Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the NHS Workforce Plan on reducing the waiting lists for elective orthopaedic procedures.

The Government has commissioned NHS England to deliver a National Health Service Long Term Workforce Plan (LTWP). This will include independently verified projections for the number of doctors, nurses and other professionals that will be needed in five, 10 and 15 years’ time.

The LTWP looks across the whole of the NHS workforce to provide an assessment of future need over the next 15 years and will not provide assessments on the impact of reducing waiting lists for speciality specific procedures.