Harlow Labour MP Chris Vince ‘bends the Government’s ear’ for more hospice funding
Labour MP Chris Vince has been “bending the Government’s ear” on behalf of St Clare Hospice.
His Harlow constituency includes Hastingwood, where the charity has its headquarters, as well as the Hallingburys, Hatfield Broad Oak, Hatfield Heath, Sheering, Lower Sheering and Matching.
He said his pressure had paid off as Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting announced “the biggest investment in a generation for hospices”.
The £100 million will help hospices provide end-of-life care to patients and their families in a “supportive and dignified physical environment”.
Hospices for children and young people will receive a further £26 million in revenue funding for 2025-26 through what was previously known as the Children’s Hospice Grant.
St Clare Hospice is one of around 210 such facilities across the country, mostly run by charities.
Mr Vince said: “I’m proud that bending the ear of Government ministers has paid off. St Clare Hospice does a wonderful job at providing support for people with life-limiting conditions.
“This funding from our Labour Government will make a real difference. Just last week, I visited Café Clare at St Clare Hospice and met the wonderful volunteers who do so much to support people feeling social isolation and suffering from bereavement.”
Mr Streeting said: “I’m really proud we’re able to deliver the biggest funding package for hospices in a generation.
“Chris Vince has done a brilliant job making the case for investment in hospices and I know how invaluable hospices like St Clare are for so many families.”
In November, Mr Vince was one of 330 MPs who voted for the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill to become law in England and Wales.
Under the legislation, co-sponsored by Kim Leadbeater, the Labour MP for Spen Valley, anyone over 18 in England and Wales with less than six months to live would be given the right to end their own life if two doctors and a High Court judge agree.
Mr Vince said before the free vote: “I believe in the right to choose, and I believe this right should extend to those who are suffering when it is not their wish to continue.”
