Mid Bedfordshire MP Blake Stephenson (Conservative) has taken the campaign for a long-promised GP surgery in Wixams directly to the Prime Minister during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs).
More than a decade after construction began on the new town, residents are still waiting for the GP surgery they were told would be delivered as part of the development.
Since his election last July, the MP has repeatedly raised the issue in Parliament, including debates in Westminster Hall and the House of Commons, and has pressed Health Secretary Wes Streeting on the matter.
Read: Cross-party task force meets to end 15-year wait for GP surgery in Wixams
At PMQs this week (16 July), Mr Stephenson asked Keir Starmer to ensure that NHS reforms and local accountability would deliver the healthcare facilities his constituents in rural Mid Bedfordshire need, including the Wixams surgery.
He said: “Government plans for English devolution and NHS reform suggest that integrated care boards should align with new strategic authorities.
“The Government’s plan for Bedfordshire will not currently achieve that, so what assurances can the Prime Minister provide that local NHS reorganisation will be good value for money, improve local accountability and deliver the healthcare services that are needed to serve my constituents in rural Mid Bedfordshire, including the much-needed GP surgery in Wixams?”
Read: Setback for Wixams GP surgery as council say the government needs to help
The Prime Minister replied, “The hon. Gentleman’s points about good value for money and accountability are really important.
“They are embedded in the work we are doing with the NHS at the moment, which is improving on our watch, not only the waiting lists, but in other respects.
“The 10-year plan for the NHS, which is intended to ensure that the NHS is fit for the future, has a number of principles, including the principle of local accountability.”
