First Minister challenged over waiting time delays
The Leader of the Welsh Conservatives – Andrew RT Davies AM – has challenged the First Minister to get Welsh NHS waiting times under control by the end of the Assembly term.
Despite pledging to make the fourth Assembly term about ‘delivery’, under Carwyn Jones’ leadership the Welsh NHS has continued to miss vital targets month after month.
Mr Davies’ challenge to the Welsh Labour Government came on the day that a cardiac unit at the University Hospital of Wales was commended for it’s treatment. However, a lead cardiac surgeon also warned that it is the wait for treatment which causes so much concern for families – not the treatment itself.
Under Carwyn Jones’ leadership:
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Referral to treatment times have not been met since 2010
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A&E targets have not been met since 2009
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Urgent suspected cancer targets have not been met since 2008.
Mr Davies raised the issue in First Minister’s Questions today and called on the Labour First Minister to commit to meeting those targets by the end of term. Speaking outside the chamber he said:
“Last week Jeremy Corbyn read out questions from Marie, Stephen, Paul, Claire, Gail and Angela. This week I’ve got a question from the 450,000 people in Wales on an NHS waiting list: why are waiting times for treatment so long under a Labour government?
“Care standards are rarely called into question, and today’s reports praising the cardiac unit in Cardiff should come as no surprise. Unfortunately, however, it is the length of Welsh NHS waiting lists which put patients at risk and a lead cardiac surgeon at the unit in Cardiff has warned that there is still a long way to go before these issues are addressed.
“Carwyn Jones pledged to base this assembly term on delivery and I will hold him to that pledge. If these urgent Welsh NHS targets are not met by the end of the term, then the public will want more than answers and will punish the Welsh Labour government for its failure to deliver.”
