That an humble Address be presented to His Majesty as follows:
“Most Gracious Sovereign—We, Your Majesty’s most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled, beg leave to thank Your Majesty for the most gracious Speech which Your Majesty has addressed to both Houses of Parliament”.
My Lords, it is an enormous honour to deliver my maiden speech in introducing today’s debate on creating opportunity through education and skills, early years, children’s social care and healthcare. When I first entered the other place, I determined to spend a considerable amount of time in the Chamber. My sudden and surprising appointment as a Minister last week, with my introduction only yesterday, means that I have not been able to absorb quite so much here. I can assure noble Lords that I have given it a go with the methods available to me, but I am in absolutely no doubt that YouTube, and even the excellent parliamentary TV, cannot possibly emulate the vivid reality that I am now experiencing. I look forward to learning quickly, not just about the ways of working in this place but also from the enormous range of experience that I know rests with your Lordships.
In my ministerial portfolio, however, I am blessed with some prior experience. It is 25 years, almost to the day, since I first entered the Department for Education as a Schools Minister. In that role, I could reflect on my previous teaching career of 11 years, in Worcestershire schools and at Worcester Sixth Form College, and on the experiences of those close to me. I am surrounded by educators: both my parents were teachers, my father being both a head teacher and the principal of an adult education college; my sister has just finished a distinguished teaching career, while my son is just starting his; and my partner is a senior university academic. Colleagues have told me that I can expect forensic and informed but civil challenge in this Chamber. As noble Lords can see, I also get that at home—just without the civil bit.
Of course, I will miss the other roles that I have played since my last ministerial career. I chaired the Jo Cox Foundation, where I am particularly grateful to the wonderful staff and the board as well as to both the noble Baroness, Lady Bertin, and my noble friend Lord Coaker, who chaired our Civility Commission to tackle the abuse and intimidation that blights our democracy. I also chaired the Sandwell Children’s Trust, where I worked with committed social workers and other staff safeguarding the most vulnerable children and families. Of course, there is also the “For The Many” podcast, which I have been doing with LBC’s Iain Dale for seven years—starting long before others jumped on the bandwagon of doing a podcast with two opposing political views.
My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness for introducing today’s important debate on the humble Address. It was a privilege to be present to hear the second King’s Speech of the King’s reign in your Lordships’ House on Wednesday. It is good to see that he is making a good recovery from his recent illness.
I warmly welcome the noble Baroness, Lady Smith of Malvern, to her place at the Dispatch Box and congratulate her on her excellent maiden speech. She brings a wealth of experience to your Lordships’ House through her work as an economics teacher, a local authority councillor, a Member of Parliament, and an Education Minister—and, of course, she can be very proud of the fact that she became the first woman Home Secretary and the third woman to hold one of the great offices of state, after Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister and Margaret Beckett as Foreign Secretary. Finally, I think I am right in saying that the noble Baroness is the first at the Dispatch Box to have appeared on “Strictly Come Dancing”. This will help her to be fleet of foot at the Dispatch Box, to pirouette around the departmental civil servants, and to get into the rhythm of this great place. For my side, I do hope I will not step on her toes.
We on this side of the House are proud of our track record while in government in relation to education. Our children are now the best readers in the West, ranked fourth globally in the PIRLS survey, and ninth in maths in the TIMSS survey—a marked improvement on the position in 2010. We have seen 90% of our schools judged to be good or outstanding by Ofsted, and our free schools programme delivered quality, innovation and great education for pupils, particularly in disadvantaged areas and for those with SEND.
It is so important to have stability in skills policy. Apprenticeships are unrecognisable now in their breadth and quality compared with 2010, a time when some people doing apprenticeships did not even know what they were. They are real engines of social mobility and directly address our skills shortage. We have real concerns about the Government’s proposals to reform the apprenticeship levy. First, we think that this approach risks diluting the focus on apprenticeships and halving the number of apprentices. Apprentices are key to addressing our skills gap in the economy, including in our public services. Secondly, there is a real risk that the state ends up funding skills training that employers would otherwise have funded themselves. How will the Government avoid this?
My Lords, I too offer my congratulations to the noble Baroness, Lady Smith, on her maiden speech. I am sure that the portfolio she will be responsible for is in safe hands. I also thank the noble Baroness, Lady Barran, for her time as Minister; if there was ever an example of service, I think she fits that bill. I am also looking forward to the valedictory speech from my noble friend Lady Jolly, who joined the Liberals back in 1984 in Devon and Cornwall and has had a distinguished career as our spokesperson on health, social care and defence, and outside interests on the Citizens Advice Bureau and Credit Union. She was on the board of the Diocesan Synod and was interested in regeneration organisations.
I congratulate Labour on its success, and my party looks forward to working with it. I think the things that it has said so far, both in its manifesto and in the King’s Speech, broadly accord with many of the things we have been pushing for over the last period. There are a few things missing, and we will highlight those in due course.
The general election created two records. The first record was not for us but, sadly, for the Conservatives, with the lowest share of the vote, at 24%. The second was for the governing party getting only 34% of the vote. I do not want to rub that in, but it shows that there has to be a consensual approach to the way we work. We do that in any case in the House of Lords, so hopefully that will not be a problem.
I will talk first about schools and about teachers. The Government have talked about recruiting an extra 6,500 teachers, which is fine. We need to be clear that these teachers are just for England. Currently there are 20,227 primary and secondary schools, so 6,500 teachers, if my maths is correct, means that they will get 3.1% of the schools.
We have a crisis in our teaching profession at all sorts of levels: we have the highest number of vacancies, the fewest number of people wanting to train as a teacher, and the highest number of teacher shortages in shortage subjects. Those issues need to be addressed urgently.
My Lords, I join other noble Lords in welcoming the noble Baroness, Lady Smith of Malvern, and congratulate her on her maiden speech. I tease her a little when I say that it was a really apolitical maiden speech. I also extend my congratulations to the noble Baroness, Lady Merron, on her appointment as Minister of State in the Department of Health and Social Care. I wish her well. I have no doubt that in days to come we will have many opportunities to interact and debate health issues.
In the brief time allocated to me today, I will confine my remarks mostly to issues related to health. I find myself much in support of the proposed areas of legislation that relate to health. The Tobacco and Vapes Bill, with powers to implement it, will deliver huge health gains. More than 80,000 people a year die of diseases related to smoking, from 18 different types of cancers to cardiovascular disease, chronic lung disease, pregnancy-related disease, stillbirths and pre-term births. The measures will go a long way to reducing health inequalities. Figures show that there are more than 6 million smokers in the UK today, and more than 100,000 children take up smoking each year. The Government’s aim over the years to make the UK a smoke-free country is ambitious but, in my view, worthy.
The proposals to ban the advertising and promotion of vapes are good as far as they go. We will have to wait for details in the legislation. I hope the Government will be bold enough in time to ban vapes altogether. Scientific evidence already shows their high levels of nicotine, and children are taking up vaping; 5% of children now use vapes and 20% have tried vapes. Vapes should be banned as much as tobacco smoking.
At long last, we will now have a Bill to amend mental health. No doubt the noble Baroness, Lady Hollins, will have much to say about that. For my part I welcome it. I hope that the legislation will have robust measures to protect and help particularly children and people with learning disabilities. Importantly, I hope that the legislation will include measures to monitor the impact of the proposed legislation, possibly through the appointment of a commissioner, without us having to amend the Bill. I also hope that the legislation will address funding issues in mental health.
My Lords, it is an honour to respond to the gracious Speech. I welcome the Minister as she joins us in this House at the Dispatch Box. I also thank the noble Baroness, Lady Jolly, for her contribution to the House, not just on health and social care; those of us who are female priests and bishops thank her for her support.
I welcome many of the Government’s healthcare announcements, especially the two public health legislative measures. I too am glad to see the tobacco and vapes Bill continue. Smoking continues to be one of the leading causes of preventable deaths following the lines of inequality, so bringing forward this Bill will be a significant step forward in our public health agenda. The announcement that the Government will legislate to restrict the advertising of junk food to children and the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks is also welcome. As we have heard, obesity is one of the major health challenges that we face and, again, its impacts are hugely unequal.
The commitment to update the Mental Health Act is long overdue. Mind reminds us that black people are four times more likely to be detained under the Mental Health Act than white people, and more than 11 times more likely to be the subject of a community treatment order. People living in areas of high deprivation are more than 3.5 times more likely to be detained than those living in least deprived areas. I hope that in reforming the Mental Health Act the Government will pay attention to these inequalities.
We now have a much better understanding of what contributes to health and well-being, so I welcome many of the announcements which will provide contributions to healthy lives for individuals, and for communities, such as for housing and education. The commitment to ban conversion practices is long overdue. The measures in the employment rights Bill, especially changes to the statutory sick pay system, are key. Taking time off when you are ill is vital to recovery and ongoing participation in the work in our communities.
My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of London from the spiritual security and shelter of these Benches. My real regret is that I cannot actually see our Front Bench, but I am very pleased that my noble friends are there and particularly welcome my noble friend Lady Smith of Malvern. I had the pleasure of working with her many years ago, and know that she understands the role of this House. She made a brilliant maiden speech. I am also very sorry that we are losing the noble Baroness, Lady Jolly, who has made a real contribution to health and social care in this House.
The new Government have set a blistering place but, more importantly, have changed the tone of government. They have already begun the business of rebuilding trust and belief in public services. They have an audacious focus on the long term. What they demonstrate to me is the value that they put on the skills of the care economy, the invisible scaffolding that underpins the real economy and enables growth. The King’s Speech made an intergenerational commitment to child and adult health and social services that is about much more than money. It is about skills and investment in aspiration and well-being.
Taking the long view means addressing the failure of the past 14 years to recognise the structural faults in the care economy by valuing skills, whether in child or adult services, and putting training and careers in place. The King’s Speech does not duck the difficult issues. In 1945, women stayed at home and looked after families from children to adults, from cradle to grave. Nearly 80 years later we have an ageing and deeply unequal society. We now need a social contract between the generations and between the state, the family and the individual. We need to reset that social contract.
The King’s Speech and the announcements made alongside it signify that. The skills for England Bill, the children’s well-being Bill, the pledge to recreate the salary review for school support workers and, for me, above all, the commitment to a fair pay agreement for adult social care workers bring a new dimension to how we see the contribution as well as the aspiration of those who teach, support and care for the young and old. The children’s well-being Bill recognises that children cannot learn if they are hungry, have special needs, or if the curriculum and assessment system is not fit for their future. Breakfast clubs will make a huge difference to hungry children, but let us add enrichment and learning in that extra part of the day.
My Lords, the last year has seen health and social care rise up the agenda of the country. Most of my professional life was spent in the far south-west of England. I taught maths for over 15 years and became an early champion of IT in schools. In 1997 I was appointed as a non-exec director of a NHS primary care trust. I was a lay inspector for the Commission for Health Improvement and I was proud to be first chair of the Committee for Community Nursing. In the 1990s I was appointed to the board of an NHS trust providing community services across north Cornwall.
Now we are fortunate to have both local authorities and the NHS working together to provide health and care. Despite legislation introduced in the last 15 years, we need to take a close look at the state of care for older people and for those with a learning disability. I undertook the role of chair of Hft, an organisation working all across England that cares for people with a learning disability. Of all the roles I have had, this was the most rewarding. I made many friends from the Hft board and I am grateful for the insight I had into the world of adults with a learning disability.
I echo the words of the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of London: the challenges faced by the health services are extreme. Primary health services need much greater support than they currently receive. Emergency services are stretched beyond their limit, posing risks for those who need urgent care. We also need a much greater focus on community healthcare. I wish the Government the best as they begin to make these challenges. The health service is the heart of our nation, and it is imperative that we begin to solve some of these deep-rooted issues.
Moving to a safety issue, I am particularly proud of the role I had with the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents. I was its president for some time and enjoyed working with its CEO, Errol Taylor. Working together and with many Members across this House, we set up legislation to embed the dimensions of stairs. Many were helpful in getting this done and will be grateful for this. British Standard 5395 is now embedded in the building regulations for new-build houses, and many lives will be saved. We needed the help of Ministers and businesses to get this done.
My Lords, I want to say how sorry I was to hear the valedictory address of the noble Baroness, Lady Jolly. She is a very familiar face in this House. I know she attends a lot, because I have watched her for years and listened to her speeches, which are always interesting. On behalf of the whole House, I wish her a happy, relaxed, peaceful and lengthy retirement. I say “lengthy” because, in my 90th year, valedictory addresses will be rather more regular events.
I also welcome back to office the noble Baroness, Lady Smith of Malvern. I gather from what she said that her parents were teachers, which is a very good start for an Education Minister. I may surprise her by saying that I entirely welcome all the proposals she put today to the House; I hope it is the beginning of a great reform in government. Endorsements by me of statements from the Department for Education over the past 14 years have been rather rare events, but I hope this is a very good start.
Labour’s manifesto said there is going to be an “expert-led” review of the curriculum and assessment. Well done, congratulations; I urged the last Government to do that again and again. Seven committees were set up that all urged that and said the Gove curriculum of EBacc and Progress 8 should be scrapped, along with GCSEs, which I introduced but which I think are now outmoded. I hope the Minister will be able to come back in September and tell us the membership of the committee. I am not applying, but I will give all the support of my charity to the setting up of successful technical schools, because we have a great deal of expertise and I will support that.
It is very important that we do this because, if you are going to achieve economic growth, you have to have students leaving at 18 with employability skills and there is a huge mismatch now between what industry and commerce want from the education system and what they are getting. By “employability skills” I mean things the Government already recognise, such as oracy and collective problem-solving. That is done when you work in teams. There is no teamwork at all in our existing schools today, but much of our lives when we leave school is about collaborative problem-solving. The Government have already said they are going to do that, so they are inevitably going to be a very reforming Government.
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As the former chair of two internationally recognised health trusts, in University Hospitals Birmingham and Barts Health, and of the Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust—the most improved NHS trust last year—I will listen with interest to both my noble friend Lady Merron and other noble Lords, as we discuss the challenges for our healthcare and the commitment from this Government to mend a broken system.
Before I go further, I pay tribute to my predecessor, the noble Baroness, Lady Barran, who has shown a tireless dedication to reducing the number of children in underperforming schools. I thank her for her work and wish her well.
We will create a new era of opportunity, especially for those who have seen nothing but dead ends and closed doors—like the parents who are struggling to pay for childcare; like the children whose life chances are damaged through persistent absence from school; or like the workers who are sidelined by technological whirlwinds that have left them wondering what has happened to their jobs. Whatever the source, we will work to break down these barriers to opportunity and deliver greater economic growth, better health and education excellence for everyone.
I will start with the most important people in society, the youngest and the most vulnerable: our children. A children’s well-being Bill will ensure that the first years of a child’s life give them the best start possible. We will ensure consistently high and rising standards across the whole education system. Early years are a vital period for children to flourish and they are not going to do that if they are not in school or able to concentrate when they get there. This is why we will introduce universal breakfast clubs in every primary school for all children. This will help children learn, help get them into school and into school on time. Funded breakfast clubs can help boost attendance, and we know that persistent absence can cripple a child’s learning and long-term life chances. It will also help their families cope with cost of living pressures. On that, families will be further supported to make ends meet by ensuring the affordability of school uniforms, building on the good work started by my noble friend Lady Lister of Burtersett.
We want to see more children in school for more of the time but, wherever they are, children need to be kept safe and have the best chance of learning. So we will create registers of children not in school and expect local authorities to maintain them. We will also expect parents to do their bit by keeping local authorities informed. Your Lordships have already shared your thoughts on children not in school in the previous Schools Bill. It has greatly strengthened the work that we are doing now and I thank you. There will also be a duty on local authorities to provide support to families who choose to educate children at home. In this way, fewer children will slip under the radar when they are not in school and more children will reach their potential through suitable education.
We will make changes to the regulation and inspection of independent schools, including by providing Ofsted with stronger powers to investigate the offence of operating an unregistered school. We will move to enable serious teacher misconduct to be further investigated.
We are committed to the highest possible standards for every child, wherever they are or whatever their circumstances. This is especially important for children with special educational needs and disabilities. I know that there is a great deal of interest and expertise in this place, and I can assure you that I will be looking to harness your collective wisdom as we drive the change that is needed.
Many academy trusts have vastly improved school standards, particularly in the poorest-performing schools in the country. We want to work collaboratively with them to make decisions that best enable schools to support their pupils. In the case of the curriculum and qualified teachers, we think it is right that we require a high-quality national curriculum to be taught in all schools by qualified teachers. We will continue to explore other ways to raise school standards and improve fairness for every child. Today, we have delivered the Government’s commitment to an independent, expert-led review of curriculum and assessment to ensure high standards in the curriculum in England, greater attention to breadth and flexibility, and that no child or young person is left behind.
Our responsibility is greatest where children cannot depend on their own families for their safety and opportunity. We will extend the protections that exist for the most vulnerable children and those in care. I know from my recent experience chairing the Sandwell Children’s Trust that, despite the excellent work of our children’s social care workforce, we are not doing well enough for the most vulnerable children and families. In particular, it is difficult to find the right, loving places for children to live when they cannot stay with their family. This is devastating for children, but this market failure has also driven enormous cost for children’s social care. Profiteering in the children’s homes market is totally unacceptable and we will crack down on it. We will also strengthen the regulation of the sector and ensure that the people who are working so hard for children in care and those who need our protection get better support. This is part and parcel of making this a fairer society for everyone, where excellence is something for all, not just the most fortunate.
All our missions are driven by the need for economic growth, and it is no secret that growth and the opportunities that flow from it are being held back by a yawning skills gap. Growth and skills go hand in hand, which is why we are building a coherent, joined-up plan for the future. This will be a major focus for me personally: I have taken on the skills, further and higher education brief, and I will be working across government to make sure that we have the commitment and collaboration that we need to drive growth and secure opportunities for all. We will launch “Skills England”, which will drive forward the Government’s plans to tackle skills shortages and support sustained economic growth. It will unify the skills landscape, bringing together employers, trade unions and training providers to ensure that skills policies align with the broader economic ambitions set out in the Government’s industrial strategy. It will be able to identify where skills gaps exist now, what we need for the future and how we can plug those gaps.
Our university sector is one of this country’s greatest enablers. It provides opportunities for people to follow their passions and expand their horizons. Through research and teaching, it enables us to challenge our understanding and develop new ideas. In many communities, it provides a vital anchor for wider economic development. Our universities are vital engines for economic growth and opportunity for everybody throughout their lives. I am well aware that many of your Lordships are leaders within the higher education community, and I know how interested and concerned you will be that we have plans to safeguard it for future generations. I will not be shy about seeking your considerable wisdom as we work through our plans to deliver this.
On healthcare, healthy lives are the bedrock of opportunity throughout our lives, and we now have a considerable bank of evidence to guide us in the next steps to take. It is a terrifying thought that in just the time I have been speaking, around 16 people in England will have been admitted to hospital because of smoking. The strengthened tobacco and vapes Bill will be a landmark step in creating a smoke-free UK. It will introduce a progressive smoking ban, gradually ending the sale of tobacco products across the country. When I was last in government we raised the legal age at which people can be sold cigarettes and banned smoking in pubs and restaurants. We now have the chance to finish the job. Vapes have a key role to play in helping smokers to quit, but where vape manufacturers deliberately target and market vapes at children we will put a stop to such advertising.
Healthy habits that are built in childhood will pay dividends as children get older. Our children need protection and support for the best start in life. More than one in five children in reception class is currently overweight or obese. By year 6, that figure has shot up to one in three, with grave repercussions for their future health and for the NHS. Through the child health action plan, we will cut the amount of TV and online advertising of less healthy food to children and ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to under-16s. These measures will contribute to the Government’s commitment to raise the healthiest generation of children ever.
Poor mental health can be a massive barrier to opportunity and learning at any age. We are working hard to promote good mental health and well-being for everyone: from the earliest stages, with a specialist mental health professional in every school, and with young futures hubs, which will offer additional access to mental health support workers for young people at a time when they so desperately need that intervention, when they will have to wait too long for other mental health services.
It is a sad fact that rates of detention under the Mental Health Act have nearly doubled since it came into place in 1983, so the mental health Bill will deliver our manifesto commitment to modernise the Mental Health Act. It will give patients greater choice, autonomy, enhanced rights and support, to make sure that everybody is treated with dignity and respect during their treatment.
My professional life has been about ensuring opportunities for learning and for better, safer and healthier lives. I know that this mission is shared by this House. It is an enormous honour to now be able to work alongside your Lordships to ensure that this Government can translate our shared objective into opportunities for all to flourish, and so that all can succeed in their lives, regardless of where they start and the hurdles they need to overcome.
Finally, we were determined to support as many families as possible with access to high-quality, affordable childcare. This is why, in the 2023 Spring Budget, we announced major new investments, providing up to 30 hours of free childcare a week from the age of nine months by September 2025. This translates to over £4 billion of additional funding by 2027-28, and a total of over £8 billion of spending annually on free hours and early education. Will the noble Baroness reassure the House that there is a commitment to stick to our plan?
It gives me and my noble friend Lord Markham great pleasure to welcome the noble Baroness, Lady Merron, to her new role as Health and Social Care Minister—a just reward for her hard work and dedication serving on the Opposition Front Bench in your Lordships’ House, as Member of Parliament for Lincoln, as a Government Minister, and as chief executive of the Board of Deputies of British Jews. She is entering a challenging environment. We wish her luck and our constructive support—accompanied, of course, by constructive challenge.
We are pleased to see the continuation of many of our policies, such as the smoke-free Bill and the mental health Bill. I hope and trust that work will continue in other areas where there is broad agreement, such as the long-term workforce plan and implementation of the Cass recommendations. Will the Minister confirm that this is still the case? We hope the Government will continue the work on technology and see this as a major way to take the NHS into the 21st century. App usage is exploding and presents a real way for people to take control of their own health. Artificial intelligence can truly transform in ways we are only just beginning to understand. This will all be fuelled by our NHS data, which is unparalleled in the world and gives us the opportunity to be the Silicon Valley of AI tech here in the UK. Will the Government continue to prioritise these measures?
We will support the Government’s focus on waiting lists. We took a lot of action in this space and managed to bear down on some of the longest waiting lists post Covid, but it is a source of frustration that these efforts were hampered by the junior doctor strikes. We wish the Government well in the negotiations with junior doctors and hope that they can reach a settlement without breaking the bank.
Key to this, of course, is NHS productivity. Given the importance of the productivity plan, can the Minister assure us that this process will continue? Another area that is key to productivity and patient care is the capital programme, in particular the new hospital programme. While it is understandable that new Ministers will want to review the programme, it is essential that there is continuity and no loss of momentum. Can the Minister assure us that this review will be undertaken in a timely manner and tell us when we can expect the results?
We also note that very little was said about social care in the King’s Speech. We appreciate that this is a very difficult area, but one that I am sure we all agree is crucial to get right for the sake of patients and to free up beds in hospitals. The steps we took in government in providing a career structure and professional qualifications and training programmes are key to making it an attractive profession to work in, but we realise there are challenges around the cost and supply of social care. Given the hot potato this subject represents, a cross-party conversation might be the best way forward. I note that the £86,000 cap on social care is still due to be implemented. Do the Government intend to continue with this implementation?
Finally, and most importantly, we have all agreed for some time that we need to get up stream of the problem and shift resources from treatment in hospitals to investment in primary care and prevention. These are fine statements of intent, but making this happen is often far more difficult. It is often a gutsy move to move money away from hospitals and into primary care. Such moves require a grown-up conversation bolstered by cross-party support. In this vein, I offer our support in having such conversations and moving from statements of intent to firm action. We wish the noble Baroness all the best of British luck in her new position, and we look forward to working with her in the months and years ahead.
How do we address those issues? First, we have to make the training of teachers first class. I do not believe that you train a teacher by their doing a 10-week crash course. Does a 10-week crash course look, for example, at a primary teacher understanding child development? Does it look at how teachers can identify special educational needs? We also need to make sure that teachers are properly rewarded for the job—properly paid, properly rewarded, and properly inspected. Over the years, I have been sick to death of hearing the phrase “the workload of teachers”. We never seem to grasp that issue. Let us actually grasp the issue of workload, because that is a problem that teachers and schools face.
Finally, we talk about mental health in schools, and I want to come back to that, but there is also the mental health of teachers and non-teaching staff in schools themselves. Some of the things we do in schools aggravate that mental health issue, whether it is the pressure of SATs or of Ofsted, or of having to do that job with very poor funding.
I now turn to pupils. In many ways, schools are facing a crisis. We have the highest number of pupils missing from our schools, the highest number of pupils being home-educated, the highest number of pupils being unregistered, the highest number of pupils who have been suspended from school, and the highest number of pupils who are permanently suspended from school. What are we going to do about that? In my and my party’s view, no child or young person should go to an unregistered provider in any form. Why? Because unregistered providers are not inspected. Who knows what is going on? There are safeguarding issues. Home educators should be registered, supported by the local authority, and visited by their local authority.
The Government’s wish to deliver healthcare closer to home is one that I hope they will pursue with determination, but it cannot be done without the reform of primary and community care, including a greater share of funding going to primary care and community care. This, with legislation related to the devolution of powers more locally, has to be the way forward for providing more care closer to home. We can learn much from countries such as Denmark, where locally managed primary and community health centres deliver much of the healthcare, with 99% patient satisfaction. There will be much opposition from vested interests to develop such a model. I hope the Government will be bold.
I welcome the Government’s commitment in the proposed digital and smart data Bill to allow use of data for medical research. As I have mentioned previously, the lack of legislation to allow the use of health data for scientific research has hindered us in improving the delivery of healthcare, driving innovations, conducting clinical trials, developing new treatments and much more. I hope that the Bill will remedy this.
While all that I have mentioned is positive, we do not yet have plans for the provision of social care or, apart from a promise of more GPs and midwives, a health workforce plan—particularly for the nursing workforce—for a service that by 2035 is likely to employ nearly 10% of the working-age population. Nor is there yet a sustainable funding formula for a service that may well end up costing more than £250 billion by 2035. The NHS for far too long has been a political football subjected to ideologically driven reforms not in the best interests of patients. What we need is long-term political consensus, and I hope the Government might work towards that. Securing political consensus is important given the amount of public money spent on health and adult social care, and so is accountability. Periodic reviews, commissions, parliamentary inquiries et cetera are not the answer. What we need is an independent body, such as an independent office of health and care sustainability, that will hold the Government to account for their funding, plans and long-term use of money.
I also hope that the Government will use the expanded scope of the national curriculum to promote key life skills, such as making financial education a component of PSHE at key stages 1 and 2, as recommended by many financial literacy charities.
My work inside and outside health has led me to believe with increasing certainty that, if we are to reduce health inequalities and the burden on the NHS, faith groups must be involved. Faith observance is highest in the most deprived areas. This means that faith leaders have the potential to provide vital insight and access to those communities least likely to access preventive healthcare. Faith leaders are trusted in their communities and are valuable partners for improving the health of their community. Ensuring that culturally competent services are available to everyone who requires them is vital if this Government are to halve the gap in healthy life expectancy. I hope that this Government will build on the work already undertaken in this area.
However, it is disappointing there is not a single mention of social care in the gracious Speech. The Government acknowledge that the sector is in need of deep reform. We have an ageing population that has more acute and complex needs. People with care and support needs are often unsupported in navigating the system. There are higher costs for councils at a time of restricted budgets. Unpaid carers provide care for their loved ones, sometimes at the expense of their own health, well-being and work. The Government’s manifesto commitment to create a national care service is laudable, but requires action. We need a long-term funding settlement for local authorities and a workforce plan for the sector. I fear that without these measures we will not achieve the positive vision of social care, because social care is never an end in itself but is a means by which we can live lives of joy, fulfilment and purpose and contribute to the economic recovery of this country.
I regret the absence of palliative care from the gracious Speech. Reliance on charitable donations means that end-of-life care and provision varies depending on how affluent an area is. The cost of care is not being met, and services are being reduced. In the middle of a growing conversation about alternative options at the end of life, it is imperative that we properly fund palliative care.
Finally, every person we talk about in this Chamber is immensely valuable. We all bear the image of God. I look forward to working with noble Lords across the Chamber to ensure that people who are particularly vulnerable to the effects of inequalities and health inequalities are at the forefront of our thinking.
The appointment of Kevan Collins is a wonderful step forward. I hope this Government will enable him to realise his ambitions for the whole child, so damaged during the Covid years, that he was not able to put in place. I hope that will also signal a commitment to an out-of-school learning programme just like the one the last Labour Government put in place, which was such a success for children.
This debate is about change. People working in childcare settings and adult social care have been waiting years for it. These professions attract the best people, mostly women, but we know too well that they cannot recruit and retain staff. Early years providers are closing across the country because, despite the best efforts of the noble Baroness, Lady Barran, whom we all respected, the last Government did not address the reality of what rapid and unfunded expansion would mean. The children who lose out, as ever, are the poorest. Perhaps I might suggest that the Minister meets urgently with the Early Years Alliance to get its knowledge and experience of where the priorities should lie. There are still 150,000 vacancies in adult social care. Women’s jobs seem to be worth less, with the minimum wage or less, low status and no career. That is where change needs to start—and it will with an unequivocal commitment to a fair pay agreement for adult social care.
To build for the long term, on Wednesday the Skills for Care organisation produced a workforce plan for adult social care to match the NHS plan. It is different because it is coherent, it is owned by the whole sector and it allocates responsibilities. Let us act on that and let it develop the relational skills that are central to the best quality of care. Let us acknowledge and act on the strong value we get from unpaid carers, not least with an amnesty for those who, through no fault of their own, have fallen into the debt trap. If there is to be a royal commission, let it be swift; there is no reason why it cannot be.
We have the longest prescription and the best set of what we can do—and we have a brilliant new Minister in Stephen Kinnock, who knows from experience what care means and has the skills and energy. This is the King’s Speech we have been waiting a very long time for.
Finally, I offer my thanks to the staff of the House and Members across the House. I am extremely grateful for the support they have given me while I have been here. I know that those colleagues who remain will remain committed to the work we do here and getting legislation right. I am personally delighted that I leave when there is a newly enlarged group of 72 Lib Dem colleagues in the other place and I am especially pleased that this now includes a Liberal Democrat MP back where they belong in my home in north Cornwall.
I will miss this place and I will miss many good friends, but home and my family are in Cornwall, which is some long distance away. Do not fear; I will still be watching closely and I wish you all the very best.
We are the only country in Europe that does not provide technical, cultural and vocational education below 16. All of them—Germany, France, the Netherlands, Austria and Switzerland—do that, but Michael Gove did not support technical education. It is very important that that is done. We have to create a curriculum suitable for this century.
Over the last 15 years I have been developing university technical colleges and there are now 44 of them. They are for 14 to 18 year-olds, they are quite unique and they are very successful. As a matter of interest, 39 of the 44 are now in Labour-held seats, so on the whole we do not do schools for the leafy suburbs; we do them for towns and cities where unemployment is very high. Unemployment in our colleges is now 3%. Nationally it is 12%, while in the West Midlands and Newcastle it is as high as 20%, so we have to inject education and cultural studies into our schools as quickly as possible. I see the bishops nodding at that, and lots of other people are nodding as well.
Could I just say one thing? The last of those seven reports was a report by the noble Lord, Lord Johnson, on 11 to 16 education. We recommended fundamental change and I am glad to see that it had all-party support, particularly as one of the members of that committee had been the head of a teachers’ union. I welcome that—the noble Baroness is nodding. She is a good egg. It really is very welcome that she was on the committee.
What we need are employability skills. We have 44 UTCs and two have been added. To build a new UTC is £20 million, like the cost of any school. Frankly, very few schools are going to be built in the next 10 years because we have student decline and the money that the Government have will need to be spent on repairing the actual schools, many in appalling conditions. We have produced an idea—which the previous Government were about to approve, I hope—of introducing into an ordinary 11 to 18 school a UTC sleeve from 14 to 18. There would be separate classrooms, workshops and specialist teachers, with a separate board for them of the local employers. They would do the curriculum of the UTC. It would mean that a 14 year-old starting it, for example, spends two days a week in a workshop or a computer room learning with his hands, or working on a project with a local company that is brought in.
This is all the expertise we have and I want to make all that available to the Government and to help them in what they are going to do. This is something the Government have to do to be successful. They will not win the next election if they do not get economic growth—they really will not; I can see they are nodding—so they have to change education effectively and make it suitable for this day and age.