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 potential impact of the measures outlined in the document entitled Reforming elective care for patients, published on 6 January 2025, on waiting lists for gynaecology treatment.

Tackling waiting lists is a key part of our Health Mission. We have now exceeded our pledge to deliver an extra 2 million operations, scans, and appointments, having now delivered 5.2 million more appointments. This marks a vital First Step to delivering on the commitment that 92% of patients will wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment – in line with the National Health Service constitutional standard – by March 2029.

The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the productivity and reform efforts needed to return to the constitutional standard. Since our plan was published we have seen improvements in gynaecology, with average waits reducing from 15.9 weeks in January 2025 to 15.2 weeks in August 2025, and the number of patients waiting 18 weeks or less from referral to treatment increasing from 55.2% in January 2025 to 56.4% in August 2025. But we know there is still much more to do, and we will continue to support NHS trusts to deliver our targets through innovation, sharing best practice to increase productivity and efficiency, and ensuring the best value is delivered.