Last week I visited an event hosted in Parliament to show my support for Alzheimer’s Society Day.
Dementia is a growing health concern for everyone as we grow older on average as a nation. Living longer of course is fantastic news, but it will come with risks and more of us will encounter degenerative conditions in our later years.
I have supported the prioritising of Dementia as an issue by this government and we are investing over £300 million into UK research to help slow down the onset of dementia and hopefully find a cure within 10 years by 2025.
The Prime Minister, David Cameron, has said that he considers dementia to be “one of the greatest challenges of our lifetime” and he has made it a priority in the G8 Summits. We are determined to make the United Kingdom the world leader on Dementia and to make the UK the best country in the world in which to grow old.
In other medical news, the Medical Innovation Bill, which many of you will know has been one of my projects over the last two years in the Houses of Parliament alongside Lord Maurice Saatchi, did not make it into Law. It would have given doctors and patients more scope to find new cures for cancer. However, there was simply not enough time left in the House of Commons Business for this to pass, and the Liberal Democrats effectively vetoed its progress by declining to allow time in the timetable. Although this delay is disappointing, if I am honoured with being re-elected as your Member of Parliament in May, I hope to pick up the baton again and continue the fight to bring this into Law.