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Tag: Andrew Murrison

  • Andrew Murrison – 2025 Speech on Access to NHS Dentistry

    Andrew Murrison – 2025 Speech on Access to NHS Dentistry

    The speech made by Andrew Murrison, the Conservative MP for South West Wiltshire, in the House of Commons on 22 May 2025.

    Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I prefer Ben— I have never enjoyed Andrew—but Andrew will do.

    Quite honestly, NHS dentists are saints. As my right hon. Friend the Member for New Forest East (Sir Julian Lewis) has said, the reason why we do not have any NHS dentists is that it is far more remunerative to do expensive dental work than the sort of grinding service work that NHS dentistry implies. The reason for that, fundamentally, is the so-called new dental contract introduced in 2006. That is the problem. Units of dental activity have plagued the dental profession and the provision of NHS dentistry all these years.

    I am delighted that the Government are revising the dental contract that their Labour predecessor introduced 20 years ago, but, unless they are prepared to underwrite it, I am afraid that we will still be more or less in the same position. It is not as if we are not training dentists—we are training more and more dentists and there are more and more dental schools, and rightly so—but if those professionals are going to practice in the NHS, they need to be incentivised to do so.

    Sam Rushworth (Bishop Auckland) (Lab)

    I agree with the right hon. Gentleman about the 2006 NHS dentistry contract, which clearly needed revision. Why did his party not do that in 14 years in government?

    Dr Murrison

    I am sorry that the hon. Gentleman has destroyed the consensual way in which I was trying to introduce my remarks.

    If I may, I will explain that I think there has been a conspiracy of silence all these years on NHS dentistry. What Government have to get to grips with is whether they intend that dentistry should continue to be a universal part of our NHS and whether it will be exempted from the universality that has characterised the provision of healthcare services in this country since 1948.

    The Government could decide that dentistry is a bit like ophthalmic optics, which in the 1940s was deliberately excluded from NHS provision. I am not recommending that, but I am recommending to the Minister that we are at least honest with the public. At the moment, we have this pretence around NHS dentistry that says, “Of course you have the right to have your teeth fixed at no cost to you at all up front.” In reality, in most parts of the country, mine included, that is a complete fiction.

    When the Government come to their new arrangements, which I welcome very much, can we first have some honesty? Can we have some money behind them? Can we have some idea about what part of current NHS provision the Government intend to deprioritise, if that is their intention, to ensure that we have truly universal provision of NHS dentistry going forward?

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-01-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he next plans to visit the Kingdom of Morocco.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    I led a trade delegation of 40 companies to Morocco in November, reconfirming our close bilateral relationship and demonstrating the potential to expand our trade links.

    I have no firm plans to return at present, but am pleased that the Moroccan Ministers of Energy and Justice are visiting the UK later this month.

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether (a) his Department and (b) the NHS has been asked by security and intelligence agencies for care.data data sets.

    George Freeman

    We do not comment on security matters. The Department and the National Health Service takes protection of data very seriously. It is the role of the Health and Social Care Information Centre, a public body based in Leeds, to ensure that high quality information is used appropriately to improve patient care. The organisation has legal powers to collect and analyse information from all providers of NHS care. It is committed, and legally bound to the very highest standards of privacy, security and confidentiality to ensure that patient confidential information is protected at all times. Access to information is strictly controlled.

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were imprisoned for non-violent drug offences in each year since 2005.

    Andrew Selous

    This information is not held centrally.

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-01-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he plans to take to improve broadband and mobile phone coverage in rural areas.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    UK superfast coverage is now almost 90 per cent of premises and we have made it available to 3.5 million homes and businesses and that will rise to over 5 million by the end of 2017.As the Prime Minister announced in November, the Government also intends to implement a new broadband Universal Service Obligation.

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when his Department’s guidance to overseas missions on hospitality for senior UK figures was last reviewed.

    Mr David Lidington

    Overseas Missions provide hospitality to guests to support the Government’s objectives overseas.

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s guidance to staff on visits by Parliamentarians to our posts overseas was reviewed and updated in 2015.

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what metrics she uses in monitoring human rights abuse (a) by governments and (b) in countries in receipt of UK aid.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    DFID works closely with the FCO to assess and monitor the civil and political rights context in the countries where it has programmes. DFID draws on the FCO’s annual Human Rights and Democracy Report, which takes international human rights obligations as its starting point, and assesses FCO country specific updates to that report. It takes into account the views of a range of sources including EU and other development partners, and civil society reports.

    DFID provides aid to governments when it is satisfied that they share Britain’s commitments to reducing poverty and to respecting human rights. Before providing aid to a partner government, DFID assesses their commitment to four Partnership Principles. These include a commitment to poverty reduction; respecting human rights and other international obligations; improving public financial management, promoting good governance and transparency, and fighting corruption; and strengthening domestic accountability.

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health on the effectiveness of adult social care in facilitating an efficient return to the community after hospital treatment.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    I meet regularly with colleagues at the Department of Health, including discussions about the £5.3 billion Better Care Fund, which has a key role in helping people get home quickly after they have been in hospital.

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of changes in the number of registrations of care home residents at GP surgeries since the end of retainer fees in 2015.

    Alistair Burt

    Information is not collected centrally on whether a patient, registered with a general practitioner (GP) practice, is resident in a care home or their own home.

    GP practices provide National Health Service primary medical services under contracts with NHS England. These contracts do not distinguish between residents of care homes and other patients. Residents will be registered with a GP practice for core primary medical services whether or not a retainer is paid to a practice and are entitled to receive the same treatment from their GP as those living in their own homes.

    Retainer fees may be charged by a practice for providing services not covered by their contract with NHS England. However, the refusal of a care home to pay practices a retainer should not affect access to NHS primary medical services for residents of care homes.

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential of Westbury to become the north-south/east-west rail hub for the central south of England.

    Claire Perry

    The importance of Westbury as an interchange station for South West Trains and Great Western Rail services is not underestimated by the Department, and is already a mini hub and crew point for some of the inter-regional services (Bristol to Portsmouth and Weymouth). However, Bristol is the key hub for the region, and the Department has therefore made no such assessment regarding Westbury.