Campaigning for improved health services In West Norfolk
In his fortnightly column, South West Norfolk MP Terry Jermy discusses health services and the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East…
Last week I undertook my latest visit to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) in Lynn to discuss ongoing work to secure its rebuild.
The QEH is one of seven hospitals across the UK on the Government’s fast track programme given the extent of RAAC (Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete) present in the building. The structure of the hospital began to fail many years ago with thousands of metal and wooden props now needed to prevent it collapsing. RAAC is also present in the walls as well as the ceilings, complicating matters further.
On my visit, I met with chief executive officer Alice Webster as well as QEH programme director Peter Box and chief operating officer Simon Illingworth. Securing a new hospital is of utmost importance to me so I was keen to meet the team to discuss the latest progress. After 14 years of the Conservatives failing to properly fund our NHS, it is clear to see that Labour’s investment of over £1bn for the rebuild of the QEH cannot come soon enough.
I visited the hospital last summer, soon after the election and immediately began lobbying the Government for rapid progress. Following the meeting on Friday, I have written to health and social care secretary Wes Streeting to press for the QEH rebuild to happen as soon as possible and ask that all opportunities be taken to bring forward the 2032/33 completion date.
Keeping with the health theme, I was delighted on Saturday to attend the Downham Menopause Cafe – meeting around 30 ladies who kindly took the time to share with me their lived experiences of accessing health services locally. We all know that health services generally have been suffering, and it is clear from Saturday’s conversations that there are difficulties accessing women’s health services and more specifically support relating to menopause. I look forward to ongoing conversations and will explore opportunities to bring about meaningful improvements. I must take a moment to praise the work of Frances Rayner who co-ordinates the Menopause Cafe which is clearly a very important service in this community.
On the global scene – the world certainly feels less safe of late, and I know local people as well as Ukrainians and Palestinians particularly feel very unsafe and troubled by recent developments. I am proud of the role that our Prime Minister has played in diplomatic negotiations on the world stage. South West Norfolk has a strong affinity with our armed services, and I am sure many will warmly welcome the increase in defence spending announced recently. I hope such funding will not be necessary and that cooler heads prevail, but I am reminded of the quote: “If you want peace, prepare for war.”
