Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government how the National Cancer Plan will reduce waiting times for cancer treatment and reduce the length of time from referral to diagnosis.

As we set out in our new plan for reforming elective care, we are committed to improving performance on cancer waiting times to meet national targets. Further details are available in the National Health Service’s annual operational planning guidance.

Meeting these targets for cancer will ensure no patient waits longer than they should for diagnosis or treatment, and we have started by delivering an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week, to support faster diagnosis and access to treatment.

NHS Planning Guidance set stretching targets for cancer. By March 2026, approximately 100,000 more people every year will be told whether they have cancer or not within 28 days, and 17,000 more people will begin treatment within two months of a referral.

To achieve this, we have launched a National Cancer Plan call for evidence, seeking contributions from individuals and organisations to help shape this plan, including ideas on how to meet national targets. The call for evidence is available on the GOV.UK website, in an online only format.