Cancer Treatment 2026-04-14
2026-04-14
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Questions & Answers
Q1
Partial Answer
What steps his Department is taking to support the treatment of cancer patients.
We are backing cancer patients with a plan to end the postcode lottery that was baked in by the previous Tory Government due to chronic underfunding. We have already announced that more cancer specialists will be allocated to rural and coastal areas, increasing capacity where it is most needed. Over the past year, around 39,000 more people started their cancer treatment within 62 days, compared with the 12 months prior to the 2024 election.
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Q2
Partial Answer
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Context
John Kiely, a constituent of Dan Aldridge's [10D [K Aldridge's, is campaigning for a radiotherapy machine in Weston general hos [3D [K hospital. Cancer patients from Weston-super-Mare must travel up to 90 minut [5D [K minutes by car or over three hours by public transport to Bristol for their [5D [K their treatment.
Weston-super-Mare, a growing town with a populati [8D [K population like that of Bath, has cancer patients who need to make lengthy [K round trips to Bristol for radiotherapy. My constituent John Kiely is leadi [5D [K leading a campaign for a radiotherapy machine in Weston general hospital. A [1D [K A feasibility study is underway. Can Ministers outline how we can secure su [2D [K support for this and improve treatment experience?
Too many patients face difficulties accessing radio [5D [K radiotherapy, including my hon. Friend's constituent John Kiely. This Gover [5D [K Government have invested £70 million for 28 new radiotherapy machines acros [5D [K across the country and allocated £15 billion in operational capital to loca [4D [K local priorities and £5 billion to support a return to constitutional stand [5D [K standards on waiting times. Local systems are expected to use this funding [K to deliver further investment.
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Assessment & feedback
Securing specific support for Weston general hosp [4D [K hospital's radiotherapy machine campaign was not addressed directly.
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Q3
Partial Answer
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The cancer plan commits to filling NHS work [4D [K workforce gaps in coastal towns like East Thanet, including Margate, Broads [6D [K Broadstairs and Ramsgate. These communities have seen a postcode lottery af [2D [K affecting access to the best possible cancer care.
Welcoming my hon. Friend to her place, I note the [3D [K the commitment in the cancer plan to address NHS workforce shortages in coa [3D [K coastal areas such as East Thanet. Can she update us on progress made towar [5D [K towards closing these gaps?
My hon. Friend's work for her coastal community is [K commendable. The national cancer plan aims to ensure timely access to high- [5D [K high-quality diagnostic and treatment services by increasing medical traini [6D [K training places in rural and coastal regions, saving 320,000 lives over a d [1D [K decade and delivering the fastest improvement in UK cancer survival.
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Assessment & feedback
Specific progress on closing workforce gaps in co [2D [K coastal areas like East Thanet was not addressed directly.
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Q4
Partial Answer
Cancer patients, like so many other patients, are worried and concerned about the resident doctors strike in England, which is reportedly costing around £50 million a day, not to mention its impact on waiting lists. Meanwhile, in Scotland, we have a Health Secretary and a Government who are competent in negotiations and have none of this industrial action. The final bill for this industrial relations shambles could be as high as £3 billion. What can the Secretary of State reveal to the House about the special skills he has in dealing with the BMA?
Patients are 30 times more likely to wait two years for care in Scotland than in England. Labour has ended austerity and provided Scotland with the biggest funding increase since devolution. The question is: where has the money gone?
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Q5
Partial Answer
May I pursue the point about coastal communities and cancer care? A young dad in Withernsea, a coastal town in my east Yorkshire constituency, went to the doctor repeatedly saying that there was something wrong with him and was repeatedly told that he was fine, before being diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. He survived, but only just. What, in real terms, will happen to ensure that communities such as those in Withernsea can see decent cancer care and proper diagnosis, especially given that, as was pointed out by my right hon. Friend the Member for Goole and Pocklington (David Davis), Hull university teaching hospitals NHS trust is one of the worst-performing trusts in the country?
The national cancer plan is a key part of our work to build an NHS fit for the future, and it explains how we will make England a world leader in cancer outcomes. The right hon. Gentleman’s constituents will now be able to see a GP much sooner than they could before the 2024 election, which will ensure that they can get that earlier diagnosis, which is the only thing that will help them to survive and live longer.
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Q6
Partial Answer
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Context
The previous Secretary of State promised to [2D [K to double medical school places and publish a comprehensive NHS workforce p [1D [K plan, but these promises appear to have been abandoned. There is ongoing co [2D [K concern about the quality of cancer care due to workforce shortages.
Before the election, the Secretary of State said [K that he would double the number of medical school places and provide thousa [6D [K thousands more medical training jobs, but now it appears he has rowed back [K on these promises. The NHS workforce plan was promised for summer 2025 and [K then autumn 2025, yet we are in spring 2026. When will the workforce plan b [1D [K be published? Does the Secretary of State still intend to double the number [6D [K number of medical school places?
We are well aware that there are issues with the wo [2D [K workforce across the NHS, which is why we are working on a new workforce pl [2D [K plan. This plan will be published very soon.
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Assessment & feedback
The specific commitment to double medical school [K places was not addressed
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Q7
Partial Answer
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There is concern that the new triage system [6D [K system for NHS referrals may lead to a set proportion of patients being rej [3D [K rejected, potentially compromising patient safety. The Minister previously [K stated that referrals would no longer be triaged by consultants.
The Government appear to have decided that referr [6D [K referrals will no longer be triaged by a consultant and that a set proporti [8D [K proportion will be rejected. What evidence do the Government have that this [4D [K this system is safe? If a set proportion of patients are to be rejected, do [2D [K does this mean doctors must change their clinical thresholds? What evidence [8D [K evidence supports the safety of these changes?
Unlike the Conservative party, we trust our GPs. Th [2D [K This will be consultant-led advice and guidance, on which GPs will then dec [3D [K decide.
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Assessment & feedback
The specific question about evidence for safety w [1D [K was not addressed; instead, a general statement about trusting GPs was prov [4D [K provided
Changed Subject To Trust In Gps
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