Joe Robertson MP
Conservative MP for Isle of Wight EastAs the new MP for Isle of Wight East, Joe Robertson MP is focused on using local experience and parliamentary insights to address urgent issues in healthcare, social care reform, and public transport to ensure his constituents’ needs are met.
Background
As someone who has followed domestic politics from childhood, sitting on the green benches for the first time was a surreal moment. I am not the only one adjusting to a new role – the Prime Minister referred to Rishi Sunak as the Prime Minister in September PMQS!
Parliament is a maze, and navigating its procedures is an entirely new experience for me. However, I am fortunate that my constituency, Isle of Wight East, is my home and is as familiar as the Palace of Westminster is alien. Whilst starting without an office or staff might seem daunting, my deep understanding of my home patch, coupled with my political experience as a local Councillor, has allowed me to hit the ground running and avoid the perception of neglect or absence in the aftermath of the Election campaign.
Reforming Health and Social Care
Reforming health and social care is one of the biggest challenges this Government faces in the current Parliament. Before being elected, I worked for Dementia UK, so securing much-needed reform in this area is a major priority for me. One of the most critical steps we can take to benefit the NHS is solving the crisis in social care. At my local hospital, around 25 per cent of beds are occupied by people who no longer need medical care but have nowhere safe to return to. This is a common problem across the country. By preventing unnecessary hospital admissions and reducing the length of hospital stays where possible, we can free up significant resources for our NHS. Despite frequent discussions about redirecting resources to community care, there has been little tangible action to back it up.
On the Isle of Wight, our small unitary authority serves an older population – 29.7 per cent are over 65 – compared to the UK average. By the mid-2050s, this is the age profile the whole country will face. Finding a sustainable solution to social care on the Isle of Wight could serve as a blueprint for a UK-wide plan. That’s why I am co-signing a letter from our Local Authority to the Minister for Care, Stephen Kinnock, inviting him to work with us on this pressing issue.
Technology can help extend the time people can live at home, but it comes with challenges related to privacy and consent. For example, using AI to monitor individuals with dementia may keep them out of institutions, but it also introduces concerns about intrusive surveillance. Furthermore, the NHS and many local authorities have struggled to adopt new technologies. Even basic issues like the interoperability of clinical databases remain unresolved. Some NHS Trusts still rely on software that predates the computer mouse, navigated only by keyboard arrows.
Beyond technology, unpaid family carers play a crucial role, contributing an estimated £162 billion annually in unpaid care. For those living with dementia or long-term frailty, the most significant need is better support and training for their carers. This may include enabling carers to balance work and caregiving responsibilities, which requires employment reforms that go beyond the health and social care sector alone.
Delaying action by handing everything off to a Royal Commission, as the Secretary of State has suggested, is not an acceptable solution. Governments have delayed addressing this issue for over two decades. We must act now. If a Royal Commission is to be involved, it should not stand in the way of immediate, necessary reform.
Final Thought
The Government’s radical plan to reform public transport aims for better integration, including the nationalisation of rail and local control of buses. However, one of the biggest issues for my constituents is the unregulated ferry services, which are run by private companies that are often loaded with debt and based overseas. This issue mirrors the problems faced by national utilities – high prices and long-term underinvestment. The Scottish Government provides subsidies for ferries to Scottish islands, and the UK Government subsidises rail and buses through measures like the £2 bus fare cap. Yet, the Secretary of State for Transport has said nothing about ferry services in her plans for integrated public transport.
Isle of Wight residents are at risk of becoming the only community entirely dependent on debt-laden private companies for essential travel, with no government support. This situation is unsustainable, and we must not allow it to continue. I am working closely with my Labour counterpart in Isle of Wight West to persuade the Government to intervene and ensure the island’s ferry services are addressed in the broader public transport reforms. Our communities deserve affordable, reliable transport options just as much as the rest of the UK.
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