Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce NHS waiting times for joint replacement surgery in England.

The High Volume Low Complexity programme is focusing on improving clinical pathways and quality of care through the adoption of best clinical and operational practice. The programme aims to establish fast-track surgical hubs for high volume elective procedures such as hip and knee joint replacements and reduce waiting times. Additional surgical capacity is also being made available through a £1.5 billion capital investment in elective services. This includes new surgical hubs and increased bed capacity, including for joint replacement surgery.