Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the average length of time patients are currently waiting between GP referral and being added to an NHS consultant-led elective care waiting list; and whether any such waiting periods are included in official waiting list statistics.

In line with referral to treatment rules, a patient's waiting time clock starts from the moment they are referred for consultant-led elective treatment. According to these rules, there should be no time between a general practice referral and entry onto a consultant-led elective waiting list. The complete time elapsed between referral and treatment will be recorded on the published consultant led referral to treatment waiting time data, with further information available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/rtt-data-2025-26/

Guidance is provided to NHS England and integrated care boards through the Referral to treatment consultant-led waiting times: rules suite, which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/right-to-start-consultant-led-treatment-within-18-weeks/referral-to-treatment-consultant-led-waiting-times-rules-suite-october-2022