In her most recent general election campaign update, Theresa has written about her commitment to the NHS and improving services for Chipping Barnet residents. She has written the following article on the plan to deliver this:
"I know how important the NHS is to everyone in the Chipping Barnet constituency. I pay tribute to all NHS workers for what they do to care for us and our families.
Securing the best NHS services for my constituents has always been one of my top priorities.
I’ve visited local health facilities many times over the years to speak to front line professionals about the challenges they face. As result of those conversations, and many more on the doorstep with constituents, I’ve put expanding local NHS services in my plan to improve life in Barnet.
As the average age of our population gets higher, there are more of us who need extra health support than there were in the past. Healthcare need is growing and so we must increase NHS capacity to ensure everyone gets the care they need.
The pandemic left a large backlog which has lengthened waiting times, and industrial action has made it harder to recover from that. But waiting lists have started to fall from their peak in September. They are down by about 200,000 since then. But of course we must continue with the plan to get them down further.
In the past, I successfully campaigned for the new £100m high-tech hospital at Chase Farm which opened in 2019, as well as expansion of A&E services at Barnet Hospital in 2015.
During a visit to Barnet Hospital A&E in 2021, I was told that they were routinely seeing twice the number of people the facilities were designed for. I also had worrying reports from a number of constituents about very long waits and crowded conditions. I raised this with NHS leaders and at Prime Minister’s Question Time.
Now Barnet A&E is being enlarged again, with a £5m project to improve conditions for patients and recruit more staff. Additional doctors and nurses have already arrived, and the full improvements should be felt by patients in January next year, including better facilities for ambulance drop-off and children’s A&E. I’m worried that this upgrade plan could be jeopardised by Labour’s statement that it will review all NHS capital projects.
Another issue I have raised in Parliament and with Ministers many times is the importance of early diagnosis of cancer. A diagnostics hub has opened at Finchley Memorial Hospital and it was recently boosted by new equipment and scanners, enabling thousands more tests and checks to be carried out. This should aid early diagnosis of cancer and shorten waiting times for tests and treatment.
Funding for the NHS has increased to around £165 billion per year, more than it has ever been, and up by over a third since the Conservatives returned to office in 2010 (incidentally, the increase since 2016 has been far more than the £350 a week referred to by the Leave campaign). But it’s not just funding which is crucial. We must also ensure the NHS operates as efficiently as possible.
That is why the Chancellor set aside £3.45 billion in the Budget for our NHS Productivity Plan. Among the improvements this will deliver is increased digitisation. During a recent visit to Chase Farm Hospital, I was told by staff that their modern computer systems really enhance the care they can give patients and increase the number of operations and procedures they can carry out.
I would also highlight the important changes made on mental health. This Government has legislated for the NHS to give parity of esteem to mental and physical health conditions. We have introduced the first ever waiting time targets and broadened access to talking therapies. NHS figures indicate that between 2018/19 and 2023/24, spending on mental health services has increased by £4.7 billion in cash terms. As announced in the 2021 Spending Review, a investment of £150 million is being spent on NHS mental health facilities linked to A&E, to enhance patient safety.
I fully understand the frustration felt about the time it can take to get a GP appointment. I’ve been supporting practices in their attempts to enlarge their premises, for example in High Barnet and Whetstone. The Conservatives have kept their promise to deliver 50 million more appointments each year in GP surgeries. That means there are more appointments than ever before. That has led to an increase in appointments available locally.
The Pharmacy First programme, introduced by the Conservatives, is also freeing up more time for GPs to see their patients because it means that certain medication that previously you could only get from a doctor you can now get from your high street pharmacist. We have promised to expand Pharmacy First if we are re-elected to Government.
A problem which was contributing to problems with getting to see your family doctor was the tax which hit their pensions, and encouraged them to retire early. I repeatedly called on Ministers to scrap this tax and last year the Chancellor announced that he would do this.
But I know that further work is needed before we fully address problems with delays getting to see a GP.
So if I am re-elected, I will continue with the plan to deliver that. A key means is through the long term NHS Workforce Plan. There are more doctors and nurses in our hospitals than ever before, but we need more. We must also train additional GPs. That is why we have opened five new medical schools.
I also know how important it is that we give NHS workers fair pay. I welcome the fact that almost every NHS pay dispute has now now settled. I have been urging Ministers to resolve the dispute with the junior doctors. In Parliament I asked the Chancellor to find money to pay doctors more.
Lastly, I would say that the Conservatives have been stewards of the NHS for nearly 50 years of its 76 year history and we will always safeguard it. We will never privatise it. I fully support the NHS and its values. Those whose vote may be determined by who they trust most on the NHS should look at Wales where Labour have been in power for many years and yet waiting lists are longer than anywhere else in Britain."
Digital imprint: Promoted by Theresa Villiers MP of 163 High Street, Barnet, Herts, EN5 5SU.
