In the interests of time, I will just speak to my amendment 99 and new clause 57 tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Streatham (Bell Ribeiro-Addy).
The Government often talk the talk on health inequalities but fail to walk the walk. New clause 57 sets out a requirement that NHS England must publish guidance in relation to health inequalities, which I wholeheartedly support. My amendment 99 seeks to put in provisions to reduce inequalities between non-migrant and migrant users of health services. Campaigners and experts have argued that the pandemic has shown more tangible action is needed to tackle health inequalities. The increased risks of those on lower incomes and black, Asian and minority ethnic communities catching and dying from covid-19 have been well documented, yet the provisions outlined in the Bill will likely make the situation much worse.
9.45 pm
I tabled amendment 99 in particular after seeing evidence that people are being denied access to healthcare, or are facing high charges for doing so because of their immigration status. As part of the hostile environment, the Government have increasingly been restricting access to the NHS for certain migrants by introducing upfront charging for those unable to prove their entitlement to care, by charging migrants for the cost of treatment and by sharing NHS patient data with the Home Office for the purposes of immigration control.
Surely, in any civilised society, migrants should have automatic access to services without fear of detention or deportation, and without facing barriers that deny them their rights. Everyone being entitled to treatment goes to the core of what the NHS is, and why it is valued and beloved. Access to high-quality healthcare is possible for all, and this can be done best when healthcare provision is publicly run, publicly accessible and publicly accountable. My constituents deserve nothing less, and I will never stop pursuing this goal until it becomes a reality.