Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Health – in the House of Commons at 2:30 pm on 12 July 2005.
Can I commend and congratulate my right hon. Friend on the progress thus far on waiting lists? I welcome the target of 18 weeks for waiting lists, which is obviously very different from the position when the Tories were in power, when it was 18 months. Does my right hon. Friend agree that public accountability is central to public confidence? In that context, how does she propose to deal with hospitals that fail to meet their obligations vis-à-vis targets?