have tabled 15 named day written parliamentary questions to the Department of Health and Social Care. Fourteen have received a holding response, meaning that just one was answered on time. To give a simple example, I asked how many times the Minister had met Community Pharmacy England. Four days later, I received a standard holding answer, which stated that “it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period.” It then took five days for an answer to come, which stated: “Ministers meet regularly with external stakeholders on a variety of topics, including, but not limited to, pharmacy.” May I ask your advice, Mr Speaker? What mechanisms are in place to ensure that named day questions are answered on time? If they continue not to be answered on time, how can I escalate the matter further?

• 25 Mar 2025 · Community Pharmacy · Hansard source

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  Now that the Secretary of State is abolishing NHS England, will he listen to the calls from the National Pharmacy Association and the Independent Pharmacies Association, and publish immediately the independent report commissioned by NHS England on pharmacies’ finances?

• 25 Mar 2025 · Community Pharmacy · Hansard source

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  The National Pharmacy Association, which has been waiting for months to get the answer, is advising all its 6,000 pharmacy members to reduce services and hours, for the first time in 104 years. That has never happened before under a Labour Government, or under the Lib Dems or the Conservatives, but it is happening under this Government. Its chair said: “The sense of anger among pharmacy owners has been intensified exponentially by the Budget”, citing unfunded national insurance contributions and national living wage increases. The Minister acknowledges that there is potential action. What contingency plans does the Department have to ensure that we keep patients safe if pharmacies close their doors in industrial action next week?

• 24 Mar 2025 · Planning and Infrastructure Bill · Hansard source

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  In chapter 2, proposed new clause 12H(3) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 mentions the draft spatial development strategy and brings in a raft of changes, including consultation with representative bodies on “different racial, ethnic or national groups” but also “different religious groups”. Is there a danger that we are pitting communities one against another? There is a legislative reason to do that, and I wanted to intervene to ask the Secretary of State about it, but can my hon. Friend, with his expertise, shine some light on why we are enshrining that provision into legislation?

• 24 Mar 2025 · Planning and Infrastructure Bill · Hansard source

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  Leicestershire is a prime example of where these things are happening. The target for Leicester city—where the infrastructure and plenty of brownfield sites are—is reducing by 31%, yet places such as Hinckley and Bosworth and North West Leicestershire are going up by 59% and 75% respectively. That sticks in the throats of people who want to see houses, when such areas are suffering. Does my hon. Friend agree that that is simply not right?

• 19 Mar 2025 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  I am terribly grateful to the Minister. He made the point about there being 235,000 applications, which was great. In my written question, I asked about that and he came back and said 117,800 claims were awarded, but 114,500 were not. Those were clearly people who felt they were entitled to pension credit but who will now struggle. What support is available for those people, who are clearly right on the cusp and are now not eligible and do not have pension credit?

• 19 Mar 2025 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  The Department for Work and Pensions states that it works to a planned timescale of 50 working days for processing applications. However, on 9 December, in response to my written question, it turned out that, at its peak just before the coldest period, it was 87 working days. Even now, the answer is that it takes on average 56 working days to get pension credit sorted. That is a problem, because the Government directed people to pension credit who cannot then get access to it when they need it, at the coldest time of the year. Is that not a despicable decision?

• 19 Mar 2025 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  Will the Minister give way on the data processing point?

• 19 Mar 2025 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

• 19 Mar 2025 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is correct that this is about actions, not words. Labour’s decision on the winter fuel payment was not in their manifesto; it was brought in with a piece of legislation that was voted on without an impact assessment and then put into place. Yesterday, we heard an announcement about disabilities that was also not mentioned in Labour’s manifesto. It was brought forward with a gap before the impact assessment—we will see that in a couple of weeks’ time—and it will then be taken through. Does my hon. Friend agree that the British public are being taken for fools? These are not transparent policies or policies that were put forward in a manifesto; they are being brought forward later on, under the guise of trying to do something better.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Winter Fuel Payment · Hansard source

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  Going back to data, this policy does not just impact pensioners, because the Government seconded 500 extra staff to try to deal with pension credit. We know, from another written answer, that those staff came from the services handling child maintenance, counter fraud, compliance and debt, so there is going to be an ongoing impact. Do the Government not need to be transparent about the impact on the Departments that have had to move staff across to try to deal with their own policy?

• 19 Mar 2025 · National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill · Hansard source

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  After yesterday’s announcement about benefit changes and benefit cuts, the Government have said that they want more people to go into work. A lot of help to get people into work is delivered by charities, so we are expecting a greater need for such charities. How will they cope if they are being taxed through further NICs? They will have to reduce their services and their ability to provide support, so there will be a gap in the market. Will the Minister explain how the Government intend to bridge that gap?

• 19 Mar 2025 · National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member talks about simplicity. If that is the case, why is the Government splitting the NICs? They could have introduced an increase on employees at the same time as the increase on employers, but they have decided not to do that. That would have been a simple measure to raise taxes, without creating this complication. How does that tally with his theory?

• 19 Mar 2025 · National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill · Hansard source

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  The Minister has talked about the growth mission, which is the Government’s raison d’être, but last week we found out that the economy had shrunk. Has he done any work to find out how much that 0.1% drop will cost the Government? It will have huge tax implications.

• 19 Mar 2025 · National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for giving way yet again. The National Pharmacy Association announced for the first time ever, in 104 years, that it is planning action by reducing services because of the implications of the Budget. One of its requests is the release of an independent report commissioned by NHS England on the future funding of pharmacies. Now that the Government are in charge of NHS England, will the Minister ask his colleagues in the Department of Health and Social Care to release that report before the consultations finish, so that the public and the pharmacies can see exactly what the financial situation in that independent report will be?

• 19 Mar 2025 · Down’s Syndrome · Hansard source

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  Will the Minister give way?

• 19 Mar 2025 · Down’s Syndrome · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Turner, and to respond in this debate. I credit the now Minister, the hon. Member for Bristol South (Karin Smyth), who said, when speaking about this issue in January 2022: “Our constituents expect us to see guidance and perhaps be part of scrutinising it, raising objections and problems and improving it—that is the role of a Member of Parliament”. –– [ Official Report, Down Syndrome Public Bill Committee, 26 January 2022; c. 7.] We have seen that exemplified here today. I give credit to my right hon. Friend the Member for Beverley and Holderness (Graham Stuart) for all he has done to raise this issue, but he was actually trumped by the hon. Member for Thurrock (Jen Craft), to whom I pay tribute for her ability to speak so openly, so personally and in such an informed way about the issues at hand. In January 2022, the then shadow Minister closed by saying, “this is an example of how Parliament and the proper role of Members of Parliament can be made real. That is only for the good of our constituents.” –– [ Official Report, Down Syndrome Public Bill Committee, 26 January 2022; c. 7.] I agree with her entirely. Turning to the debate itself, it is unusual to have unanimous feelings from across the House, but that is what we have heard in this debate. It is an accolade to everyone that we have got this far, but some things are still outstanding, particularly two issues—the progress of seeing the guidance and ensuring that it is accurate and effective. It is important to ensure that the guidance is robust and reflects the needs of the community. We do not want to rush publishing the guidance, which could mean that key issues are not addressed, because it would undermine the efforts of the last three years and fail the very people the Act is aimed to support. My former colleague, Sir Liam Fox, who has been mentioned here and introduced the private Member’s Bill, has written to the Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee about these reforms; with your permission, Mr Turner, I would like to quote some extracts. He said: “When the House of Commons unanimously passed the Down Syndrome Act, it felt like a real dawn had arrived for those with Down Syndrome and their families. We were promised new government guidelines covering health, education and social care that would phenomenally improve service provision and provide accountability to service users”. He said later: “Despite repeated promises we have not yet seen the formation of an effective cross Ministerial task force. There has been little Ministerial engagement with stakeholders, with many identical letters being sent out in response to demonstrably different queries. Now, three years after the legislation reached the statute book, this is completely unacceptable.” He finished by saying: “I believe that it is now time for both Ministers and officials to be held to account for the lack of progress in producing coherent guidelines, something that is regarded as a betrayal by many of those who were so encouraged and inspired by the passage of the Down Syndrome Act itself”. Therefore, to echo many of the sentiments expressed in this Chamber today, I have some gentle questions about the guidance. First, though, it was interesting to hear from the hon. Member for Mid Cheshire (Andrew Cooper) that a letter has been sent out, which I welcome. I wonder whether the Minister might take back to the Department the suggestion that a copy of the letter might be placed in the Library, for the public and all of us to see. For my first question: can the Minister clarify whether the updated guidance will be published, and if so, when? Secondly, will she commit to holding a debate or a statement on the guidance, on having it laid before Parliament? Thirdly, how will the Government monitor compliance with the guidance? To help with the above, the National Down Syndrome Policy Group, which drafted the original Down Syndrome Bill and worked with Sir Liam Fox and previous Ministers to support its journey through Parliament, has been trying to engage further with Ministers. It has highlighted to me multiple requests for Ministers to meet the APPG on Down syndrome, the policy group and MPs, which have yet to be successful. I echo that call: will the Minister commit today to her fellow Minister meeting with the policy group and the APPG to follow this up? The theme of World Down Syndrome Day, which is indeed this Friday, is “improve our support systems”. We know that, with the growth in life expectancy for people with Down syndrome, access to social care will be critical. Therefore, can the Minister confirm whether the needs of people with Down syndrome will be considered in the first stage of Baroness Casey’s commission into adult social care? With the Government’s 10-year plan in production, could the Minister outline how Down syndrome will be addressed in the context of that plan? I look forward to hearing from the Minister about how this Government will build on the foundations of the Down Syndrome Act, and about the strengthening and enabling of support. If we see it through that prism, the world shines brighter when we see people for their abilities rather than their disabilities.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Welfare Reform · Hansard source

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  I have two practical questions. First, the Secretary of State said she is joining jobseeker’s allowance and employment and support allowance into a new time-limited unemployment insurance; what is that time limit? Secondly, she said there would be an expectation on people to look for work; what happens when they do not meet that expectation and what discipline is faced if they do not take that up?

• 12 Mar 2025 · Sustainable Farming Incentive · Hansard source

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  No notice and the scheme immediately closed. The Minister says it is full. When did he know that? Why did he not tell the farmers that it was going to happen?

• 11 Mar 2025 · Prisons: Illegal Drug Use · Hansard source

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  10. What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of trends in the level of illegal drug use in prisons.

• 11 Mar 2025 · Prisons: Illegal Drug Use · Hansard source

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  Before 2021, less than 1% of seized substances contained anabolic steroids. In 2023, it was 10%, with anabolic steroids being the third most prevalent drug class detected in Scottish prisons. Will the Lord Chancellor meet me and Dr Jayasena and Dr Grant, who are national leads on the topic from Imperial College, to look at conducting research into the impact of steroids on offending and the prison population?

• 11 Mar 2025 · Employment Rights Bill · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is a learned man and he may have seen the report in the Financial Times that, for the first time ever, the number of companies registered at Companies House has fallen. Does he think this Bill being on the horizon has anything to do with that, particularly given the points that have been made about it not being fit for purpose?