I am absolutely delighted to say, after my consultation with my fantastic surgeon, Mr Anil Reddy of the James Cook University Hospital (JCUH) in Middlesbrough, the emergency surgery he and his team carried out has been successful. As a result, after a period of recuperation I will be able to return to full duties.

I am in awe of what Mr Reddy and the entire surgical and care teams have done for me and words cannot sufficiently express my overwhelming sense of gratitude. I am humbled by their skill and dedication, and I am forever in their debt.

I owe my life to the NHS and specifically to JCUH. I know the staff are extremely tired after all the travails of Covid but my goodness, they continue to step up day in day out. They are amazing!

There is not a day that goes by when I don’t think of the post war pioneers in Attlee’s government who so determinedly established our “free at the point of need” health service especially in the face of such deep political opposition at the time.

I vow to redouble my commitment to supporting our magnificent – if somewhat stretched – NHS, because as Nye Bevan himself said “We will always have an NHS so long as there are people to fight for it.”