Yasmin Qureshi
MP for Bolton South and Walkden · Labour · United Kingdom
“On the point about the people displaced in Lebanon, does the hon. Member agree that if there is to be a comprehensive peace settlement between Israel and Palestine, all 700,000-odd people who were forcibly expelled from the west bank, from Gaza and from elsewhere during the Nakba must be allowed to return?”
“May I say how proud I am to sit behind a Foreign Secretary with the courage to take this action? I thank the Prime Minister for showing leadership on this matter as well. Let us be clear what this is about: Israel’s occupation of the west bank and Gaza is illegal under international law.”
“I welcome the Lord Chancellor’s statement. As a former criminal law barrister, I represented defendants who were given IPP sentences. They were required to complete courses, treatments and rehabilitation before they could be considered for release, yet many were never offered any of those things in time, leaving them unable to be reviewed…”
“There are 4.5 million unpaid carers in England. I have first-hand knowledge of the impact of that on carers and their families, having been a carer for two members of my own family, but I also know that for millions of carers the emotional and financial toll is far greater than what I faced.”
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Murrison. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool North and Fleetwood (Lorraine Beavers) on securing this very important debate. I want to speak about a case in my constituency that shows the problem and, importantly, what the solution can look like.”
“There are more than 20 recycling centres across Greater Manchester, and spreading visits across them eases the pressure on individual sites. The wider point is that traffic build-up at waste sites is not a one-off; it is a recurring and entirely foreseeable pattern, particularly at older sites that simply were not designed for today’s vol…”
The complete record
Every one of 601 lines we hold for Yasmin Qureshi, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 11 of 13.
“I am delighted that we are here today to take a step closer to introducing important changes to the right to request flexible working. The changes help to set the right conditions for employees and employers to realise the benefits of flexible working. For those not familiar with the policy background, the right to request flexible working was introduced in 2003 for the first time for employed parents and carers of children under the age of six and disabled children under the age of 18. The legislation has been amended several times, most recently as part of the Children and Families Act 2014, when it was extended to all employees with 26 weeks’ continuous service.”
“I am overwhelmed that so many of my colleagues are in the room today. When I was told that the Bill was going into Committee and I had to find 17 Members of Parliament to come to a sitting at a very early hour of the morning, it was a daunting task, but when I approached my colleagues on both sides of the House, they kindly and graciously agreed to attend. Seeing them here in person is overwhelming, and I thank them all from the bottom of my heart for coming today and helping us to get the Bill through Committee stage. I thank the Minister and his staff, who have always been very helpful and provided excellent guidance. I know that Members are normally afraid of the Whips, but the hon. Member for Castle Point has been very helpful throughout our proceedings, and I thank her for that.”
“I thank the Minister for his response and reassurances. I think we all agree that the Bill will help millions of people in our country get back into work. It is good for businesses and good for employees. It is, as everybody says, a win-win. I thank all the parliamentary staff, the Clerks, the Minister and his officials, and my colleagues, all of whom have supported me throughout the process—I could not have done this without them. I look forward to the Bill passing to the next stage. Question put and agreed to. Clause 1 accordingly ordered to stand part of the Bill. Clause 2 ordered to stand part of the Bill. Bill to be reported, without amendment.”
“We have committed to truly invest in and level up left-behind neighbourhoods such as Farnworth and Harper Green in my constituency, and to spur regional growth. That will ensure that regions are more prosperous and create jobs and opportunities. It will make towns such as mine and others good places to grow up, learn, work and grow old in. People should not have to leave to get on, and improving employment prospects on the high street is key to that. I urge the Government to do more to help our local shops.”
“I am not saying that we should not be able to shop online—indeed, I am sure all Members have used online retailers—but we need to rebalance the scales to ensure that brick-and-mortar businesses in Bolton can compete with online stores, which have lower costs and can reduce their prices. I want to see Bolton High Street flourish. I want independent retailers, coffee shops, butchers, bakers and others to spring up. I want our high street to reflect the Britain of old: a nation of shopkeepers. For that to happen, we need a Government who take an active role, a state that nurtures business and a taxation system that rebalances the scale in favour of brick-and-mortar businesses. Labour plans to replace business rates with a fairer system and devolve power to local communities so that they can decide what they want to do in their local area.”
“It is a perfect storm for a town that is now the third most deprived in Greater Manchester, and my constituency is the 38th most deprived in the United Kingdom. The decline is obvious. There is a clear correlation between the rise of the internet and super-retailers and the demise of our high streets. As online retailers took over, the need to commute into Bolton town centre to go shopping quickly became unnecessary. The ease and simple nature of it seemed to offer all upsides and no downsides; a new mode of leisure was here to stay. The pandemic has made things worse. Our high streets in Bolton and throughout the country are now in a concerning state, and it is our economy and the people of our country who are losing out.”
“It is, as ever, a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mrs Cummins. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Catherine West) for securing the debate. This issue is so vital to towns such as Bolton, which I have seen evolve since my election in 2010. In years gone past, the high street of Bolton bustled and businesses flourished. It was a real economic centre in the north-west. We had a large department store, and it may seem trivial but the high street was populated with butchers, greengrocers and the like, all offering affordable and fresh options. Fast forward to today and it could not be any more different: we have empty shops, a huge number of betting shops and charity shops, and tons of pawnbrokers.”
“My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech. Does he agree that it is completely reprehensible for Government Ministers, when talking about potential pay strikes by nurses, to say that by going on strike, they are somehow enabling Putin’s regime?”
“Member for Croydon South (Chris Philp), who replied to the previous debate, made what I would call a really gratuitous political statement about how few Labour Members were present for today’s debates. The reason for that is that we agreed with the first Bill debated today and we agree with this Bill. The reason why there are so many Members on the Conservative Benches is that they are trying to talk out the last Bill that will be reached today. I do not think that Members should be making those comments.”
“However, under this Government, reoffending rates have remained stubbornly high, and the refusal to legislate for this change until now, and doing so through a private Member’s Bill, is evidence of how far this has fallen down the priority list of the Ministry of Justice. The chaos and ministerial musical chairs that has been going on across Government over the past number of years has meant that, in the intervening months, thousands more prisoners have been released on Fridays and have been set up to fail. We are glad that the changes are coming and are pleased to support them, but it is a shame that the Government took so long to listen and to act. On a final note, the Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire, the right hon.”
“I hope that the changes proposed in the Bill will contribute to improving those worrying numbers. There is a window of opportunity for people when they are released from prison. That is when they are keen to move on and rebuild their lives outside prison. We should be seizing that opportunity by making the transition as easy as possible to give them the best chance of success and thus decrease the likelihood of their reoffending as much as possible. The Government conceded in the summer that, under the current system, Friday releases can end up with ex-offenders spending their first days on the streets with little in the way of support, increasing the likelihood that they will commit further crimes, and they committed to legislate when time allows.”
“Indeed, very recently, I went with a constituent in housing need to my local town hall just to ensure that they were given the services that they needed. From my earlier life as a criminal practitioner who both prosecuted and defended, I can tell Members of the cases that were heard on a Saturday in the emergency court of people who had been released from prison and were back in court again because they had nowhere else to go. It was better to commit a minor offence, be arrested and be kept in a prison cell where they at least had a warm bed and three square meals. That was a better option for them. We know that around 400 people continue to be released from prison, every month, directly into homelessness. Only 30% of people receiving treatment services while in prison are successfully transferred to the community on release.”
“He spent the weekend sleeping in a known drug house and ended up using heroin. As part of his licensed conditions, he was required to give a blood sample and, lo and behold, he tested positive for drug use. Had he been released earlier in the week, he would have accessed the housing and medical support that he needed to help in his resettlement. As my hon. Friend the Member for Croydon Central (Sarah Jones) has noted previously in Committee, Members of this House will be especially familiar with this matter. I am sure that many of us have experienced the same difficulties in getting the necessary support for our constituents in need last thing on a Friday, just as agencies and services are closing for the weekend.”
“They may be left for the weekend, unable to access important medication and health support, such as in the case of M, who was released on Friday before a bank holiday weekend after serving a year in custody. He had an addiction to heroin but, when released, was not given the prescription charts from the prison that were needed to determine the dose of methadone he needed. He was also not given a bridging prescription. As it was late afternoon on Friday, the GP from the substance misuse service had left, and M and his resettlement broker were unable to get his medication. He was vulnerable and entitled to priority housing, but the local authority did not deem him to be in priority need because it was a Friday afternoon. He did not have time to gather the further evidence that was needed to prove what he had said before the weekend.”
“I am glad that they have now seen sense and recognise the value in Labour’s proposals—because let’s us face it, these proposals are common sense. As the hon. Member for Barrow and Furness explained, prisoners released on a Friday face an almost impossible race against the clock to get all the support that they need in place before the weekend. In many cases, they are simply unable to access the same support as those released earlier in the week, because many crucial resettlement agencies run a reduced service on Fridays and no service over the weekend. That means that prison leavers might end up sleeping rough or in unsuitable housing.”
“I congratulate the hon. Member for Barrow and Furness (Simon Fell) on introducing this important Bill. I thank Nacro for its campaigning work on this issue and the vital support it provides to prison leavers. As the hon. Member outlined, the Bill will allow the earlier release, by up to two days, of people in prison with high resettlement needs who are due to be released from prison on a Friday or the day before a bank holiday. It will be no surprise to the Government that Labour supports the Bill wholeheartedly, not least because we tried to legislate for this last year. My hon. Friend the Member for Stockton North (Alex Cunningham) tabled an amendment to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 that would have provided this much-needed flexibility for Friday releases, but the Government at the time refused to support it.”
“My colleagues have no objections to these Bills. The reason that Government Members are taking so long on this issue is that they are trying to talk out the last Bill listed for today.”
“I agree. Indeed, I started off by saying that we support the Bill. Not only do we support it today, but we have been supporting it since last year, when we tabled an amendment on this.”
“A new World Health Organisation study, published in The Lancet , found that poorer women in Britain have some of the highest cancer death rates in Europe. Income levels should not be the marker of someone’s chances of getting and dying from cancer. Does the Minister recognise that that is not acceptable, and will she commit to a cross-Government strategy that tackles health inequalities?”
“T2. Since the Boxing day floods in 2015, my residents on Riverside Drive have been living in fear. They recently found out that the works will be further delayed until 2026—11 years after the first floods. Moreover, a nearby floor basin project has increased the volume of water in its part of the River Irwell, meaning that the river now rises at a faster rate than before, adding more stress for my residents. I have raised the issue many times in Parliament, and I have asked successive Ministers to come to visit Bolton South East to see it for themselves and speak to residents. I ask the new Secretary of State to do the same.”
“Figures reveal that suicide is the biggest cause of death in men under the age of 50. Around three quarters of deaths from suicide each year are of men. Added to that, data from the Office for National Statistics show that the highest rates of suicide in men have been in mixed and white ethnic groups. Men aged 45 to 49 are at most risk of suicide, and the rate among this group has been persistently high for many years. Historically, we know that there is often an alpha male archetype, which means many men feel forced to stoically toughen up and get through the bad times, while avoiding opening up, speaking to people or seeking help. We need to do more to address these very outdated stereotypes of masculinity. Equally, we need to do more to support men who are struggling or in crisis.”
“Member for Penistone and Stocksbridge (Miriam Cates) talked about the men in her life. I had a great father and a brother, both of whom have passed away. It is not fashionable to say this, but I have a great husband as well. The issue of toxic masculinity is pertinent, and she said that it had attracted people to far right politics. She also talked about the issue of pornography, which gives a warped view about issues of sexuality. Before I continue with the main points of my speech, I wish to thank the hon. Member for Ynys Môn (Virginia Crosbie) for sharing the sad news of her brother’s suicide. I am sure the whole House sends its condolences to her and her family and thanks her for speaking out so bravely today. Today’s debate is about mental health in particular, and rightly so.”
“She talked about the overuse of steroids by men complying with societal ideas about what a physically appealing male should look like, and the whole issue of eating disorders. The hon. Member for Watford (Dean Russell) talked about mental health issues and the use of social media and the internet, which can aggravate such issues. I liked his acronym HOPE, and he talked about the Samaritans. I am originally from Watford and many years ago I was a member of the Samaritans, although I am no longer. I remember times when the same person would ring three or four times with the same problem, and it was clear that they needed someone to listen to them and talk to them—not to give them advice or to guide them but just to listen. It is important to recognise how much loneliness there is in our society, especially for men. The hon.”
“It is a pleasure to speak on behalf of the Opposition. I congratulate the hon. Member for Don Valley (Nick Fletcher) on securing the debate and bringing it to the House, as well as the Backbench Business Committee. I am pleased to take my place here as the shadow Women and Equalities Minister and close the debate for the Labour party. I am incredibly proud to be in this role because it focuses on addressing inequalities in society, wherever we find them. However, the reality is that we will never, as a country or a society, be able to truly flourish if we do not ensure that everyone can fairly access opportunities and fulfil their potential, whatever their background may be. I want to thank several hon. Members who have spoken in today’s debate, starting with the hon. Member for Rutherglen and Hamilton West (Margaret Ferrier).”
“We thought that would be a turning point, but little has changed, as shown by the recent murder of Sabina Nessa in a public park by somebody she did not know. While men are also victims of violent crime, women are overwhelmingly more likely to be victims of severe domestic abuse, which has doubled over the last five years.”
“We know that there is a stark divide between children from poorer backgrounds and their wealthier peers, with secondary school children on free school meals being 18 months behind by the time they take their GCSEs. There is no avoiding the fact that white working-class underachievement is symptomatic of a much larger social, cultural and economic inequality, and therefore we must take a holistic view. Before I conclude my remarks, I want to remind the House that International Men’s Day, which will be marked this Saturday, is just one week ahead of White Ribbon Day, a day on which men across the country are called on to make a promise that they will never commit, excuse, or remain silent about male violence against women. The murder of Sarah Everard by a serving police officer shocked the whole nation.”
“Similarly, a study by the University of Exeter found that men from black and minority ethnic backgrounds experienced a far greater deterioration in their mental health during covid lockdowns than their white British counterparts. I will wind up in the next minute or so, Madam Deputy Speaker, if you will indulge me. Studies show that black men are far more likely than others to be diagnosed with a severe mental health problem. However, up until the age of 11, black boys do not have poorer mental health than others of their age, so it is quite clear that there are systematic reasons why they experience mental health problems far more than others after the age of 11.”
“There is no sustained programme of education catch-up, something that is so necessary given how many boys and girls are missing out on the support that they need. We want a proper education plan for that. That is why we say that breakfast clubs must be provided for all children as an element of catch-up, but that has not happened. Whether we are considering issues around physical or mental health or educational attainment, we know that not all men and boys are affected in the same way. Indeed, those issues are often closely connected with other deep-rooted inequalities. The Government’s own suicide prevention strategy from 2012, for example, highlighted that gay and bisexual men are at much higher risk of self-harm and substance misuse.”
“The disparity becomes even more acute among those from disadvantaged backgrounds: young women who were on free school meals are 51% more likely to go into higher education than young men. Disadvantaged white boys are the least likely of all groups to go to university, with just 8.9% continuing their studies. Children have only one chance at an education. Reducing those disparities requires early and sustained intervention, which must be designed to ensure that all children, whatever their background, circumstances or gender have the opportunity to achieve at school and to access university education. Instead, we have seen this Conservative Government systematically shutting Sure Start centres, which provided early intervention support for so many families.”
“Growing the NHS will also grow our economy and go a long way to rooting out inequalities once and for all. Of course, one cannot discuss men’s health without looking at boys’ performance in education, which we have touched on in this debate. In basic terms, boys perform worse than girls by the end of primary school, with 70% of girls reaching the expected standards in maths, reading and writing compared with just over 60% of boys. Boys are three times more likely than girls to be excluded from school, something that I know causes tremendous concern to many working families up and down the country. That gap persists at GCSEs and A-levels. Young women are more likely to apply to university than young men. Those young men who apply are more likely to drop out and those who complete their courses are less likely to get a good degree.”
“Without regular health check-ups, serious issues can go untreated for longer—sometimes when it is too late. This is really concerning; we know just how important early intervention can be in the treatment of male-specific cancers and in overall cancer incidence, which is 24% higher for men than it is for women. This reminds us how important it is that we have a proper public health strategy for everyone—one that will turn the tide on the rising health inequalities and improve health for men. We need a strategy that is focused on early intervention and ensures that people receive the care and support they need. Instead, we have a Government who have chosen to cut public health budgets substantially across the country. A Labour Government would invest in the biggest-ever expansion of the NHS, as I mentioned earlier.”
“This would be part of our plan for the biggest expansion of the NHS in history, funded by scrapping the non-dom tax status. Men’s physical health is of concern, too, because of the disparities in men’s physical health issues. Men have a shorter life expectancy: one in five die before the age of 65. This becomes even more concerning when we compare the life expectancy of men in the most and least deprived areas of the country, because there is a stark gap of 9.5 years. Men are also disproportionately affected by heart disease, and more men than women are overweight or obese, yet despite all this, men are still less inclined to seek help or advice from medical professionals. This lack of engagement can mean that men are often under-supported.”
“I can take that back to our team for discussion. Currently, 1.6 million people are on an NHS waiting list for specialised mental health treatment. That is about one in 35 people, or roughly the populations of Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield combined. While an additional 8 million would benefit from support, they cannot even get onto a waiting list. The need for greater Government investment in mental health provision could not be more urgent. My party would take strong action to ensure access to mental health treatment within a month for everyone who needs it. That is, of course, a distant dream for so many men and women across our country. We would hire 8,500 new staff, so that 1 million new people could access treatment by the end of our first term in office.”
“I thank the hon. Lady for her intervention and agree with her. At every level, we should all be tackling violence against men and women. We must not consider gender equality to be a zero-sum game or a trade-off. Let me be clear: we can address women’s safety as well as serious issues and concerns for men. Indeed, we must do both.”
“Last week, I met the chief executive of Bolton and Bury citizens advice bureau. Among the many pieces of work that it does, it employs money advisers. However, the Money and Pensions Service—the arm’s length body that funds citizens advice bureaux—is set to lose 10% of its funding. For my local branch, that means about £22,000, or the cost of one member of staff. With demand for its services doubling, given the energy and cost of living crises, how can the Chancellor push through those callous cuts to a scheme that supports some of the poorest and most vulnerable in Bolton? Will he reverse those cuts?”
“Labour’s green prosperity plan, involving investment in offshore wind and tidal, nuclear, hydrogen and solar energy, will support companies like Booth Industries a hundred times over. It is about time that Britain had a Government who would create an environment for businesses up and down our nation to flourish, contribute and invest; and it is only the Labour party that is providing the leadership Britain needs in that regard.”
“Avanti is meant to be “servicing” the north, but all it seems to service are the pockets of its shareholders, while my constituents, and people in Greater Manchester as a whole and in other parts of the north, are losing out. We need to invest in roads, rail, light rail, trams, subways and high-speed rail, so that we can have a positive impact on our economy and, of course, benefit all our constituents. Companies like Booth Industries will then have a hook for investment and growth while also improving our own public transport network. That is a genuine win-win. Such companies also demonstrate that there is a place in Britain for well-paid, green, industrial jobs, as well as tackling climate crises.”
“It wants to become involved with nuclear power plants in order to grow its business, but with EDF holding the contract, a significant amount of its supply chain uses French companies. Surely it makes sense to use British businesses for British nuclear power stations when fulfilling supply chain needs. That would not only develop our own supply chain resilience in Britain but support small and medium-sized enterprises, which make up 99% of British employers, and allow them to grow and invest. This is what levelling up in action means: it means helping British businesses to grow and to train staff, create jobs, improve skills training, and prevent the brain drain of people leaving the country so that they can “get on”. We need projects such as HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail to be completed. Our train service in Bolton is abysmal.”
“It is a pleasure for me to speak about this issue today, as one of the three Members of Parliament representing Bolton, a town with a proud industrial history. For too long, Britain’s industrial strategy has been plagued by short-termism and vulnerability to political change. We need a real plan for businesses in Bolton and in Britain. When I visited Booth Industries, which is based in my constituency and provides high-performance and high-integrity protection systems for various construction projects, two things became clear to me. First, it is imperative that we have a “make, buy and sell in Britain” policy when developing our industrial strategy: the benefits of that are clear. Booth Industries was granted an HS2 contract to manufacture tunnel doors, which has allowed it to diversify into other sectors.”
“12. What recent assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the impact on Pakistan of flooding caused by climate change. [R]”
“I refer the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on Pakistan. Experts have called the flooding in Pakistan a “climate catastrophe”. Millions have been displaced, more than 1,700 people are dead, and there has been $40 billion-worth of damage to livelihoods and infrastructure. Over the summer, Pakistan experienced the hottest temperature on the planet. Pakistan and other countries are bearing the brunt of the climate crisis and will continue to do so, although they contribute the least to global warming. Can the Minister assure us that his Government, rather than cutting aid, will make a serious commitment to the long-term support of communities in Pakistan to enable them to weather the coming storms?”
“Only Labour can deliver that strategy as part of our plan to tackle structural inequality at the root and lift the NHS out of crisis. I hope that the Minister will answer some of those questions today and commit to specific action that will be taken, because this cannot go on. These appalling statistics—the fact that black women have four times the mortality rates of others—are not acceptable in a decent, civilised society.”
“I have to say, it is scandalous that the Government have not yet even set a target to end this inequality. They have been in power for 12 years—that is a very long time in which to have comprehensively changed the system. Will they now commit to doing so immediately? We did it for stillbirths. Why has black maternity mortality not been a priority for the Government? This is an avoidable inequality. There are many steps we could be taking to end these awful disparities. Instead, the Government have done nothing while the issue has got worse. The Government must take action to address maternal health inequalities. We need a national strategy to tackle health inequality as a matter of urgency, which must include a commitment to eradicating the mortality gap between black, Asian and ethnic minority women and white women.”
“Fatalities are just the tip of the iceberg, with many women speaking of near misses and poor treatment, so will the Minister commit to collecting and publishing that data? Some midwives also consider that the continuity of carer model could help to end these inequalities. A 2016 study found that women who see the same midwife throughout their pregnancy are 16% less likely to lose their baby. Despite that, the NHS has recently been forced to drop targets included in the NHS long-term plan to ensure continuity of carer for 75% of BME women by 2024 as a result of staffing shortages. It is clear that the Government are failing these women. What steps is the Minister taking to end the staffing shortages in maternity care so that those targets can be reintroduced and met by 2024?”
“While we wait for these changes, what is being done to address structural inequalities and build trust in maternity services for BME mothers, their partners and midwives from ethnic minority backgrounds? Additionally, what plan does the Minister have to improve cultural competency and unconscious bias training in medical schools and the health service? There is also the huge issue of the lack of available data, which has not been tackled in either the women’s health strategy or the Government’s response to the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities. As we have heard, accurate data disaggregated by ethnicity is central to closing the gap in maternal mortalities. Will the Minister commit to ensuring that all maternity services record the specific ethnicity of all mothers?”
“We are committed to pulling the NHS out of crisis so that it can deliver for everyone, including black, Asian and ethnic minority mothers. We will enact the biggest extension of medical school places in history. We will double the number of district nurses, train 5,000 new health visitors and, crucially for maternal health, introduce an extra 10,000 nursing and midwifery clinical placements each year. Our fully costed plan will be funded by ending the non-domicile tax status regime, which, it is estimated, would raise more than £3.2 billion every year. Growing the NHS will also grow the economy and eradicate these inequalities once and for all. I welcome the Minister to her new position. Like me, she has just recently joined this brief.”
“Last year, in passing the Health and Care Act 2022, the Government had an opportunity to prioritise the health of black, Asian and ethnic minority women by voting for Labour’s amendment to mandate the Secretary of State to prepare and publish a report on disparities in the quality and safety of England’s maternal services, including maternal mortality rates. However, the Government chose to vote against it. It was a very simple measure that could have helped, but no, they voted against it. The Labour party has committed to setting a target to end the horrendous inequality faced by black, Asian and ethnic minority women as soon as we are in government. That will be part of our commitment to end structural inequality at the root, with a landmark race equality Act to be introduced by the next Labour Government.”
“In the last 18 months alone, we have seen their response to the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities fail to address black maternal inequality, as well as a women’s health strategy that completely fails to establish what concrete action the Government will take to protect the lives of black, Asian and ethnic minority mothers. It is hardly a surprise that the women’s health strategy has failed black, Asian and ethnic minority women, given that just 2% of the respondents who were surveyed were Asian and 3% were black. I am not trying to be party political here, but while the Government are busy crashing the economy and causing chaos at a time of national crisis, black, Asian and ethnic minority women continue to face the consequences of their inertia and ineptitude.”
“Gynaecology wait times are very high. A survey from the charity Five X More found that 27% of women surveyed felt that they received a poor or very poor standard of care during pregnancy, labour and postnatal care. Also, 42% of women repeatedly felt discriminated against during their maternity care, with the most common reasons given being race, at 51%, ethnicity, at 18%, age, at 17%, and class, at 7% of respondents. More than half the women reported facing challenges with healthcare professionals during their maternity care, while over half the black women reported not receiving their preferred method of pain relief. Where is the Government’s action on this?”
“When they voice pain or concern during pregnancy or childbirth, they are often branded as aggressive or angry, while dangerous stereotypes about the strong black woman mean that they are often not offered the same treatment as white women. Meanwhile, the lack of cultural competency in medical training in our country means that many complications are not spotted early enough. That structural inequality exists both inside and outside our health services. Many black, Asian and ethnic minority women experience it long before and long after pregnancy. However, the Government have done nothing to address this outrageous inequality. In fact, on their watch over the last 12 years, maternal mortality for black women has actually increased from 28 deaths per 100,000 in 2013 to 2015, to 34 per 100,000 in the years 2016 to 2018.”