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| Eleanor Smith MP: ‘NHS staff are undervalued – and demoralised’ | Eleanor Smith MP: ‘NHS staff are undervalued – and demoralised’ |
| (7 months later) | |
| Nursing got Eleanor Smith into politics. Now, as the Midlands’ first black MP – in Enoch Powell’s old seat – the Labour politician says she will fight for the NHS | |
| Hélène Mulholland | |
| Tue 20 Jun 2017 13.00 BST | |
| Last modified on Mon 27 Nov 2017 21.34 GMT | |
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| Eleanor Smith was 11 years old when Enoch Powell, the Conservative MP for Wolverhampton South West, came to Birmingham to deliver his incendiary “rivers of blood” speech in April 1968. | Eleanor Smith was 11 years old when Enoch Powell, the Conservative MP for Wolverhampton South West, came to Birmingham to deliver his incendiary “rivers of blood” speech in April 1968. |
| Smith, born and raised in Birmingham, recalls the dismay of her parents, who were encouraged to come to England from Barbados in the 1950s by the likes of Powell. “I remember my mum saying in her Bajan accent: ‘well, he asked us to come over’. It was horrendous. It really was.” Her late mother probably never imagined that just shy of half a century later, the eldest of her seven children would become the first African-Caribbean MP to represent Powell’s old constituency. | Smith, born and raised in Birmingham, recalls the dismay of her parents, who were encouraged to come to England from Barbados in the 1950s by the likes of Powell. “I remember my mum saying in her Bajan accent: ‘well, he asked us to come over’. It was horrendous. It really was.” Her late mother probably never imagined that just shy of half a century later, the eldest of her seven children would become the first African-Caribbean MP to represent Powell’s old constituency. |
| When Labour defied expectations by winning 262 seats in this month’s general election, Smith hung on to the marginal seat for Labour, and increased its majority to 2,185 votes, up from 801. Winning felt “enormous” and “humbling”, says Smith, who is also the Midlands’ first black MP. “Wolverhampton has moved on. It’s a lot more diverse, and we need to recognise that.” So is the House of Commons: as one of 52 MPs from an ethnic minority background – of whom 32 are Labour – and also one of a record 208 women elected, the working class grandmother joins the most diverse Commons to date. Smith stresses that the Conservatives’ Paul Uppal, the son of Sikh immigrants, had previously held the seat, but recognises the attention winning Powell’s old seat has received. “When [Powell] was talking about the ‘rivers of blood’, he was on about us,” she says. | When Labour defied expectations by winning 262 seats in this month’s general election, Smith hung on to the marginal seat for Labour, and increased its majority to 2,185 votes, up from 801. Winning felt “enormous” and “humbling”, says Smith, who is also the Midlands’ first black MP. “Wolverhampton has moved on. It’s a lot more diverse, and we need to recognise that.” So is the House of Commons: as one of 52 MPs from an ethnic minority background – of whom 32 are Labour – and also one of a record 208 women elected, the working class grandmother joins the most diverse Commons to date. Smith stresses that the Conservatives’ Paul Uppal, the son of Sikh immigrants, had previously held the seat, but recognises the attention winning Powell’s old seat has received. “When [Powell] was talking about the ‘rivers of blood’, he was on about us,” she says. |
| Smith, 59, is a theatre nurse. She seems undaunted by the prospect of adapting to a parliamentary career after 35 years in the NHS – all but three spent at Birmingham women’s hospital, now part of the Birmingham women’s and children’s NHS foundation trust. “I want to make sure I do the best that I can,” she says. “I’m probably going to make some mistakes along the way – but as an older woman, I can accept that.” | Smith, 59, is a theatre nurse. She seems undaunted by the prospect of adapting to a parliamentary career after 35 years in the NHS – all but three spent at Birmingham women’s hospital, now part of the Birmingham women’s and children’s NHS foundation trust. “I want to make sure I do the best that I can,” she says. “I’m probably going to make some mistakes along the way – but as an older woman, I can accept that.” |
| It’s not the first time Smith has broken new ground. Six years ago, she became the first black woman to be elected president of Unison, the country’s largest public sector union. Fiercely opposed to injustice, she says she became a union activist in the 1980s after a pay and grading exercise which left her and some colleagues worse off. Smith was on maternity leave at the time. “I was demoted, and they did it to quite a number of us,” she says. “It was really bad, as any black nurse who was around at that time will tell you.” | It’s not the first time Smith has broken new ground. Six years ago, she became the first black woman to be elected president of Unison, the country’s largest public sector union. Fiercely opposed to injustice, she says she became a union activist in the 1980s after a pay and grading exercise which left her and some colleagues worse off. Smith was on maternity leave at the time. “I was demoted, and they did it to quite a number of us,” she says. “It was really bad, as any black nurse who was around at that time will tell you.” |
| She appealed and won her case. Have things improved for black staff working in the NHS since? “They’ve improved, but the service could do a lot more.” The figures would appear to bear her out: although the second Workplace Race Equality Standard report, published in April 2017 by NHS England, reported improvements in career progression for black and minority ethnic staff in the NHS, they are “significantly more likely to experience discrimination at work” and representation at the highest levels remains significantly lower. | She appealed and won her case. Have things improved for black staff working in the NHS since? “They’ve improved, but the service could do a lot more.” The figures would appear to bear her out: although the second Workplace Race Equality Standard report, published in April 2017 by NHS England, reported improvements in career progression for black and minority ethnic staff in the NHS, they are “significantly more likely to experience discrimination at work” and representation at the highest levels remains significantly lower. |
| Smith says her mum always told her that as a black person she would have to work three times as hard as any white person. Does that still hold true today? “Yes. You might have some who say different, but honestly, are they being true to themselves? You still have to work harder to get the parity with a white person; that’s the way it is.” | Smith says her mum always told her that as a black person she would have to work three times as hard as any white person. Does that still hold true today? “Yes. You might have some who say different, but honestly, are they being true to themselves? You still have to work harder to get the parity with a white person; that’s the way it is.” |
| Smith made two previous and unsuccessful attempts to be selected as a Labour candidate at a general election. This time, she was urged to stand by Unison – whose backing proved crucial, she says. “Having that support made such a difference. I was comparing my experience with a fellow black MP and we both feel that if it wasn’t for the unions, we wouldn’t be here.” | Smith made two previous and unsuccessful attempts to be selected as a Labour candidate at a general election. This time, she was urged to stand by Unison – whose backing proved crucial, she says. “Having that support made such a difference. I was comparing my experience with a fellow black MP and we both feel that if it wasn’t for the unions, we wouldn’t be here.” |
| So what are her priorities now she’s in parliament? The newly elected MP wants to represent a constituency blighted by homelessness and high levels of youth unemployment, and to fight against inequality across society. But the NHS is also close to her heart. Being a nurse, she says, helped her campaign because “voters understand where we’re coming from when we talk about saving the NHS.” | So what are her priorities now she’s in parliament? The newly elected MP wants to represent a constituency blighted by homelessness and high levels of youth unemployment, and to fight against inequality across society. But the NHS is also close to her heart. Being a nurse, she says, helped her campaign because “voters understand where we’re coming from when we talk about saving the NHS.” |
| One of five nurses elected to parliament, Smith says NHS staff across the board are underpaid and overworked. “We are losing good people because they feel demoralised. We haven’t had a pay rise in seven years because 1% is a [real terms] pay cut. We are undervalued and more and more work and expectations are being put on us.” | One of five nurses elected to parliament, Smith says NHS staff across the board are underpaid and overworked. “We are losing good people because they feel demoralised. We haven’t had a pay rise in seven years because 1% is a [real terms] pay cut. We are undervalued and more and more work and expectations are being put on us.” |
| She is also concerned by policies that are believed to be exacerbating nursing shortages. The number of nurses from the EU registering to work in the UK, for example, has dropped by 96% less than a year after the Brexit vote, according to Nursing and Midwifery Council statistics. Meanwhile, applications for nursing courses have dropped sharply following the government decision to scrap NHS bursaries given to student nurses and midwives and replace them with loans from this September.Smith points out that nursing students are expected to work on the wards as part of their training which leaves them with scant spare time to do paid work to make ends meet. | She is also concerned by policies that are believed to be exacerbating nursing shortages. The number of nurses from the EU registering to work in the UK, for example, has dropped by 96% less than a year after the Brexit vote, according to Nursing and Midwifery Council statistics. Meanwhile, applications for nursing courses have dropped sharply following the government decision to scrap NHS bursaries given to student nurses and midwives and replace them with loans from this September.Smith points out that nursing students are expected to work on the wards as part of their training which leaves them with scant spare time to do paid work to make ends meet. |
| Applications by students in England to nursing and midwifery courses at British universities have fallen by 23%, according to UCAS figures, but Smith says the true figure is likely to be higher since “there is always a percentage that drop out. And I think the dropout rate will be more now as students realise that they are paying £27,000 for the privilege of working on wards as part of their training alongside the studying.” Another of her grievances is NHS staff being asked to check whether patients are eligible for treatment, which she sees as a slippery slope away from a service free at the point of delivery. | Applications by students in England to nursing and midwifery courses at British universities have fallen by 23%, according to UCAS figures, but Smith says the true figure is likely to be higher since “there is always a percentage that drop out. And I think the dropout rate will be more now as students realise that they are paying £27,000 for the privilege of working on wards as part of their training alongside the studying.” Another of her grievances is NHS staff being asked to check whether patients are eligible for treatment, which she sees as a slippery slope away from a service free at the point of delivery. |
| It is too early to know exactly how Smith hopes to change things, although she is clear she wants to help fund the NHS properly – and hasn’t ruled out standing for the health select committee. We meet at the end of her first week in parliament. Things have been so hectic since Smith was elected that she hasn’t had a chance to formally inform her employer of her new job since taking an unpaid six week sabbatical. She wants to “stay on the books” to do nursing shifts to maintain her nurse registration. Why? “One never knows what the future holds.” | It is too early to know exactly how Smith hopes to change things, although she is clear she wants to help fund the NHS properly – and hasn’t ruled out standing for the health select committee. We meet at the end of her first week in parliament. Things have been so hectic since Smith was elected that she hasn’t had a chance to formally inform her employer of her new job since taking an unpaid six week sabbatical. She wants to “stay on the books” to do nursing shifts to maintain her nurse registration. Why? “One never knows what the future holds.” |
| Curriculum vitae | Curriculum vitae |
| Age: 59 | Age: 59 |
| Lives: Birmingham | Lives: Birmingham |
| Family: Two grown up daughters, one granddaughter | Family: Two grown up daughters, one granddaughter |
| Education: Mount Pleasant comprehensive school, Birmingham; Bournville College, foundation nursing course. | Education: Mount Pleasant comprehensive school, Birmingham; Bournville College, foundation nursing course. |
| Career: June 2017: Labour MP for Wolverhampton South West; 1984-present: theatre nurse, Birmingham Women’s hospital; 1983-84: theatre nurse, Russell Hall hospital, Dudley; 1982-83: theatre nurse, George Eliot hospital, Nuneaton; 1979-82: general register nurse training, George Eliot hospital; 1976-79: nurse training for learning difficulties, North Warwickshire hospital. | Career: June 2017: Labour MP for Wolverhampton South West; 1984-present: theatre nurse, Birmingham Women’s hospital; 1983-84: theatre nurse, Russell Hall hospital, Dudley; 1982-83: theatre nurse, George Eliot hospital, Nuneaton; 1979-82: general register nurse training, George Eliot hospital; 1976-79: nurse training for learning difficulties, North Warwickshire hospital. |
| Public Life: Unison representative on the national labour policy forum; TUC general council member; Unison national executive member for West Midlands; 2013 -17: staff nurse governor, Birmingham Women’s Health Care Trust; 2011-12: Unison national resident; 2003-04: Unison assistant regional convenor West Midlands. | Public Life: Unison representative on the national labour policy forum; TUC general council member; Unison national executive member for West Midlands; 2013 -17: staff nurse governor, Birmingham Women’s Health Care Trust; 2011-12: Unison national resident; 2003-04: Unison assistant regional convenor West Midlands. |
| Interests: Going to the gym, cycling, swimming, dancing, listening to reggae and R&B music. | Interests: Going to the gym, cycling, swimming, dancing, listening to reggae and R&B music. |
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