Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the process for developing the new national cancer plan will include consultation with cancer (a) charities and (b) patient representative bodies.

The Government recognises that a cancer-specific approach is needed to meet the challenges in cancer care, and the value in engaging in wide-ranging and meaningful engagement and consultation on how cancer services can meet the needs of those living with cancer. We plan to engage with a wide range of cancer partners, including charities and patient representative bodies.

We are now in discussions about what form the National Cancer Plan should take, and what its relationship to the 10-Year Health Plan and the Government’s wider Health Mission should be, and will provide updates on this in due course.