Waiting Times (Diagnostics)

Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Health – in the House of Commons at 11:30 am on 22 February 2005.

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Photo of Paul Burstow Paul Burstow Shadow Secretary of State for Health 11:30, 22 February 2005

These are the hidden waiting lists that the Government say they will finally publish. They will not, however, publish them until after the general election. The Secretary of State has just rehearsed some figures on improvements in diagnostics, but will he share all the figures that he has with Members of the House, so that we can see for ourselves how the NHS is improving? Will he also confirm that the announcement that he made last Friday in fact involves expending from existing NHS budgets to deliver the new contracts, rather than from new NHS funds? Will he allow the local NHS to take decisions for itself about how best to cut diagnostic waits, rather than bouncing it into a nationally arranged contract? Will he also ensure that all NHS scanning equipment is being used to the full, rather than sitting idle, as much of it is now?