Speeches by Stafford.

“Indeed, Professor Croisdale-Appleby’s evidence exposes what I regard as the principal weakness in the Government’s case. If Healthwatch exists to hold organisations to account, how can that responsibility be transferred to the very organisations being held to account? That is not a political question but a structural o…”

“That is a remarkable piece of evidence. The architect of this approach to patient safety is telling us that the feature of HSSIB that has proved most successful is the very feature that these clauses place at risk. He is not arguing that safe space will disappear overnight; he is making a more subtle and, I would sugge…”

“That question was put to Ministers on Second Reading. The hon. Member for Bicester and Woodstock (Calum Miller) asked the Secretary of State:”

““independent role in gathering this insight and acting as a voice for the community is essential in ensuring that the needs of all residents are heard—especially those who may otherwise go unheard or are at risk of health inequalities.””

“I ask the Minister again: if the concern is excessive bureaucracy across more than 150 organisations, why have the Government chosen to abolish one of the smallest, most focused and arguably most cost-effective organisations within that landscape? How does removing one body, responsible for just a handful of carefully …”

““can he reassure the House that bringing the scrutiny of local voices up to the level of the Secretary of State will not diminish the independence of the local healthwatch organisations that…do so much to promote the patient voice and to hold the NHS to account for its services?”—[Official Report, 1 June 2026; Vol. 786…”

““Healthwatch has operated as an impartial champion...built a trusted brand within local communities where individuals can feel ‘safe’ in sharing their experiences and concerns...Their independence has been central to this.””

“Nobody disputes that unnecessary bureaucracy should be reduced, or that duplication should be removed where it genuinely exists. Nor, I think, would anyone argue against simplifying an over-complex landscape, if doing so allowed frontline clinicians to spend more time caring for patients. The question, however, is whet…”

““The heart of what the AAIB has is this concept of safe space, where people can talk to it completely without fear that what they say will get passed on or used against them in a court of law, and so they are very open about what may have gone wrong, allowing a rapid conclusion to be drawn.””

“That observation goes to the heart of this clause. Trust cannot simply be transferred from one statutory body to another, and nor can it be created by legislation. It is earned over time through experience.”

“As I said throughout my speech, I am against this proposal whatever the nature of the CQC. However, does it strike my hon. Friend, as it strikes me, that the problems of moving the functions of HSSIB into the CQC are compounded given that the CQC, as he alluded to, is not functioning well and does not have the confiden…”

“That observation seems self-evident. If organisations are expected simultaneously to reduce expenditure while assuming additional statutory responsibilities, something must inevitably give.”

“Such evidence is particularly important because it comes from the organisations that will inherit those responsibilities should the Bill proceed. Far from arguing that independence is unnecessary, they describe it as essential to the effectiveness of the existing arrangements. Surrey county council also highlighted ano…”

““patients trust independent organisations. I feel that that trust might be lost in local communities.”––[Official Report, Health Public Bill Committee, 16 June 2026; c. 46, Q75.]”

“The Committee has not been told how the new responsibility will be resourced. Will additional funding accompany the duties? Will specialist staff transfer? Will the expertise and local relationships built over many years be maintained? Or are we simply expected to assume that patient representation can somehow improve …”

“These are important questions because, during her evidence, Dr Dash repeatedly referred to simplification and alignment. She explained that:”

““The point of bringing it into the CQC…is that we are trying to simplify this landscape…The hope…is that by bringing HSSIB into the CQC, you can align the work of the two.”––[Official Report, Health Public Bill Committee, 16 June 2026; c. 7, Q8.]”

“That sentence captures the entire philosophy behind HSSIB. Safe space is not a procedural convenience; it is the mechanism through which investigators obtain the evidence that would otherwise remain hidden. People speak honestly because they trust the institution. They trust that investigators are there to understand, …”

“The Government repeatedly assure us that operational independence will remain, but operational independence is not the same as institutional independence. Indeed, that distinction was brought into sharp focus during our evidence sessions. Dr Rosie Benneyworth, the chief executive of HSSIB, explained why safe space matt…”

“I come back to the central question: who performs that role if Healthwatch disappears? Will integrated care boards publish reports criticising their own decisions? Will they systematically monitor whether recommendations directed at them have been implemented? Will they publicly report on the effectiveness of their own…”