Reform UK MP says NHS patients ‘should speak English’ in row over taxpayer-funded translators

A Reform UK MP has criticised taxpayer-funded translators for the NHS, describing them as a “complete waste of money.”

Rupert Lowe, MP for Great Yarmouth, told BBC Politics Live he “did not care” that some patients may feel more comfortable speaking their native language during medical appointments.

“They live in England, they should speak English,” he told Ash Sarkar, who said the cost of translators “is not where the problem is.”

She added: “The problem is we’ve had 14 years of austerity.”