Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the annual farming budget is for (a) 2025–26 and (b) 2026–27; and how the spending is broken down for each year.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has allocated a record £11.8 billion to sustainable farming and food production over this parliament. On 12 March 2025 we set out how we planned to spend the budget (£5 billion) across the 2024/25 and 2025/26 financial years.
Scheme | Budget for 2024/25 and 2025/26 (£m) |
Delinked Payments | 1,050 |
Live existing agreements (Higher Level Stewardship and Countryside Stewardship) | 1,800 |
Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) | 1,050 |
Other environmental land management (ELM) schemes | 350 |
Farming grants (one-off payments to help improve the environment or increase productivity) | 350 |
Animal Health, Welfare and Livestock Information Transformation | 150 |
Mental health, Farming Resilience Fund, Prosperity Fund | 100 |
Advice, pilots and technical support | 150 |
Total | 5,000 |
On 16 June 2025, following the 2025 Spending Review, we set out indicative funding figures for the 2026-27 to 2028-29 financial years, including plans to increase the amount of money paid to farmers under Environmental Land Management schemes from £800m in 2023/24 towards £2bn by 2028/29.
Indicative funding (£ million) | 2026–27 |
Delinked payments | 20 |
Environmental land management schemes | 1,950 |
Other (productivity, innovation, transition) | 350 |
Farming and Countryside Programme | 2,320 |
Nature schemes | 450 |
Farming and Nature total | 2,770 |
Please note final allocations will be agreed through departmental planning.
In line with its obligations under the Agriculture Act 2020, Defra regularly publishes an annual report, setting out commitments in the previous financial year, including Farming and Countryside Programme spend broken down by each scheme. The latest report covers the financial year 2024/25, and can be accessed here: Farming and Countryside Programme annual report.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his department has issued guidance to Integrated Care Boards on the inclusion of radiotherapy services in local strategic plans for cancer that were outlined in Action 20 of The National Cancer Plan for England.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The treatment of cancer normally involves surgery, systemic anti-cancer therapy, and radiotherapy, given individually or in combination, as appropriate to the type and stage of cancer and choices made by patients, in consultation with their doctor. Under this model of care, radiotherapy is available where it has been recommended as a treatment option and where patients have chosen to receive it.
In 2025, NHS England published a report titled Indicators for Radiotherapy Utilisation, which is publicly available. The report offers valuable insights about radiotherapy utilisation and variation and is designed to assist local systems to review broader clinical practice and put in place any improvements, where these are necessary.
Radiotherapy services operate through a collaborative but clearly delineated model, where integrated care boards commission services, providers deliver care in line with national standards, and Radiotherapy Networks and Cancer Alliances support planning and coordination.
The National Cancer Plan, published in February this year, made the commitment to meet all cancer waiting time standards by the end of this Parliament. Improving timely access to radiotherapy services across the country is a key enabler to meeting the 31-day and 62-day treatment standards.
The plan also makes specific commitments to improve the productivity of radiotherapy services, including using artificial intelligence to streamline treatment planning. Furthermore, £70 million of funding has been allocated for state-of-the-art radiotherapy machines, and to streamline approval and incentivise the use of the latest radiotherapy treatments.
Implementation of the plan’s actions, including action 20, will be monitored by the National Cancer Board, with an independent co-chair, reporting to the Department.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what accountability mechanisms will apply in instances where local strategic plans for cancer do not adequately address radiotherapy access, capacity or variation.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The treatment of cancer normally involves surgery, systemic anti-cancer therapy, and radiotherapy, given individually or in combination, as appropriate to the type and stage of cancer and choices made by patients, in consultation with their doctor. Under this model of care, radiotherapy is available where it has been recommended as a treatment option and where patients have chosen to receive it.
In 2025, NHS England published a report titled Indicators for Radiotherapy Utilisation, which is publicly available. The report offers valuable insights about radiotherapy utilisation and variation and is designed to assist local systems to review broader clinical practice and put in place any improvements, where these are necessary.
Radiotherapy services operate through a collaborative but clearly delineated model, where integrated care boards commission services, providers deliver care in line with national standards, and Radiotherapy Networks and Cancer Alliances support planning and coordination.
The National Cancer Plan, published in February this year, made the commitment to meet all cancer waiting time standards by the end of this Parliament. Improving timely access to radiotherapy services across the country is a key enabler to meeting the 31-day and 62-day treatment standards.
The plan also makes specific commitments to improve the productivity of radiotherapy services, including using artificial intelligence to streamline treatment planning. Furthermore, £70 million of funding has been allocated for state-of-the-art radiotherapy machines, and to streamline approval and incentivise the use of the latest radiotherapy treatments.
Implementation of the plan’s actions, including action 20, will be monitored by the National Cancer Board, with an independent co-chair, reporting to the Department.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether local strategic plans for cancer will be required to assess radiotherapy treatment access and capacity.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The treatment of cancer normally involves surgery, systemic anti-cancer therapy, and radiotherapy, given individually or in combination, as appropriate to the type and stage of cancer and choices made by patients, in consultation with their doctor. Under this model of care, radiotherapy is available where it has been recommended as a treatment option and where patients have chosen to receive it.
In 2025, NHS England published a report titled Indicators for Radiotherapy Utilisation, which is publicly available. The report offers valuable insights about radiotherapy utilisation and variation and is designed to assist local systems to review broader clinical practice and put in place any improvements, where these are necessary.
Radiotherapy services operate through a collaborative but clearly delineated model, where integrated care boards commission services, providers deliver care in line with national standards, and Radiotherapy Networks and Cancer Alliances support planning and coordination.
The National Cancer Plan, published in February this year, made the commitment to meet all cancer waiting time standards by the end of this Parliament. Improving timely access to radiotherapy services across the country is a key enabler to meeting the 31-day and 62-day treatment standards.
The plan also makes specific commitments to improve the productivity of radiotherapy services, including using artificial intelligence to streamline treatment planning. Furthermore, £70 million of funding has been allocated for state-of-the-art radiotherapy machines, and to streamline approval and incentivise the use of the latest radiotherapy treatments.
Implementation of the plan’s actions, including action 20, will be monitored by the National Cancer Board, with an independent co-chair, reporting to the Department.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the level of unmet need for radiotherapy among cancer patients in England.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
The treatment of cancer normally involves surgery, systemic anti-cancer therapy, and radiotherapy, given individually or in combination, as appropriate to the type and stage of cancer and choices made by patients, in consultation with their doctor. Under this model of care, radiotherapy is available where it has been recommended as a treatment option and where patients have chosen to receive it.
In 2025, NHS England published a report titled Indicators for Radiotherapy Utilisation, which is publicly available. The report offers valuable insights about radiotherapy utilisation and variation and is designed to assist local systems to review broader clinical practice and put in place any improvements, where these are necessary.
Radiotherapy services operate through a collaborative but clearly delineated model, where integrated care boards commission services, providers deliver care in line with national standards, and Radiotherapy Networks and Cancer Alliances support planning and coordination.
The National Cancer Plan, published in February this year, made the commitment to meet all cancer waiting time standards by the end of this Parliament. Improving timely access to radiotherapy services across the country is a key enabler to meeting the 31-day and 62-day treatment standards.
The plan also makes specific commitments to improve the productivity of radiotherapy services, including using artificial intelligence to streamline treatment planning. Furthermore, £70 million of funding has been allocated for state-of-the-art radiotherapy machines, and to streamline approval and incentivise the use of the latest radiotherapy treatments.
Implementation of the plan’s actions, including action 20, will be monitored by the National Cancer Board, with an independent co-chair, reporting to the Department.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish the methodology used to allocate the £70 million radiotherapy funding announced in the National Cancer Plan.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
In December 2024, NHS England wrote to all radiotherapy treatment providers inviting them to apply for funding to replace ageing radiotherapy machines. Funding was then allocated to trusts using criteria that NHS England developed. These criteria focused on the age of the machine being replaced, the proportion of older machines in use within the trust, and the trust’s performance on radiotherapy.
The Government announced the allocation of new radiotherapy linear accelerator, or LINAC, machines on 26 May 2025, and within this, a breakdown of trust allocation was given and can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/faster-cancer-treatment-thanks-to-new-radiotherapy-machines
The following table shows allocations by National Health Service region:
Region | Total value |
East of England | £7,507,000 |
North East and Yorkshire | £7,586,000 |
Midlands | £12,406,000 |
London | £14,993,000 |
S West | £10,502,000 |
S East | £10,015,000 |
N West | £6,595,000 |
The Department knows that there is a long way to go to improve waiting times for radiotherapy treatment, and that there is significant regional variation in performance. The National Cancer Plan has set out how we intend to tackle these issues, reduce backlogs and provide an NHS that there is when people need it.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the allocation of the £70 million for radiotherapy machines took account of existing regional variation in radiotherapy access.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
In December 2024, NHS England wrote to all radiotherapy treatment providers inviting them to apply for funding to replace ageing radiotherapy machines. Funding was then allocated to trusts using criteria that NHS England developed. These criteria focused on the age of the machine being replaced, the proportion of older machines in use within the trust, and the trust’s performance on radiotherapy.
The Government announced the allocation of new radiotherapy linear accelerator, or LINAC, machines on 26 May 2025, and within this, a breakdown of trust allocation was given and can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/faster-cancer-treatment-thanks-to-new-radiotherapy-machines
The following table shows allocations by National Health Service region:
Region | Total value |
East of England | £7,507,000 |
North East and Yorkshire | £7,586,000 |
Midlands | £12,406,000 |
London | £14,993,000 |
S West | £10,502,000 |
S East | £10,015,000 |
N West | £6,595,000 |
The Department knows that there is a long way to go to improve waiting times for radiotherapy treatment, and that there is significant regional variation in performance. The National Cancer Plan has set out how we intend to tackle these issues, reduce backlogs and provide an NHS that there is when people need it.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy radiotherapy capacity to meet the Government’s target of returning cancer waiting times to the 62-day standard by March 2029.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
In December 2024, NHS England wrote to all radiotherapy treatment providers inviting them to apply for funding to replace ageing radiotherapy machines. Funding was then allocated to trusts using criteria that NHS England developed. These criteria focused on the age of the machine being replaced, the proportion of older machines in use within the trust, and the trust’s performance on radiotherapy.
The Government announced the allocation of new radiotherapy linear accelerator, or LINAC, machines on 26 May 2025, and within this, a breakdown of trust allocation was given and can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/faster-cancer-treatment-thanks-to-new-radiotherapy-machines
The following table shows allocations by National Health Service region:
Region | Total value |
East of England | £7,507,000 |
North East and Yorkshire | £7,586,000 |
Midlands | £12,406,000 |
London | £14,993,000 |
S West | £10,502,000 |
S East | £10,015,000 |
N West | £6,595,000 |
The Department knows that there is a long way to go to improve waiting times for radiotherapy treatment, and that there is significant regional variation in performance. The National Cancer Plan has set out how we intend to tackle these issues, reduce backlogs and provide an NHS that there is when people need it.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish a breakdown by NHS region of where the radiotherapy machines (LINACS) funded by the £70 million announced in the Autumn Budget 2024.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
In December 2024, NHS England wrote to all radiotherapy treatment providers inviting them to apply for funding to replace ageing radiotherapy machines. Funding was then allocated to trusts using criteria that NHS England developed. These criteria focused on the age of the machine being replaced, the proportion of older machines in use within the trust, and the trust’s performance on radiotherapy.
The Government announced the allocation of new radiotherapy linear accelerator, or LINAC, machines on 26 May 2025, and within this, a breakdown of trust allocation was given and can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/faster-cancer-treatment-thanks-to-new-radiotherapy-machines
The following table shows allocations by National Health Service region:
Region | Total value |
East of England | £7,507,000 |
North East and Yorkshire | £7,586,000 |
Midlands | £12,406,000 |
London | £14,993,000 |
S West | £10,502,000 |
S East | £10,015,000 |
N West | £6,595,000 |
The Department knows that there is a long way to go to improve waiting times for radiotherapy treatment, and that there is significant regional variation in performance. The National Cancer Plan has set out how we intend to tackle these issues, reduce backlogs and provide an NHS that there is when people need it.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of the £70 million radiotherapy machine funding announced in the Autumn Budget 2024 has been allocated to each NHS region.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson
In December 2024, NHS England wrote to all radiotherapy treatment providers inviting them to apply for funding to replace ageing radiotherapy machines. Funding was then allocated to trusts using criteria that NHS England developed. These criteria focused on the age of the machine being replaced, the proportion of older machines in use within the trust, and the trust’s performance on radiotherapy.
The Government announced the allocation of new radiotherapy linear accelerator, or LINAC, machines on 26 May 2025, and within this, a breakdown of trust allocation was given and can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/faster-cancer-treatment-thanks-to-new-radiotherapy-machines
The following table shows allocations by National Health Service region:
Region | Total value |
East of England | £7,507,000 |
North East and Yorkshire | £7,586,000 |
Midlands | £12,406,000 |
London | £14,993,000 |
S West | £10,502,000 |
S East | £10,015,000 |
N West | £6,595,000 |
The Department knows that there is a long way to go to improve waiting times for radiotherapy treatment, and that there is significant regional variation in performance. The National Cancer Plan has set out how we intend to tackle these issues, reduce backlogs and provide an NHS that there is when people need it.