Speaking during Health and Social Care questions, James Wild MP challenged the Health Secretary over cancer treatment delays affecting patients in North West Norfolk, asking what support is being provided to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital to improve performance.
He pointed to the hospital’s performance against the 62-day cancer treatment standard, with 52% of patients beginning treatment within two months of an urgent referral, compared with a national average of 71.9%.
The question followed James’s recent visit to the Big C Support Centre in King’s Lynn, where he met staff, volunteers and people living with cancer and heard concerns about the anxiety caused by delays between diagnosis and the start of treatment.
Speaking in the House of Commons, James Wild MP said:
“When I met Big C in King’s Lynn recently, I heard about the anxiety caused; with only 52% of local patients who are treated within two months, whereas the national average is 71.9%.
“What action is the Department taking to support the Queen Elizabeth hospital trust in improving its performance for patients?”
Responding, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, said:
“The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right; this is about not just diagnosis but faster access to treatment. We are meeting the faster diagnosis standard; performance was at 77.4% in December 2025, and we aim to improve that to 80% by the end of March this year.
"We have to go a lot further, a lot faster, on the commencement of treatment. Although I will be forthcoming about, and proud of, the progress that we are making and the targets that we are hitting, where we fall short—we are still falling far too short, when it comes to access to cancer treatment—we will acknowledge that, address it and make sure that we make more progress, more quickly.”
