Oral Answers to Questions

Catherine Atkinson Excerpts

Thursday 6th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Minister without Portfolio (Ellie Reeves)]

I thank the hon. Member for that important question. She is absolutely right to highlight the barriers to politics that women in rural areas can face. We want more women in rural areas and around the country to be elected to local government and to Parliament. We should be proud that this House now has its highest ever number of elected women, including many outstanding women representing rural areas, but we know that there is much more we can do.

[Catherine Atkinson (Derby North) (Lab)]

T3. Since the Labour Government came to power, the list of patients waiting more than 65 weeks for treatment at my local hospital trust in Derby has gone down by a whopping 82%. With national waiting lists having fallen for four months in a row and the early delivery of the commitment to provide an additional 2 million NHS appointments, does the Minister agree that our plan for change is already under way? How is the Department working to embed that culture of delivery right across the Government?

[Ellie Reeves]

I am delighted to hear about the falling waiting lists in my hon. Friend�s constituency. Waiting lists are indeed falling. Last month we announced that we had met our first step pledge to deliver 2 million additional NHS appointments seven months early. We are determined to keep up the pace of delivering our plan for change, for which the public voted.