Briefing from the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman on: Foundation Hospitals, 2012 Olympic Games, Euro and Sentencing.
Foundation Hospitals
Asked how the Government would respond to the Health Select Committee’s report on foundation hospitals which had been published today, the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman (PMOS) said it was important for people to recognise that it was a more rounded report than much of the pre-publication speculation had suggested. It did not assert that the establishment of foundation trusts would result in a two-tier NHS system or even privatisation. Nor did it suggest that the policy would result in an internal market. The detailed points contained in the report would be considered during the Committee stage of the Bill. No doubt the Government would use the opportunity to indicate, in part, its response.
Questioned as to whether the Prime Minister was involved in any personal lobbying of backbenchers or whether he was confident that the Bill would achieve its second reading without any problems, the PMOS said the Prime Minister believed that the Government would win the argument. This Government had been elected on the twin platforms of investment and reform. Pushing through reform was therefore not just an end in itself but was also a means to an end - to achieve the kinds of changes within the health service which doctors and nurses themselves actually wanted to see. This was a reform programme which was being driven by doctors and nurses on the frontline to allow hospitals to adapt to local circumstances. The Prime Minister remained firmly of the view that people would listen to the arguments and that he would win. Pressed as to whether the Prime Minister was intending to work the phones or have meetings with backbenchers today to head off any possible rebellion, the PMOS said he was not aware of any plans for him to do so at this stage. That said, if the Prime Minister felt that it was the right thing to do later, he would do it. He continued to believe that it was important for people to listen to the debate because it was clear that the claims that the policy would lead to a two-tier system, privatisation and the internal market simply did not stand up to scrutiny.
Asked if any Cabinet Ministers had indicated that they had a problem supporting the Bill, the PMOS said not as far as he was aware. The Prime Minister hoped that people would listen to the debate and the arguments being put forward. Asked if the Prime Minister was worried that critics of the policy, such as the Chancellor, would support the Bill today but attack it at Committee stage, the PMOS repeated that the Government had been elected on a platform of public sector investment and reform. And the Government as a whole remained committed to seeing that policy through. Health service reform was not an end in itself but a means to an end because of the clinical benefits which would arise as a result. Foundation hospitals were all about levelling up standards, not levelling them down. Following years of under-investment in the NHS which had resulted in some hospitals clearly being better than others, our aim was to try to raise standards across the board in all hospitals. The Prime Minister believed that people would listen to the arguments and agree with the Government’s view. Pressed as to whether the Prime Minister was concerned that members of the Government who did not support the Bill would attempt to wreck it at a later stage, the PMOS said the Prime Minister believed that as people learned more about the reality of the proposals and relied less on the myths being peddled by some quarters, they would be convinced by the arguments.
Questioned as to whether the Prime Minister felt that he would win the vote - as well as the argument - tonight, the PMOS said that, in his experience, it was never helpful to be drawn into a speculative debate about votes. As he had underlined, the Prime Minister remained firmly of the view that he would win the argument - with all the natural consequences that would flow from such a result.
Asked if the Prime Minister had gathered his family round to discuss the implications of losing tonight’s vote, the PMOS confirmed that his family had been gathered round yesterday evening - but for a slightly different reason.
2012 Olympic Games
Asked if the decision on whether to put forward a London bid for the 2012 Olympic Games would be discussed at tomorrow’s Cabinet, the PMOS said not as far as he was aware.
Euro
Questioned as to whether the issue of the Euro would be on tomorrow’s Cabinet agenda, the PMOS said no. Asked if the Euro would be on a Cabinet agenda at some point before an announcement was made, the PMOS said that he was not aware of any plans at this stage for a Cabinet discussion on the issue. That said, agendas were always subject to change. Pressed as to whether Cabinet would discuss the Euro before an announcement was made, the PMOS said that the Cabinet would obviously discuss the issue before any decision was announced. However, there were no plans for any such discussion at this stage. Pressed further, the PMOS underlined that the appropriate discussions would take place at the appropriate time. He had nothing further to add regarding this matter.
Sentencing
Asked if the Prime Minister supported the Home Secretary’s amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill regarding life sentences for murderers, the PMOS said that it was important to understand what this was all about. At the moment, people did not have as much confidence in the system as they should have. The way to address that problem was to have clarity about sentencing. That was why the Prime Minister backed Mr Blunkett fully in setting out the principles for a sentencing framework. This would allow for a proper and sensible debate about appropriate sentences for crimes, which would include the possibility of rehabilitation at the bottom end of the market. This was not about the Home Secretary dictating sentences in individual cases. It was about setting out the principles for a framework, which the Prime Minister believed was the right approach to take.
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