Speeches by Robertson.

“I think £250 million is a drop in the ocean for the Treasury, and I think GPs, pharmacists and hospices would agree with me. Can I ask you about the Darzi report? Darzi says that to deliver hospital to community and treatment to prevention, you need to hardwire changes in the system by adjusting financial incentives. D…”

“Good morning, Secretary of State. It is good to see you. I have some questions on the national insurance contributions levied on employers in the Budget. At the beginning of this session, you said health and social care is facing the worst crisis in history. In hindsight, do you think it is probably the wrong time to t…”

“We are talking about less than £250 million to return to GPs, pharmacies and hospices. That is a drop in the ocean for the Treasury, but a huge pressure on GPs. I would suggest that they are more likely to agree with me than you.”

“It is not for me to do your job, Secretary of State. I am asking you to justify your decisions. Can you give assurances to health and social care providers that are not the NHS—GPs, pharmacies, social care, hospices—that you will return the money you are taking from them through the Budget via national insurance contri…”

“So how is levying tax on community providers, but not on acute trusts, incentivising hospital to community and treatment to prevention? How is that incentivising moving from acute to community?”

“Can we take early in the new year to be January?”

“I am saying: return the money to healthcare providers, instead of taking with one hand and giving with the other. Returning to hospital to community, you are giving some tantalising suggestions that there will be something coming down the road. You talk about doing it in a timely way. A timely way for you and the Depar…”

“Can we just be clear that the £26 billion is not for health and social care? It is for the NHS. Those two terms are not interchangeable. GPs will not benefit from the £22 billion for day-to-day spending, nor will social care, pharmacy or hospice. Unless your announcement pledges money to GPs, can you give any assurance…”

“The Government knew that if they raised national insurance contributions in the Budget, it would be devastating for health and social care. That is why they exempted the NHS; they knew that it would be put under acute pressure by the Budget. They did not exempt some of the key partners that deliver health and social ca…”

“I can offer the hon. Member a solution for growing the tax base: grow the economy. That is by far the best way of increasing the tax take. This Budget does not grow the economy—that is the problem.”

“rose—”

“Thank you very much. Hopefully decision makers are listening.”

“Going back to incentivisation, I am concerned, in terms of public understanding, that “healthcare” and “NHS” are used interchangeably. You mentioned nursing, where of course it depends on the setting—where you are and who employs you. There is an issue with successive Governments sticking with some very simple messagin…”

“It sounds like it is more a funding thing than a change in the way we contract and commission.”

“Professor Hawthorne, how does the GP contract need to change to better support a shift from hospitals into the community?”

“The Government’s early release scheme has an impact assessment for it to run for 10 years. For however long it does run, will the Government confirm that no prolific offenders will be released early?”

“11. What steps her Department is taking to help tackle hyper-prolific offenders.”

“The hon. Gentleman talks about the NHS. What does he have to say to pharmacies, which report that his Government’s measures will cost pharmacists £50 million, even after taking into account the employment allowance?”

“It is the job of any Government to grow the economy and grow jobs. The best way of delivering money for public services is to grow the tax base without having to increase taxes, so it is hardly surprising that the Chancellor wrapped up her bad Budget as a growth Budget. Unfortunately, when she unwrapped it at the Dispa…”

“The hon. Member opened by referring to himself as a doctor and medical practitioner. Perhaps he could help with the difficulty I have with the Bill, which I would dearly like to support. There are provisions in it that allow the Secretary of State to bring forward regulations so that the independent doctor can be an al…”