HC Deb 21 March 1979 vol 964 cc1497-9
Mr. Eyre

I beg to ask leave to move the Adjournment of the House, under Standing Order No. 9, for the purpose of discussing a specific and important matter that should have urgent consideration, namely, the threat of NUPE officials to bring out all their members in 11 hospitals in the Birmingham district if public volunteers are brought in to maintain emergency and essential services at Selly Oak hospital during a three-day all-out strike of NUPE members at that hospital. Since January, a number of industrial disputes have affected Birmingham's hospitals. Conditions have deteriorated and waiting lists for operations and treatment have increased by thousands. Great suffering is being caused to patients who are waiting for admission and there is considerable anxiety in the city about the present and developing situation with regard to the availability of hospital services.

After a frustrated attempt by NUPE members to close the Birmingham general hospital, another major hospital in the city, Selly Oak, has been selected by NUPE members as a fresh target for an all-out strike. From today, nearly 550 manual workers, all the members of NUPE at Selly Oak hospital—except for those employed on geriatric wards—have gone on strike for three days.

The matter is urgent because, by this action, NUPE has broken the code of conduct that was negotiated with the Government. Emergency services are being withdrawn and the minimum level of essential patient services is not being maintained. The chairman of the Birmingham area health authority has been compelled to declare that the attempt to cause the virtual closure of the hospital—[Interruption.]

Mr. Speaker

Order. I shall repeat what I said yesterday. Applications under Standing Order No. 9 allow hon. Members to state the reasons why they believe that I should take the serious step of changing the business of the House and grant an emergency debate. In so doing, hon. Members have to outline the facts upon which their argument is based. I know that the hon. Gentleman will be as brief as possible.

Mr. Eyre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am trying to emphasise the seriousness and urgency of the matter.

The chairman of the area health authority has been compelled to declare that the attempt to cause the virtual closure of the hospital is totally unacceptable to the authority. Selly Oak hospital makes a major contribution to the emergency services of the city. In order to ensure that essential health services are not at risk, the chairman has invited other Health Service staff at Selly Oak and throughout the South Birmingham district to fill gaps in essential services, if necessary.

Mr. Russell Kerr

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. I have listened with great patience to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Hall Green (Mr. Eyre) explaining the substantive burden of his case. Is his speech not a direct and flagrant contradiction of what you have just advised the House, Mr. Speaker?

Mr. Speaker

The hon. Member for Birmingham, Hall Green (Mr. Eyre) was about to reach the end of his substantive case and establish why he believes it is sufficiently specific, important and urgent for me to rule in his favour.

Mr. Eyre

I was reaching the point at which I wished to emphasise the urgency and seriousness of the matter. As a contingency, the health authority has also deemed it necessary to invite members of the public in Birmingham to volunteer to assist the authority to maintain essential patient services, should it prove impossible to do so without other support.

Mr. William Hamilton

This is an abuse of the Standing Order.

Mr. Speaker

Order. The hon. Member for Hall Green has not exceeded the bounds of order yet. If he had, I would have pulled him up. I have just said that the hon. Gentleman is emphasising why he believes that the matter is urgent—and it is urgent that he should do so.

Mr. Eyre

This course of action by the authority has recently been approved of by the Secretary of State.

The urgency of the situation is further emphasised because the South Birmingham district secretary of NUPE, Mr. Cummings, has publicly stated that if any volunteers from the public are brought into the Selly Oak hospital he will call out all his union members in 10 other hospitals in the South Birmingham area.

Clearly, strike action on that scale would produce a major crisis on an unprecedented scale within the hospital service. I submit that the gravity of the situation merits urgent consideration in the House, especially as the code of conduct intended to give minimal protection to patients within the Health Service has been broken and, accordingly, civilised standards of care and concern have been endangered.

Mr. Speaker

The hon. Member for Hall Green gave me notice before 12 o'clock this morning that he would seek leave to move the Adjournment of the House, under Standing Order No. 9, for the purpose of discussing a specific and important matter that he thinks should have urgent consideration, namely, the threat of NUPE officials to bring out all their members in 11 hospitals in the Birmingham district if public volunteers are brought in to maintain emergency and essential services at Selly Oak hospital during a three-day all-out strike of NUPE members at that hospital ". The hon. Gentleman has brought to the notice of the House a serious matter. I listened with great care to what he said. He knows that I do not decide whether the mater should be debated. That decision lies in other hands. I decide merely whether it should be debated tonight or tomorrow. I have to rule that the hon. Gentleman's submission does not fall within the provisions of the Standing Order and I cannot, therefore, submit his application to the House.