Transcripts For CSPAN Question Time 20150112 : vimarsana.com

Interviews are available online. Here are some others you might like. Scott berg on woodrow wilson. And amity shlaes on calvin coolidge. Www. Cspan. Org you can watch them atwww. Cspan. Org. Here are a few of the comments we have recently received on the 114th congress. The thing that really needs to happen is going back to what the incoming majority said, they need to get back to regular order. If they go back impact of 13 bills it would take to fund the government, everybody can see who voted for it. To put what amendment up, and let the president passed it or veto it. I hope it is a more mature and responsible congress we will see emerging in the next two years. I think emblematic of this situation is this john boehner challenge today. It is time for both parties to put aside the bitter partisan battles and get on to the task they are constitutionally required to do, to govern, to legislate. I think what the American People said in november of both parties is it is time to see that finally start to happen. I think the congress, what can we expect of them . With Citizens United all the politicians are bought and sold really. First thing on their agenda is the keystone pipeline. Frankly, the American People are prepared to get past the polished language, the false promise. We need you to understand that you work for us. We have seen nothing but foreclosures, people in the street. And frankly, we are tired of these silly games being played. And we do not believe anything we are hearing any longer to create jobs. That is so worn out. Continue to let us know what you think about the programs you are watching. Email us at comments at www. Cspan. Org. Or send us a tweet. Join the cspan conversation. Like us on facebook. Follow us on twitter. Next, Prime Minister David Cameron at the house of commons. Then a discussion of how Congress Might deal with the federal budget. After that, senators and representatives talk about their efforts to stop sex trafficking. Back from the holiday recess, members returned to the british house of commons to question the Prime Minister on domestic and international issues. David cameron called the paris terror attack barbaric, and says the u. K. Stands with the french people. Proposed changes to the Health Service dominated most of question time this week, with questions on patient waiting times and hiring more staff. This is just under 35 minutes. Question to the Prime Minister. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I am sure the whole house will want to join me in condemning the barbaric attack this morning on an office of a magazine in paris, in which it is reported that 10 or more people may have been killed. While details are still unclear, i know that this house and this country stand united with the french people in our opposition to all forms of terrorism, and we stand squarely for free speech and democracy. These people will never be able to take us off those values. This morning i had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others, and in addition to my duties in this house i shall have further such meetings later today. I saw the problems at Gloucestershire Hospitals last week at first hand after an elderly relative phoned 111 and we ended up waiting more than four hours for her to see a doctor in cheltenham a and e. Then she was promptly discharged. The local trust seems to be blaming patients for making bad choices, but will the Prime Minister find out why so many 111 calls end in a and e, why trusts such as ours route so many unplanned admissions through a and e and why emergency doctors cannot be provided at night in cheltenham, all of which seems calculated to make normal winter pressures worse . He makes an important point. In the last quarter, the nhs has faced some unprecedented challenges. There have been more than 5. 5 Million People going to accident and emergency units, which is an increase of a quarter of a million on the previous year. Gloucestershire has had £3. 6 million of the £700 million of winter pressure money that we have produced, and it should use that money to make sure it provides the best possible service it can. On the nhs 111 service, it is important to see what is actually happening. The number of people using it has almost doubled over the last year. Of those who use it, 27 say that had it not been there, they would have gone to accident and emergency, but in the event of using 111 only 7 are going. So i think it is a good service, but i am sure it can be further improved. Recognizing the pressure on the nhs, i am sure everyone in this house will want to say a thank you to our hardworking doctors and nurses and other hospital staff for all the work they do this winter. I join the Prime Minister in expressing horror and outrage about the unfolding events in paris. We stand in solidarity with the people of france against this evil terrorist attack by people intent on attacking our democratic way of life and freedom of speech. We are united in our determination to defeat them. Doctors, nurses and other nhs staff are doing a valiant job, but over 90,000 people in the last quarter waited on trolleys for more than four hours, at least 10 hospitals have declared Major Incident status in recent days, and one had to resort to twitter to appeal for medical staff. Does he agree with me that our nhs is facing a crisis . Our nhs is facing huge pressure this winter particularly on its a and e units, but the point that it is important to make is this. The nhs is facing this winter with more doctors, more nurses and more money than it has ever had in its history. What is important is that we recognize the pressures that are there and put in place plans for the short term, the medium term and the long term, and that with the massive increase in the number of people going to a and e, any Health System in the world would struggle to cope with some of this pressure. In june 2011, this was the Prime Ministers solemn promise. I refuse to go back to the days when people had to wait for hours on end to be seen in a and e. So let me be absolutely clear we wont. Will he now apologize to patients across the country for having broken that promise . I deeply regret it when any patient does not get a good service, but let us be absolutely clear about the numbers of people accessing a and e. Today, compared with four years ago, over 2,500 more patients are seen within four years. That is what is happening. We knew there was pressure on our nhs, and that is why, over the last year, we have seen 1,800 more doctors in our hospitals, 4,700 more nurses in our hospitals and 2,500 more beds in our hospitals. There is more that we need to do, but let us recognize that the Health Service in every part of our United Kingdom faces these challenges. We must go on giving it the money, the resources and the people so that it goes on providing a great service. As far as i can see, the Prime Minister is not apologizing to patients. He is blaming the patients. The pressures on a and e are not just happening on his watch, but are a direct result of decisions he has taken. When he decided to close almost a quarter of walkin centers was it not blindingly obvious that if people could not go to a walk in center, it would have a big impact on a and e . We have 1,000 more doctors in a and e, and we are spending £13 billion more on the nhs, when four years ago the Shadow Health secretary said that it would be irresponsible to spend more money. What is interesting is that here we are question nmber 3 and he has no solutions to put forward. That only says to me that while the government are interested in improving the nhs, he simply wants to use it as a political football. This is about politics. They have failed. No answer on walkin centers, so let us try him on another decision he has made that has been a cause of the crisis. When he decided to reduce the availability of social care services, so that 300,000 fewer older people are getting the help they need, was it not blindingly obvious that if people could not get the care they needed at home, it would have a big impact on a and e . Again, absolutely no solutions. Presumably, if he had any solutions, he would have implemented them in wales. He raises the importance of social care, and i agree. That is why, from the first of april, we are putting £5 billion more into social care via the Better Care Fund. Up until now, the labour party has told us not to introduce the Better Care Fund. I assume they now support this important investment. There is one very simple solution. Get rid of this useless Prime Minister. No answer on care for the elderly, so let us consider the next thing he did. When he decided to ignore the pleas of doctors, nurses and patients, and plough ahead with his damaging topdown reorganization, was it not blindingly obvious that if £3 billion is diverted out of patient care, it will have a big impact on a and e . Our changes have cut bureaucracy and saved £4. 9 billion. That is why there are 9,000 more doctors, 3,000 more nurses, and 6 million more people getting inpatient appointments. Order. There is too much noise in the chamber from both sides of the house. The Prime Ministers answers must be heard. You can see this as plain as you like. The leader of the opposition apparently said to the Political Editor of the bbc, i want to weaponize the nhs. That is what he said, and i think that is disgraceful. The nhs is not a weapon, it is a way we care for our families, it is a way we care for the elderly, it is a way we look after the frail. Perhaps when he gets to his feet he will deny that he said he wanted to weaponize the nhs, a disgusting thing to say. I will tell him what is disgusting. Order. I said a moment ago that the Prime Ministers answers must be heard. The leader of the oppositions questions must be heard as well. It is very simple. I will tell him what is disgusting. A Prime Minister who said that people could put their trust in him on the nhs. He has betrayed that trust. He is in denial about the crisis in the nhs. This is a crisis on his watch as a result of his decisions. That is why people know that if they want to get rid of the crisis in the nhs, they have to get rid of this Prime Minister. If ever we wanted proof that they want to use this issue as a political football, we have just seen it. If labour has an answer to the nhs, can it explain why it cut the budget in wales by 8 . That is where labour is in charge. All parts of the United Kingdom face a health challenge, but the real risk to the nhs is the risk of unfunded spending commitments bringing chaos to our economy, which would wreck our nhs. That is the risk and that is why the choice at the election will be to stick with the people with a longterm plan, not a labour party that would wreck our economy and wreck our nhs. Does the Prime Minister agree with my constituent, who contacted me at the weekend asking to join us, who said that the only people fit to run our economy are the Prime Minister and the chancellor . The surprise was that the gentleman was the exchairman of ilford north labour party. I am sure that that is the first of 4 million conversations he will be having at the coming election. There is no strong nhs without a strong economy. With our economy, we can see the deficit cut in half, 1. 75 million more people in work and the fastest growth of any major economy in the west. That is the record, and that is what will enable us to fund our nhs, to fund our schools and to provide the Public Services our country needs. With patients being told to pretend that they are camping, the symbol of the Prime Ministers nhs is of patients being treated in tents outside accident and emergency. When he promised a bareknuckle fight against accident and Emergency Service closures, did he intend to mislead the electorate . All our Health Services right across the United Kingdom face a challenge. Actually, the english nhs that i am responsible for is performing better than the welsh nhs, the scottish nhs and the nhs in northern ireland, but the facts are these. Compared with four years ago there are 2,500 more people every day seeing a doctor or a nurse within four hours. Why is that happening . Because we put the money in. And when we put the money in the Shadow Health secretary said it was irresponsible. Presumably that is why labour cut the nhs in wales. I call sir david amess. I thank the house for that reception, which more than compensates for my having been made neither a duke nor an earl. [laughter] later today, the second edition of the booklet, the party of opportunity will be launched. Does my right honorable friend agree with what the former conservative Prime Minister, sir john major, has written in the booklet, which is that National Wealth eases poverty, pays for social care and creates jobs . That is exactly what this conservativeled government have been doing. He is absolutely right. The first duty of a government is to produce a stable, strong and growing economy that can fund the defense and the Public Services we need. On this side of the house, we understand that. They have learnt absolutely nothing in the past four years. They would borrow and spend and tax, and put us back exactly in the position of crisis and chaos in which we found the country in 2010. The one thing that was clear about the referendum in scotland was the amount of young people getting involved, not just in voting but getting out there campaigning and being part of it. Is it not time that we got the rest of the country on board and got votes for 16 and 17yearolds . The Referendum Campaign in scotland did switch a whole lot of people on to politics and political issues, because the question being asked was so important. We have said that we should respect the views of the Scottish Parliament and the welsh parliament, and we will devolve powers on voting age. In this house, i am very happy for us to have a vote. Personally, i think the right age is 18, but i am very happy to listen to the debate, to listen to the arguments and to put them forward. For more than 50 years, thalidomiders have been campaigning for justice, particularly from the german manufacturers grunenthal. Now that more than 150 mps have signed an open letter to the german chancellor, would the Prime Minister add this to his busy agenda today so that we might get a decent and fair settlement for all concerned . I have raised this issue on behalf of a constituent, not only through the European Parliament but with the german authorities, and i shall certainly reflect on what the right honorable gentleman says. The price of oil has now fallen to 50 a barrel. While this is good news for motorists, it is bad news for Scotlands Oil industry and thousands of workers. It comes just weeks after Nicola Sturgeon said we were on the verge of a Second Oil Boom and after the independence white paper said the price would be 113 a barrel. This is a serious issue. Jobs depend on it. So will the Prime Minister agree to meet with Industry Leaders and workers to see what support can be provided . First, north sea oil is a vital industry for the uk and one of the biggest investors in our country, so we should do everything we can to help it. Secondly, and for that reason, we took steps in the autumn statement to improve the taxation regime for north sea oil. Thirdly, as we said during the Referendum Campaign, it makes the case that north sea oil is better off with the broad shoulders of the uk standing behind it, because we never know when the oil price is going to be more than 100 a barrel or, as it is today, around 50. It makes the case for the strength of the uk and the utterly misguided nature of the snp, which thought it could base its entire budget on such a high oil price. The latest o. N. S. Figures show that youth unemployment in crawley is at its lowest level since records began, but of course we need to do a lot more. What further policies are the government pursuing to ensure that businesses in crawley and across the country generate even more employment as part of our longterm economic plan . I am delighted to agree with my honorable friend. The youth claimant count in crawley has fallen by 42 in the last year alone, and the longterm youth claimant count longterm young Unemployed People is down by 71 . He asks what more we can do. We are cutting the jobs tax on Small Businesses and charities by £2,000. We are abolishing National Insurance contributions for those who employ under21s; we are extending the doubling of Small Business rate relief; we have cut Corporation Tax including for small firms. And startup loans are being offered right around the country, including to those in crawley, who are taking them up. Throughout the christmas period, nhs s