Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve waiting times for cancer treatment in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England.

The Government is committed to improving cancer survival rates and hitting all National Health Service cancer waiting time targets within five years, so that no patient waits longer than they should.

NHS England and the integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning and ensuring the healthcare needs of local communities in England are met, including for cancer patients. The Department is working with NHS England to deliver interventions to improve outcomes for those with cancer across England, including in Cheshire.

The NHS will maximise the pace of the roll-out of additional diagnostic capacity, delivering the final year of the three-year investment plan for establishing Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs) and ensuring timely implementation of new CDC locations and upgrades to existing CDCs, with capacity prioritised for cancer diagnostics.