Tory MP condemned for asking where English will get ‘proper healthcare’ in Tywyn
A Tory MP has questioned how English tourists will get “proper healthcare” when they visit an area of north Wales where the local hospital’s inpatient ward has had to close.
Lichfield MP Michael Fabricant was branded “patronising” for questioning how visitors could be assured of a good standard of care in tourist hotspot Tywyn, after the local hospital inpatient ward closed due to staffing issues.
Plaid Cymru Westminster leader Liz Saville-Roberts said his question “verged on insulting”, and stressed that residents in the region were facing a crisis in healthcare provision.
During Wales Questions in the House of Commons, Mr Fabricant said: “Many of my constituents, including me, visit Tywyn in Gwynedd.
“Is the Secretary of State aware that people need healthcare there, funded of course by the grant, yet Tywyn Hospital has closed its minor injuries unit and its inpatient ward?
“Will he speak to the Welsh Minister for Health and Social Services and discuss how English tourists will get proper healthcare when they are on holiday in Wales?”
Devolved
Welsh Secretary David TC Davies responded: “Unfortunately I am unable to give a detailed answer because the National Health Service is devolved in Wales.
“I very much hope that Welsh Labour ministers will want to explain why, with all the extra money they are getting, above the money that is given to the National Health Service in England, they are unable to deliver the same standards of healthcare, or for that matter education, as those we take for granted under a Conservative Government run in Westminster.”
Ms Saville-Roberts, whose Dwyfor Meirionnydd constituency covers Tywyn, told the PA news agency: “My constituents have been let down by the sudden closure of the inpatient ward at Ysbyty Tywyn.
“This is yet another blow to the people of Bro Dysynni (the area surrounding Tywyn) who already face a crisis in healthcare provision and a dearth of Government investment.
“Wales Questions have long been used by Tories representing English constituencies to pontificate about matters that have nothing to do with them, but today’s question verged on insulting. Tywyn and Bro Dysynni aren’t a community to be used as a cheap political hit.
“Tourism is a vitally important industry in Meirionnydd. But this patronising intervention shows just how crucial it is that we develop a sustainable model of tourism that maximises economic and social benefits for local residents.”
Recruitment
Tywyn Hospital’s inpatient ward was forced to close earlier this month because there were not enough staff to keep patients safe, according to the local health board.
Ffion Johnstone, integrated health community director for the west of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, said: “We have been working hard to recruit new nurses from the surrounding area and from further afield to work at Tywyn Hospital for some time but have now exhausted all recruitment options.
“Despite our best efforts, we have been unable to recruit adequate numbers of nurses to provide safe nurse staffing levels across both Tywyn and Dolgellau hospitals.
“With the safety of our patients as our primary concern, we have taken the difficult decision to temporarily close the ward at Tywyn Hospital and consolidate inpatient beds at Dolgellau Hospital to ensure more robust nursing cover.”
The health board said the recruitment process needed to reopen the inpatient ward could take several months.
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “NHS services in North Wales are managed by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. We understand that outpatient appointments will continue at Tywyn Hospital and inpatient services will be temporarily provided at Dolgellau Hospital.
“Regarding the ‘extra money’ the Secretary of State referred to, our budget in 2023-24 is worth £900 million less in real terms than when it was set at the start of the current three-year spending review.”
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They could not visit Twyn and then sit and wait in one of the many Saesneg NHS disaster areas (caused by people like Fabric**t) for medical care from the exhausted staff there.
Treatment in Shrewsbury should be possible. The hospital is full of Welsh ambulances so what is he on about. Just a complainer.
They should stop visiting all together the way we treat them is disgusting. Might teach our people some humility aswell.
I thought English tourists weren’t coming any more due to the threatened Tourist Tax they might have to pay.
They are all going to visit Cornwall instead, I read.
B3llend
There are just too many tourists in Cymru. We need space.
To many? The problem is everyone’s welcome except the English. To many tourists is ridiculous, I live in a tourist seaside hotspot and that’s a huge part of the local economy without lots of people would be completely without.
Another one of the big clowns from the Tory circus he looks like a freak he acts like a clown he looks like a clown and he is a clown
Mr Fabricator must have figured out by now that it’s all about resources. There again he is the Commons equivalent of 2 very short and thick planks. The London government and its colonial regime in Cardiff have colluded in running down services in most parts of the country. They point fingers back and fore, use up all their energy and much of their funds on points scoring and useless initiatives, yet conspire to impoverish and damage the health of the public. Wholesale clearout required.
People living in Wales cannot get treated let alone the english. Over the last three years everything, not just health treatment, has fallen apart. Have you noticed how everyone have suddenly become “too busy” to do their effin’ jobs. It’s the latest excuse for inefficiency and laziness!!
I’ve always had a lot of time for Mr Fabricant. He raises some excellent issues and is a very keen supporter of Wales. More MPs like him are desperately needed to help our dragon succeed in attracting more tourists from England who will hopefully spend their money to keep our heads above the water.
“keep our heads above the water”!!!!! If the south west of england get their way in pumping water from Wales to London there won’t be any water to keep our heads above. We’ll end up in drought conditions and they will be wasting it through leaks.
Are Welsh hospitals discriminating English tourists? How about UK tourists in the EU who no longer get the same healthcare entitlements that they did before Brexit?
Another 🏴Con man making the case for British language classes in England’s schools. And England’s Westminster government to stop calling Welsh a foreign language.