Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what recent discussions they have had with the Department of Health in Northern Ireland concerning long waiting lists for cancer treatment and operations.

The Government is acutely aware of the pressures facing the health service in Northern Ireland, including on cancer treatment.

A fully functioning devolved government is the best way to deliver the necessary reforms to transform healthcare and cut waiting lists. That is why the Government is doing all it can to restore the Executive as soon as possible.

In the meantime, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has introduced appropriate measures to protect the delivery of all public services and my officials continue to engage regularly with the Northern Ireland Department of Health.