Tag: Rosena Allin-Khan

Rosena Allin-Khan – 2022 Speech on Eye Health

The speech made by Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour MP for Tooting, in Westminster Hall, in the House of Commons on 15 December 2022.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Sharma, and to respond on behalf of the shadow Health and Social Care team. I pay tribute to the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) for securing this important debate and for his continued advocacy on this issue. I particularly liked his description of the experience of walking with a guide dog, and how that lived experience has helped him become a campaigner. The hon. Member is a voice for issues that often do not get enough time in this place.

More than 2 million people live with sight loss in the UK, and by 2050 the number will reach 4 million. Ophthalmology is the NHS’s busiest outpatient service, with 7.5 million hospital attendees last year. With demand for eye care services set to soar by 40% over the next 20 years, it is vital that we get this right. The Government must have a plan.

We have all been sharing our personal experiences with eye services, and I am no stranger to them, having something quite unusual called keratoconus—it is particularly bad in my right eye. I understand how worrying it can be when one discovers that they have eye pathology.

I pay tribute to the continued campaigning work of the Association of Optometrists, the Royal National Institute of Blind People and so many others for their work on eye health. I also pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Battersea (Marsha De Cordova), who is a fantastic advocate on this issue. It is very welcome that NHS England has appointed the first ever national clinical director for eye care, a role that aims to put ophthalmology on a par with other major specialties and that will lead to the development of a national strategy.

As we have heard today, NHS eye services are not keeping pace with demand. Waiting lists for ophthalmology treatments have increased by more than 130% over the last 10 years. Over 650,000 patients are stuck on NHS ophthalmology waiting lists in England, with tens of thousands of patients waiting longer than a year. That is unacceptable. Those waiting lists have been longstanding; even pre-pandemic, the system was in trouble.

In 2018, the APPG on eye health and visual impairment found that the current system of eye care was failing patients on a “grand scale”. Waiting lists have increased every year since 2010. For years, there have been calls for the Government to act, but those calls have fallen on deaf ears. It is 12 years of Conservative Government failure that have caused waiting lists to grow and left ophthalmology services in the state they are in now. Patients simply deserve better.

Increased staffing pressures compound the issue. More than three quarters of units in the UK reported unfilled consultant posts, with over two thirds of hospital eye units using locum doctors to fill those vacancies. Many eye units rely, to a large extent, on non-medical clinical staff working in extended roles, or doing work traditionally performed by an ophthalmologist. I ask the Minister, what assessment has the Department made of the impact the current ophthalmologist workforce shortages are having on patient care? Will the upcoming workforce strategy include a commitment to fund the workforce that is identified as being needed to meet patient demand?

I am pleased that the debate as also focused on the devolved nations. In Northern Ireland, at the Western Health and Social Care Trust, the average wait for routine cataract surgery is more than six years. These are grandparents who cannot see their grandchildren properly; these are people who have to give up work because they cannot see. Patients are suffering. The stress and anxiety that long waits such as those have on patients cannot and should not be ignored. There is a huge personal cost. Here is yet another example of Government decisions costing people a full and healthy life.

Along with tackling the workforce challenges, enabling the effective integration of primary and secondary eye care services is key to the plan for eye health. The Labour-run Welsh Government are leading the way in ophthalmology data and referrals and in reform of the general ophthalmic services contract. Wales is ensuring that there is more detailed data on ophthalmology waiting lists. It is also developing a comprehensive, interoperable electronic patient record system, as recommended by the Royal College of Ophthalmologists. When will the Government be serious about eye health and do the same?

The next Labour Government will take eye health seriously. We will pull every available lever to get ophthalmology patients treated sooner. Sticking plasters are not enough. We need a Government that will grasp the root causes of the staffing crisis in the NHS. That is why Labour will end tax breaks for non-doms and use the money raised to expand our NHS workforce. The next Labour Government will train a new generation of doctors, nurses and midwives to treat patients on time again. We will double the number of medical school places to ensure we have the workforce that we need across different specialties, including ophthalmology.

Labour has a plan. I would be grateful if the Minister set out the Government’s position and explained to patients why they continue to wait so long for treatment. They cannot afford to wait any longer.

December 16, 2022
Rosena Allin-Khan – 2022 Comments on the Language Used by Suella Braverman

The comments made by Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour MP for Tooting, on 1 November 2022.

Braverman’s language in Parliament yesterday was appalling, but the Tories only know how to stoke hatred.

It’s about time we had a Government which shows decency and respect.

November 1, 2022
Rosena Allin-Khan – 2022 Comments on the Resignation of Liz Truss

The comments made by Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour MP for Tooting, on Twitter on 20 October 2022.

The Conservative Party has lost all authority to lead Britain. They’re wrecking the country.

Keir Starmer is ready to govern, Labour are ready to govern. We need a General Election, now.

October 20, 2022
Rosena Allin-Khan – 2022 Comments on Fracking Vote

The comments made by Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour MP for Tooting, on Twitter on 19 October 2022.

I voted to ban fracking.

This was in the Conservative Manifesto, it was Conservative policy, it’s a promise their MPs were elected on. But we witnessed Tory MPs being dragged in to vote against.

Shameful.

October 19, 2022
Rosena Allin-Khan – 2022 Speech to Labour Party Conference

The speech made by Rosena Allin-Khan on 28 September 2022.

Good morning Conference, hasn’t it been a fantastic week?

I am so proud to be part of the Labour team.

A team with one goal – getting Labour back into office.

There are so many reasons why we must end this long, dark night of Tory rule.

And the nation’s mental health is top of my list.

Under the Tories’ 12 years of mismanagement, there are 1.6 million people waiting for mental health treatment.

That’s more than the entire populations of Birmingham and Liverpool put together.

Waiting times are soaring.

And far too often help depends on your postcode, not your need.

And children are being let down.

Referrals for children and young people with eating disorders have doubled and referrals for children who are self-harming have tripled.

Children are waiting days in A&E in crisis.

In the A&E where I work, I see it.

My colleagues across the country see it.

The Tories have cut a quarter of mental health beds and it is our communities

who are suffering.

An entire generation is being failed by this Conservative Government.

This mental health crisis is wrecking the British economy.

Last year 18 million work days were lost to mental illness – more than industrial disputes, more than injuries.

It costs the UK economy at least one hundred and seventeen billion pounds a year.

And who does the cost-of-living crisis hit the hardest?

Those already living with mental illnesses.

Do you remember Thatcher’s Britain?

One of being cold in your own home with the perpetual fear of debt and disconnection.

That should have been consigned to the history books.

I remember all too well my brother, mum and me gathered around the only heater for moments of relief from that gnawing, biting cold that saps your energy and robs you of your concentration.

I listened to my mum, awake at night, worrying how to keep us safe and warm.

This was the 1980s – how are we here again now?

I’m proud to be an NHS doctor and I’m also proud to be a socialist.

Working in A&E, I approach a patient from the point of view of their health needs.

But I know that we cannot divorce the person from their social class, gender, race and background.

The gig economy, soaring bills, rising crime, a brittle and divided society, a broken social media, brimming with hate.

For millions, modern life means poor mental health.

If ever there was an argument that prevention is better than cure, it is with mental health.

We know that the longer mental illnesses are left untreated, the harder and more costly they are to treat.

I met the fantastic team at Paul’s Place here in Liverpool on Monday.

They show how communities support one another after suicide.

Their stories are raw.

Moving.

But their work is filled with hope and love.

Conference, if there’s one word to sum up Labour’s mental health policy it is this:

Prevention.

The next Labour Government will:

• Guarantee NHS mental health support within a month and when I say ‘support’ I mean treatment, not just an assessment of need.

• Improve service quality for patients.

• Recruit more mental health staff – starting with eight and a half thousand new staff by the end of our first term in office.

• Place specialist mental health support in every school.

• Establish mental health hubs for young people in every community – open to under-25s, with no need for referral.

And finally, we will guarantee a fair share of funding for mental health.

We will not abandon those in crisis.

Whenever I meet patients and staff, all over the country, people ask me the same thing, “What practical difference will Labour’s pledges make to me?”

It’s a good question.

Conference, here’s the answer:

Our resolute commitment to prevention, early intervention and timely treatment

will make the difference.

I’ll never forget the sight of a father with an ashen face being brought into the A&E in a wheelchair with his teenage daughter on his lap.

She was, covered in cuts and her body emaciated.

How is it fair that in Tory Britain parents have to give up work to be on suicide watch because they cannot access timely CAMHS support?

Sadly, I’ve met many such parents and their faces will never leave me.

This is why it is vital that children can see someone without bureaucracy, judgement, or red tape, our new mental health hubs will make a difference.

Labour will make the difference and what a contrast to Tory indifference.

Conference, in her ten years as a government Minister, do you know how many major policy speeches Liz Truss has made on mental health?

Not one.

Her reckless mini-budget has left people terrified.

Terrified of what’s to come this winter.

Terrified of how to support their families.

Terrified for their futures.

Liz, you can’t skip the blame for Britain’s mental health crisis.

For those of us who work shifts on the NHS frontline, the length of waiting lists is no surprise.

It’s what happens after over a decade of Tory decision making.

Conference, Labour will transform our mental health services.

New staff.

New services.

Faster treatment.

Prevention as our watchword.

Better mental health for all.

Conference, thank you.

September 28, 2022
Rosena Allin-Khan – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II

The tribute made by Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour MP for Tooting, in the House of Commons on 9 September 2022.

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I am truly humbled to follow what was, quite frankly, one of the most beautiful outpourings of love I have ever had the pleasure of witnessing. [Hon. Members: “ Hear, hear.”]

I rise to add my tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on behalf of the people of Tooting, who are united in grief. So many have been in touch with their own memories and stories, yet one word shines through again and again, and that is “duty”. That sense of duty underpins everything she did. Some recall her service in the British Army when, at a time with invasion imminent, she could have fled to Canada; instead, she stayed in London and put on a khaki uniform and a tin helmet. I remember best her service during the pandemic. Suffering the grief of the loss of her dear husband Philip, she cut a lonely figure at his funeral as she observed social distancing. She embodied the pain that so many people were experiencing at the same time and she led, truly, by example. She was a shining beacon of light in that dark moment and never once deviated from her duty.

It is almost 20 years since Her Majesty visited St George’s University Hospital in Tooting to see the work of aspiring doctors and nurses, and to meet NHS staff. When I am there, I often see the plaque she unveiled of two hands clasped in friendship and mutual support. We all need to hold each other’s hands a little tighter and to hug our loved ones a little closer.

I am reminded of the story told by trauma surgeon David Nott after his return from the horrors of fleeing war-torn Aleppo. When he met the Queen, the doctor was deeply distressed and could not face making polite conversation about his work over lunch. Sensing that, in that special way she had, the Queen touched his hand and brought forth a silver barrel of biscuits. “These are for the dogs,” she told him. They proceeded to spend the lunch feeding the corgis under the table. “There,” she said, “That’s so much better than talking, isn’t it?” Such intuition, such emotional intelligence, such kindness.

I mentioned Her Majesty’s role in the war as a young princess. During the darkest hours of world war two, she gave a BBC radio broadcast and said:

“when the peace comes…it will be for us, the children of today, to make the world of tomorrow a better…place.”

And she did. She made our world a better place. She showed strength as a woman and the strength to shape modern Britain. So let us commit to carry on that spirit of service and, above all, duty: duty to our constituents, to our country and to making the world a better place.

September 10, 2022
Rosena Allin-Khan – 2022 Speech on Ambulance Pressures

The speech made by Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour MP for Tooting, in the House of Commons on 18 July 2022.

I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of the statement and welcome him to his new role. It would have been helpful if, ahead of the current temperatures, he had responded to our urgent question last week, but I am glad that he is here now.

The Secretary of State claims that everything is in hand, but I know from my own experience and that of colleagues across the country that that is far from the truth. We have already seen ambulance wait times soar and pressure on staff spiral, all while the NHS struggles to find the essential staff needed to deliver patient care. I am sure that everyone across the House will agree that our frontline workers are truly amazing. But if nurses and doctors are so overworked and do not have the time and resources to take care of themselves in this heat, the care that they can give patients will be impacted. The Government must step up and show the urgency that this crisis demands.

The Secretary of State talks of creating additional space for new patients in hospitals. How will that happen—with what money, what resources and what staff? Will the Government try to call those new hospitals, too? Is not the reality that creating capacity elsewhere in hospital really means patients being left in corridors on trolleys or in car parks? Can he assure us today that that will not be the case?

Under the Conservatives, the NHS is simply struggling to cope. A record 6.6 million people are waiting for NHS treatment—and they are waiting longer than ever before, often in pain and discomfort. The people in our thoughts this afternoon are those waiting in queues outside hospitals in ambulances, with soaring temperatures and no air conditioning. If it were dogs or cattle, it would be against the law, but these are people in tropical heat unable to enter hospitals. People with conditions triggered by excessive heat are unable to get an ambulance, because ambulances are logjammed outside A&E. Will the Secretary of State apologise to them and their families?

This situation is impacting mental health, too. People attending A&E experiencing a mental health crisis cannot get a bed in a psychiatric hospital, so they wait in A&E, some of them for more than three days. Why? Because the Government have spent the past decade cutting a quarter of mental health beds.

I worked in A&E over this weekend and saw the amazing work being done by staff to prepare for the record heat. The heatwave and surge in covid cases are putting additional pressures on the NHS. I am glad that the Secretary of State recognised that in his statement. Without doubt, 12 years of Conservative mismanagement and underfunding have left our health service unable to cope, which not only has an impact on patients but hurts staff. Staff morale is at rock bottom. Is it any wonder that 5.7 million days were lost to mental ill health in the NHS last year?

Last week, the Minister of State claimed that the Government had procured a £30 million contract for an auxiliary ambulance service, but, moments later, it was revealed that it was yet to be awarded. Can the Health Secretary confirm whether the Minister of State has issued a correction yet?

On Wednesday, ambulance trusts were placed on their highest possible alert level. A national emergency was declared on Friday and, over the weekend, hospitals were scrambling to increase capacity. Why then has it taken until today for the Health Secretary to step up and show leadership? Can he tell us who he met over the weekend? I do not mean at Chequers; I mean from the NHS. Can he also tell us why the Prime Minister did not think it necessary to chair Cobra today? Just when we thought irony had reached a peak, the Prime Minister spent the weekend partying when he should have been dealing with a health emergency. Has the Secretary of State spoken to the Prime Minister today? The Health Secretary has been too slow. The Prime Minister has not even bothered to turn up and the Government have gone AWOL.

If the Government will not step up now, then Labour will. As temperatures reach a record high, all we are getting from the Government is more hot air. This is a crisis. The country has one message for Ministers: stop squabbling and plotting, do your jobs and get a grip.

July 20, 2022
Rosena Allin-Khan – 2022 Speech on the Draft Mental Health Bill

The speech made by Rosena Allin-Khan, the Shadow Health Secretary, in the House of Commons on 27 June 2022.

I thank the Secretary of State for an advance copy of the statement, and for sharing his family’s experiences over the weekend. I am so sorry to hear about the circumstances surrounding his brother’s tragic death.

This overhaul of the Mental Health Act 1983 is long awaited. We welcome the draft Bill, and the fact that the Government have accepted the majority of the recommendations from Sir Simon Wessely’s independent review of the Act. It was interesting to hear, in the statement, of the Government’s focus on keeping people in crisis out of A&E, and of their plans to reduce the use of general ambulance call-outs for those experiencing a mental health crisis. In 2020, there were over 470,000 calls to 999 because someone was in a mental health crisis, which took up an estimated 66,000 hours of call time. In my email inbox, I have numerous examples from across the country of children being stuck in A&E for over 24 hours waiting for a mental health bed. One child waited over three days. When I work shifts in A&E, I see more and more people coming into hospital in crisis. The increased frequency is deeply concerning. Conditions are getting worse and illnesses are going untreated. We would not allow that in cancer treatment, so why is it allowed in mental health treatment?

Deprivation of liberty and the use of coercion can cause lasting trauma and distress. That is especially true for children and young people who find themselves in these most difficult situations and whose voices are often not heard when decisions are made. We are pleased that patients will have greater autonomy over their treatment in a mental health crisis, and we are glad that the Government have been working with organisations to listen to the experiences of those with learning disabilities or autism, but will the Secretary of State explain what safeguards will be put in place for people with learning disabilities or autism should the worst happen and they find themselves in prison? This is not a straightforward issue. Many people with learning disabilities or autism also live with serious mental illnesses, and we have to make sure that they have their rights protected and have dignity in their treatment.

In our communities, we witness the harsh reality of the health inequalities that so desperately need to be addressed. As the Secretary of State said, black people are over four times more likely to be detained under the Mental Health Act.

Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)

Will my good friend give way?

Mr Speaker

Order. The shadow Minister cannot give way; this is a statement.

Dr Allin-Khan

We need to advance the mental health equality framework and there must be culturally appropriate services and the freedom for local areas to look at their specific populations in order to have the most suitable approaches. Culturally appropriate community provision is vital for mental health services that are truly joined-up and effective and that, crucially, work well for patients. Will the Secretary of State also provide reassurances on the future of community care and on how they will work with local authorities across the country to deliver community provision that works?

Mental health staffing levels are absolutely crucial to ensuring that mental health services are fit for purpose. More than a year and a half ago, I asked the Secretary of State’s predecessor about the future of mental health staffing. The proposals that have been set out today go well beyond what has been committed to in the long-term plan. Labour has a plan: to recruit an extra 8,500 mental health staff to treat 1 million additional patients a year by the end of our first term in office. Will the Secretary of State outline when we will get the workforce settlement? What reassurance can he give on filling training places?

For too long, the Government have had their head in the sand when it comes to mental health. They have failed on eradicating dormitories from mental health facilities, failed on cracking down on the use of restraint, and failed on getting on top of waiting times. We cannot have this kicked into the long grass and, if it gets lost in the political quagmire of Conservative in-fighting, should the Government call an early general election, people will suffer. We cannot have the Government fail on mental health legislation any longer. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity; we simply must get this right for everyone who depends on these vital services.

June 28, 2022
Rosena Allin-Khan – 2021 Speech on the Medical Cannabis Bill

The speech made by Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour MP for Tooting, in the House of Commons on 10 December 2021.

I must begin by paying tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Manchester, Withington (Jeff Smith), a fantastic campaigner who is working across party lines and with affected families up and down the country to make a real difference, both for those who are unable to obtain the treatment they need and for those who are left paying huge sums of money for private prescriptions. I also pay tribute to my dear and hon. Friend the Member for Middlesbrough (Andy McDonald), whose bravery in speaking today adds powerful testimony to this debate. I know 100% that his story echoes those of the people we are fighting for in this debate.

The objectives of this Bill, for me, are clear and simple, but I fear, listening to some of the contributions today, it has been misunderstood. It would be a huge step forward for patients who need access to medical cannabis, and it creates a register of general practitioners trained in medical cannabis who are allowed to prescribe it, in addition to the specialist doctors who are already able to do so. Inclusion on the register is on an opt-in basis for GPs. The Bill importantly creates a commission to propose a framework for the assessment of cannabis-based medicines and their suitability for prescription in England, to sit alongside existing Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency processes for conventional pharmaceutical drugs.

I think it is very clear that what the Bill is asking for is a step forward with an end in sight for the pain, anguish and heartache, not to mention bankruptcy, experienced by many families. No one is saying that there should not be a robust examination of all evidence, but we are saying that there are current mechanisms in place to protect people on the medication and that, while we wait for some extremely timely processes, there are families who cannot wait and who are very clearly benefiting from the medication. It is very important that we recognise that.

The commission is also tasked with recommending any other measures to overcome barriers to access on the NHS, which has been mentioned. Those changes would be welcome, as they would certainly help to reduce many of the barriers patients currently face when attempting to access medicinal cannabis. Progress in making cannabis-based medical products available to those who need them has been extremely slow. As we have heard today, there are people who have transitioned from childhood to adulthood while waiting for further progress on something that is important. The impact of continued seizures means that there is developmental delay for young people—the children we are talking about—and their ability to achieve their full potential in life. We cannot ignore that.

Labour welcomed the fact that the Government accepted the therapeutic use of cannabis in 2018, but it still remains too difficult for suffering patients to obtain the treatment that they need. Despite that change in the law over three years ago, the vast majority of people who would benefit from cannabis-based medical products are still unable to access them through the health service. The campaign group End our Pain believes that only three prescriptions have been granted through the NHS. That is surely nowhere near the levels that this House, patients and the wider medical community would have anticipated.

Andy McDonald

My hon. Friend is making a wonderful summary and presentation. Is she as frustrated as I am by some of the contributions that have been made today, which seem to suggest that we need to start again when having this debate? We have been through this process. The law has been changed to allow the prescription of these products, yet all we have are three. Is it not really frightening that we are now challenging the original decision to change the law? That is what has happened today.

Dr Allin-Khan

Absolutely. I thank my hon. Friend for his contribution. To take any further step backwards from the progress we have made in a cross-party collegiate manner would be a travesty. We would be letting down families across the country.

Lia Nici (Great Grimsby) (Con)

The way the discussion is going at the moment is that we are talking about going backwards. The reason my hon. Friends are having those discussions is that the law has already changed, and I do not believe we need to legislate. We need to say, “We need to get these medicines that are approved already on the NHS.”

Dr Allin-Khan

I thank the hon. Member for that contribution. That is exactly right. The Bill seeks to move that forward, not frustrate the process. I welcome any intervention that underscores that.

Lia Nici

When we talk to members of the public and our constituents about the debates we have, we explain that we learn a lot by having this exchange of views. It is wonderful. Every school and business should have such debates in this collegiate way. It is not that we are against the Bill, but that we believe the law is already in place. We just need action on NHS funding and to get more of these approved, tested medicines on the lists.

Dr Allin-Khan

In three years, we have had three prescriptions on the NHS. In three years, we have seen people in fear of not having roofs over their heads because they cannot afford to give life-changing medication to their children.

James Daly

Will the hon. Member give way?

Dr Allin-Khan

I will make a bit more progress and then I would be absolutely delighted to give way.

The situation that we face, whereby only three prescriptions in three years have been allowed, pushes more and more patients into the hands of private providers, who, as we have heard, are charging extortionate amounts of money each month for treatment. For the vast majority of people, that is simply out of reach.

Let me add something that I was not originally going to say: I, too, am a science geek. I have a biochemistry degree and I worked in medical research before even going to medical school. I understand the importance of robust, evidence-based medicine, but I can also tell hon. Members that people searching in a very desperate way for things that will improve the quality of their life, or even keep their children alive, might also go to places where absolutely no thought is given to the purity of a drug. They may seek alternatives that are increasingly more dangerous for their children. It is important to recognise that.

Christian Wakeford (Bury South) (Con)

As another science geek with a chemistry degree, in which I specialised in drug design and synthesis, I completely agree with the hon. Member’s point. That is part of the concern. It is about having not just the product right now, but the right product, and about making sure that we have efficacy and safety. I completely appreciate all these points. That is why I do not necessarily agree with the perspective on the commission, but I have a lot of sympathy for clauses 1 and 2, which will go some way to help. However, the main stumbling block is the financing. We have already legalised the product. Every time it falls down, is it because it has not been licensed? Maybe, but finance seems to be the stumbling block at every single level.

Dr Allin-Khan

I do not need to tell the hon. Member, who has mentioned his CV—as many of us scientists have today—the cost of not investing in these young people. Think of every time a young person who would benefit from this drug goes into intensive care with seizures, every time they have alternative, expensive sedatives keeping them alive on a ventilator or the fact that they do not fulfil their potential, cannot go on and work and cannot give back to the economy. It is a false economy not to invest in this.

Colum Eastwood (Foyle) (SDLP)

Does the hon. Lady agree that it would be much better if we had less sympathy from Government Members and we got them to stop talking the Bill out and come with us to vote it through?

Dr Allin-Khan

I could not agree more; my hon. Friend puts the point across perfectly. If anyone is planning on talking the Bill out today, please will they ask themselves who benefits from that and whether they would feel proud of frustrating a process for many children and families that would mean that they did not have to go through, frankly, the hell that we have heard described?

James Daly

The hon. Lady is being extremely generous with her time; she will please forgive me for intervening, but I want to call on her expertise. The specific intent of Parliament was to allow medical professionals to prescribe non-licensed cannabis-based products. It cannot be any clearer than that; that is where the law is now. I agree with the point that was made—the fact that there have been only three prescriptions is ridiculous. However, perhaps she can address this question: the medical professionals who are considering such matters can see the evidence that we have talked about—it has been incredibly well articulated by all hon. Members—so why are they not referring those matters on and saying, “This patient needs this treatment”?

The other question that I want to ask—very inarticulately—is about the two-stage process of the clinical referral and then the money within the CCG. Is the problem that it is getting through the first bit—the clinical referral—but the money in the CCG is stopping it? I wonder if she could address those points in her remarks.

Dr Allin-Khan

My understanding and my belief, unless someone has an alternative proposal, is that clinicians are often screaming from the rooftops in the knowledge that their patients need this medicine. We are where we are, however, with only three prescriptions having been granted in three years. This Bill seeks to improve that and move us forward.

Families being forced to pay for treatment from private providers creates an unjust two-tier health system. A founding principle of our health service is that we do not believe that people’s access to treatment and services should be based on their ability to pay—it is as simple as that. The barriers in accessing medicinal cannabis are causing exactly that situation. We would not tolerate that for any other medication, so we should not tolerate it here. The Government must speed up and improve the availability of medical cannabis on the NHS and guarantee that patients across the country can access those products where appropriate.

We have all heard the testimonies of children who receive no respite from their seizures and of patients whose chronic pain has become a constant of their lives. Working in hospitals, I regularly meet those people and their families, who beg me and other doctors to help their loved ones. Witnessing their suffering never gets any less upsetting, especially when we know that there are options to alleviate it. Unrelenting pain can be so devastating for all involved. It is imperative that we listen to those who would benefit from access to cannabis-based products and allow them to guide our future thinking.

We have a voice in this place. I commend hon. Members from both sides of the House for using their voice today to speak up for those families who cannot be here to make the case themselves. Hon. Members have been begging, but we should not have to beg to do the right thing for the people who we serve.

Tonia Antoniazzi

Some of the voices that we have heard in the House today have talked about an unlicensed drug. The children who we have been talking about have been taking unlicensed drugs. I went to The Hague with two different families—two mothers—to pick up a prescription there before they could get it here. We walked into a pharmacy and picked it up, just as I would pick up my inhaler from Boots. There should be no fear. This is an over-the-counter drug in places such as the Netherlands, not an awful unlicensed drug that it is impossible to get. Does my hon. Friend agree that we need to break down that barrier and move on?

Dr Allin-Khan

As usual, I could not agree more with my hon. Friend, who makes a passionate and fair point.

The Bill serves as an opportunity to move forward in a way that even the sceptics could support. I say again that anyone who is planning to talk out the Bill should take a long hard look at themselves in the mirror and ask themselves what they are doing. They need to walk a mile in the shoes of the families who are worrying about whether their child will be alive the next day.

Last month, we had two debates on the issue in a matter of days. I would like to think that that demonstrates the collective will in the House to make progress, but that will and the warm words it brings are not enough for the thousands of people who should have benefited from those prescriptions in 2018 and since. We now need further action, and I wholeheartedly believe that the Bill would go some way towards achieving that. I trust that the Government believe that too.

December 12, 2021
Rosena Allin-Khan – 2021 Comments on Children’s Mental Health Funding

The comments made by Rosena Allin-Khan, the Shadow Minister for Mental Health, on 5 March 2021.

The Government are so desperate for a positive headline that they are now recycling money previously announced. This is not new funding. It’s a rehash of funding announced last year which is too little, too late.

With Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services referrals doubling and children going back to school in a matter of days, these resources were needed much sooner.

This is simply a small sticking plaster during a mental health crisis.

March 8, 2021