General Election 2024: Wes Streeting says Labor will make ‘real difference’ to dental crisis

Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said Labour’s plans would make a “real difference, very quickly” to Bristol’s dental crisis if the party wins the July 4 election. NHS in Bristol and Somerset, if elected, Mr Streeting said the dental crisis was something he wanted to resolve within days.

Bristol is one of the most difficult places in the country to find an NHS dentist. When a new dentist opened in St Pauls in February, hundreds of people queued for days to register.

Mr Streeting said: “I went to the infamous St Pauls dental practice to see first-hand the queues outside the front door, which I think reflected the scale of the challenge across the country.”

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He said: “In terms of our dental plan, another 700,000 urgent appointments would make a real difference, very quickly. But I also need to fix the fundamentals of NHS dentistry, which is the broken dental contract – and that is why I have asked the British Dental Association to come on the Monday after the general election if there is a Labor government to start this contract process. reform.

“Because we have dentists all over the country, what we don’t have is a contract that pays them fairly, and we’re losing dentists as a result.”

He added: “By the way, people wouldn’t have had this training opening in St Pauls without the hard work of local MP Thangam Debbonaire. This is one of the many reasons why the people of Bristol Central should return her to Parliament.”

Just outside Bristol, in Weston-super-Mare, people have been without a 24-hour A&E service for seven years. Weston General A&E began closing overnight in 2017 as a temporary measure due to staffing problems – and seven years later, nothing has changed.

Asked what Labor could do to reopen this, Mr Streeting said: “The challenge we have where we’ve seen closures of things like A&E units and maternity units under the Conservatives, that’s almost been due to whole of safe staffing levels and the fact that the Tories have simply not had a viable plan to ensure the NHS is there for us when we need it, so we need to give the NHS the tools to do the job.

“This will take time and I think people know we won’t be able to wave a magic Labor wand and fix everything overnight, but we have a serious plan to reduce NHS waiting lists, to improve access to GP surgeries family and NHS dentistry. and make sure the NHS is there for them when they need it after a Labor government mandate. So I really hope people choose change on the Fourth of July.”

Labor also promised a new National Care Service to deal with social care. Quality social care is essential for many older people and paying for it has been a challenge for both people and local councils, many of which spend more money on social care than on other services.

But with little detail on the scheme in the manifesto, is it really a priority for a Labor government? Mr Streeting said: “It is a priority. It’s in our manifesto. This will be a program that is 10 years in the making and I want to deliver it with cross-party support.”

Labor also wants a trans-inclusive ban on conversion therapy and to simplify the process of getting a gender recognition certificate, which Mr Streeting said people found “degrading”. But he also suggested in an interview with Harry Cole in April that he regretted previously making trans-inclusive statements such as: “Some people are trans. Move on.”

Asked about this, he said: “My regret is that I said ‘some people are trans, get over it’, when in fact there are a lot of issues that we need to deal with for the benefit of trans people as well as for the reassurance women in terms of their gender-based rights, especially single-sex spaces.

“I’ve always respected people’s gender identity and I’ve always respected the gender identity of trans men and trans women and people who are non-binary. What I recognize, however, is that sexuality matters, biology is important, and there are important distinctions, and I think when I say that there is no disrespect to trans people and their identities.”

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He added: “The Labor Party has a really proud record on LGBT equality and I was very proud of Keir in (Wednesday’s BBC) debate.”

He added: “You want a political leader who tries to bring people together to solve those challenges and heal the divisions rather than a political leader who tries to exploit them and I feel so optimistic that there is a way to ensure that women’s gender-based rights are protected and trans people’s rights are protected.

“I don’t think these are irreconcilable positions, and I’m really proud of the way Keir has sought to open up this conversation in a way that hopefully women and trans people feel like they’re going to be tough, heard and respected.”