North Middlesex Hospital Accident and Emergency Services: Cancer Patients

Karin Smyth Excerpts

Tuesday 3rd March 2026 Westminster Hall

[The Minister for Secondary Care (Karin Smyth)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Murrison.

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Edmonton and Winchmore Hill (Kate Osamor) for securing the debate. I echo her comments about Mrs Thorn in the light of her husband Jack’s experience. My hon. Friend has worked diligently on behalf of her constituent. We know that constituents should not have to take on such advocacy when they are suffering such trauma, but their experience is always valuable. Constituency MPs are always grateful to people who share their experiences, and my hon. Friend has done an excellent job on behalf of her constituent this morning.

We are clear that every patient should be treated with dignity and respect. For far too long, NHS performance and practices have not met the high standards that patients should expect, which is why we are taking action to improve cancer pathways and urgent emergency care, to build an NHS that is fit for the future. On the treatment of cancer patients in A&E in particular, far too many cancer patients and their families have been failed by the NHS, with care lacking empathy and dignity. It is not right that patients, and particularly those with a cancer diagnosis, face distressing situations waiting for care in A&E.

Through our recently published national cancer plan, which my hon. Friend alluded to, we commit to addressing poor experiences, driving earlier diagnosis and supporting general practitioners to spot cancer earlier through, for example, Jess’s rule and reducing inappropriate diagnosis in A&E. Jess’s rule is a patient-safety principle that requires GPs to reflect, review and rethink a patient’s diagnosis after three unresolved presentations, to reduce missed and delayed cancer diagnosis.

My hon. Friend and I entered Parliament at the same time; she had experience in primary care and I had experience as a commissioner. She will be as shocked as I am, because in 2026 cancer patients should not be going through A&E when they are known to have a condition. We have been working on that for a very long time. Our plan will reduce the need for people who are undergoing cancer treatment to attend A&E—for example, through rapid access to a booked appointment in same-day emergency care. As my hon. Friend alluded to, we already see that in other trusts, such as the Whittington in her area. That should be standard, and is in many places.

We recognise that some cancer patients will have more extensive needs. For those patients, we need to deliver an enhanced level of care during and after treatment, known as supportive oncology. This will include support for severe and sometimes sudden symptoms, when people need rapid access to the right care in their home or community. That will be key to getting those patients the support they need, and thereby reducing the need for them ever to attend A&E.

It is vital to deliver compassionate care in the best setting for each patient. Our national cancer plan will redesign cancer services around people’s lives, not just around hospitals, recognising that more people are living longer with and beyond cancer and need ongoing co-ordinated support. That support will increasingly be delivered through neighbourhood services and be accessible digitally through the NHS app. We will ensure that patients have a named neighbourhood lead to help to co-ordinate their care locally, working alongside hospital specialists to provide continuity, reduce fragmentation and make it easier for people to navigate services, in my hon. Friend’s constituency and across the country.

We will deliver greater use of virtual monitoring and growing opportunities for treatment and follow-up in community settings, where that is safe and appropriate. This will help to ensure that patients get high-quality support early, thereby reducing the crisis situations that my hon. Friend alluded to that currently drive unacceptable and unnecessary A&E visits.

Where patients do need to attend A&E, we are committed to improving standards and returning to the waiting times set out in the NHS constitution. We have expert improvement teams providing tailored support to challenge trusts like the North Middlesex, and they have shown progress, as my hon. Friend has highlighted. I pay tribute to the work of leaders locally in improving the situation—they have made progress since last year.

In addition, the NHS team in London recently agreed to a pilot for the oncology assessment unit, to proactively support cancer patients away from the emergency department, as my hon. Friend discussed. If she needs more detail on the final confirmation of that pilot, I will make sure she gets it in writing after the debate, because we do think that is an appropriate way to proceed.

Nationally, we recently published guidance on the model emergency department, setting out the core principles and pathways for high-performing emergency departments. Our urgent and emergency care plan for 2025-26 sets out a clear path to strengthen urgent care outside hospital. We are using data from shared patient care records and digital tools to support better triage, join up services and anticipate pressures before they arise. That is backed by £2 billion of investment in NHS digital infrastructure.

We are also investing £250 million to strengthen same-day emergency care and urgent treatment centre provision, helping systems to avoid unnecessary admissions for patients and supporting the same-day diagnosis, treatment and discharge of patients. The plan is working: A&E performance is improving and people are receiving their cancer diagnosis within a month. We do not underestimate how much more there is to do and how difficult it is for many patients at the North Middlesex hospital, as my hon. Friend has spoken about, and other places. We want to take the best to the rest. We know there is more to do, but the investment and modernisation along clear pathways are starting to make a difference, and the NHS is showing clear signs of recovery.

The NHS is under pressure. The Government are taking decisive action through our urgent care emergency plan, the national cancer plan and our longer-term reforms. We are putting the service back on its feet and ensuring that patients receive the high-quality, timely care they deserve. I welcome my hon. Friend raising this issue on behalf of her constituents, and many other Members discussing the issues with me. I am happy to continue working with my hon. Friend and local NHS leaders on how we can further strengthen urgent emergency care services and the delivery of the cancer plan, to reduce the disparities and support patients to receive the right care in the right place.

Question put and agreed to.