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Health Secretary Wes Streeting told Channel 4 News “this is something I feel personally responsible for”, when asked if he would stake his political reputation on sorting out the state of England’s maternity services. He was questioned by Cathy Newman following an exclusive joint investigation by Channel 4 News and the New Statesman into Oxford University NHS Hospitals Foundation Trust, and the maternity and neonatal unit at John Radcliffe Hospital. Reacting to the findings, the Health Secretary said “it’s truly shocking and on so many levels. It’s hard to put into words a reaction.” “Some of the hardest conversations I’ve had in this job in the last year have been with families who have described in that kind of detail similar harrowing experiences that should never happen in the NHS. Should never happen,” he told Cathy Newman. “It’s truly shocking and on so many levels. It’s hard to put into words a reaction.” – Wes Streeting Mr Streeting said it’s important that “truth and accountability” is provided to individual families who have gone through “unimaginable ordeals”, and that “rapid action” is taken to stop others going through the same experience. “It is the one issue over and above all the others that keeps me awake at night.” When questioned if he expected any resignations as a result of the investigation, the Health Secretary said “there are certainly individual examples that your investigation has shown up where I cannot find in my own mind or imagination a reason or an excuse why certain things happened.” Mr Streeting told Channel 4 News he is working to turn around the Care Quality Commission, the independent health and social care regulator in England, when asked why it had taken investigations by media outlets to unearth maternity scandals, rather than regulating bodies. On calls by families for a statutory public inquiry into maternity services, he said “I haven’t ruled that out.” “I want to make sure that families who’ve experienced harm or bereavement get an honest account of what went wrong and know what accountability has taken place as a result.” “I want to make sure that families who’ve experienced harm or bereavement get an honest account of what went wrong and know what accountability has taken place as a result.” – Wes Streeting But he said it was just as important to look at “the road ahead” and the immediate pressure he felt under as Health Secretary was to “improve things as rapidly as possible so that the meetings I attend with bereaved families do not grow with families who’ve suffered loss on my watch.” A Channel 4 News FactCheck has revealed that maternity services in more than half of hospitals are at least 10 per cent short of planned nurses and midwives. When pressed on why it had been so hard to get this data out of the government, Mr Streeting said he would “look at” publishing this information that shows the true extent of nursing shortages nationwide. Cathy Newman asked if a lack of cash was partly responsible for issues within staffing. The Health Secretary admitted “We could always do with more resources in the NHS” but added “I think people can see from the decisions the chancellor’s already taken and I think they will see in the forthcoming budget that she prioritises the NHS consistently.” And when it came to the public understanding choices and trade-offs when it comes to government spending, they “understand why we as a Labour government are choosing the NHS and I think the public agree with prioritising the NHS.” “There are lots of green shoots of recovery” he told Channel 4 News, “but as your maternity investigation shows and as lots of patient experiences today will show, there is so much more to do.” In a statement on OUH Maternity Services, Simon Crowther, Interim Chief Executive Officer at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “At Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, we recognise the profound responsibility entrusted to us in caring for women, babies and families during some of the most significant and vulnerable moments of their lives. “We extend our heartfelt apologies to any family who has not received the standard of care they deserve. “We work hard to listen with care and compassion to the concerns that have been raised, and we remain fully committed to learning from them.” The Trust is participating openly and transparently in the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation led by Baroness Amos, and welcomes this opportunity to reflect, improve, and ensure that every voice is heard. Over recent years, we have taken meaningful steps to strengthen and improve our maternity services. This has included significant investment in our workforce, with the recruitment of 54 additional midwives. We have improved clinical training and strengthened leadership across the service. We have also invested in our estates and facilities to improve the environment in which care is delivered. We have made improvements to our bereavement services to ensure that families experiencing loss receive compassionate, specialist support. However, we recognise that there is much more to do, and the Trust is determined to go further. The Trust has responded to members of the campaign group and offered to meet with them. We are keen to do so and to ensure those who wish to be involved are actively engaged in shaping the future direction of our maternity services. Their insights and experiences are invaluable, and we are committed to learning from them to build a service that is safe, compassionate, and responsive to the needs of all families. Watch more here
