On Monday, Richard spoke during the debate on the King's Speech in the House of Commons, which focussed on the Health Service.
Speaking afterwards, Richard Fuller MP said:
My constituency of North East Bedfordshire suffers more than most when it comes to access to GPs and primary care, principally due to the fact that we have seen household growth of 3x to 5x the national average in the past decade. Even pre-Covid this was one of the most frequently raised issues by constituents and whilst significant improvements have been made in recent months, a great deal of work still needs to be done.
In my speech I was keen to make a number of points ranging from GP and junior doctor remuneration, through to the need for private capital to support the roll out of diagnostic centres across the country. I was also delighted to acknowledge the decision by Mayor Tom Wootton to provide capital from the council's budget to bring forward the provision of primary care services across Bedford Borough.
Following my recent visits, I was pleased to be able to highlight the excellent work on Social Prescribing being conducted by the Bedford Rural Communities Charity, as well as the innovation by Pharmacies such as Jardines in Biggleswade in offering out of hours prescription provision.
Finally, I bemoaned the fact that Neil O'Brien MP had left his role as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department of Health and Social Care because a meeting had been arranged with me and the leader of Central Beds Council to try to make progress with Biggleswade Health Hub. I asked that his successor will honour that commitment and get a date in the diary as soon as possible.
Richard's full speech can be watched here and can be read in Hansard here.
