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 waiting time for elective surgeries for people in (a) the Morley and Outwood constituency and (b) West Yorkshire.

The Department is taking steps to reduce waiting times for elective surgeries across England, including in West Yorkshire, and £1 billion has been made available this year to the National Health Service (NHS) to increase activity and tackle waiting lists.

Morley and Outwood constituency is covered by the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Integrated Care System (ICS), which brings together NHS providers and commissioners, local councils and other partners to make improvements to health and care. The number of outpatient appointments provided has already returned to 2019 levels.

Partners in the ICS are taking a range of actions to further support elective recovery, including:

- Ensuring good communication with people who are on the waiting list;

- Implementing shared referral management and offering advice and guidance to help reduce the number of people waiting for treatment;

- Ensuring that hospitals are supporting each other to reduce pressures, providing mutual aid where necessary and delivering the least complex procedures as quickly as possible;

- Making use of independent sector capacity;

- Continuing to transform and modernise services;

- Focusing on achieving best practice flow of patients through hospitals to maximise the number of beds available.

The ICS is also working closely with partners across the whole of the North East and Yorkshire NHS region to support these recovery actions.