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NHS (Charitable Trusts Etc) Bill

As we have heard, this Bill will improve the independence of NHS charitable trusts, and I am pleased to speak on Third Reading. As we have also heard, Great Ormond Street hospital provides essential care for many children in the UK and across the world through its research into many child health issues. I am glad that the Bill will ensure that the trust charity will continue to be able to benefit in perpetuity from royalties and other payments in relation to performances or publications of the play “Peter Pan”. I can assure the hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton) that the hospital’s research and care stretch well beyond Greater London.

The Bill will also remove the requirement for the Secretary of State for Health to appoint trustees of NHS charities. I hope that reducing the involvement of the Department of Health in NHS charities will provide the organisations with more freedom to grow, and with clear independence. I hope they will be able to attract additional donors; that is important for NHS charities such as the Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, which I mentioned earlier. The research that it has helped to fund spans a wide range of departments, from physiotherapy and urology to a joint project with the University of Manchester looking at factors that lead to complications for patients with type 2 diabetes. That shows what an important role our NHS charities can play in potentially life-saving research. Like many others, the charity has also focused on improving patients’ experience in the hospital. Equipment has been purchased by the charity to aid patients in their recovery. For example, the charity purchased reclining chairs for patients recovering from neurosurgery, which enable them to sit in a more comfortable posture.

NHS charities play a significant role in our hospital trusts. They provide funds for life-saving research and help NHS staff to provide the best care possible for patients and their families. On behalf on the official Opposition, I am pleased to support the Bill on Third Reading. It will help to ensure that NHS charities can continue their vital work supporting patients and staff in the NHS.

1.30 pm