Motion

Motion TitleDelivering Better Cancer Services and Outcomes

Motion TextThat this Assembly deplores current waiting times for patients accessing cancer services in Northern Ireland; notes with concern recent analysis by Cancer Research UK which indicates that the percentage of local patients with urgent suspected cancer who start treatment within sixty-two days is much lower than England and Scotland; further notes with concern that Northern Ireland has the lowest one-year survival rate in the United Kingdom for both pancreatic and ovarian cancer, and that the proportion of cancer patients diagnosed at an early stage has not improved in the last ten years; expresses alarm that studies have shown that a four-week delay in cancer treatment increases the risk of death by between six and eight per cent; calls on the Minister of Health to make a concerted effort to drive down wait times, including through the delivery of additional capacity in Health and Social Care Trusts and the ambitious implementation of the Elective Care Framework; and further calls on the Minister to expedite the delivery of a Cancer Research Strategy for Northern Ireland.

Motion CategoryPrivate Members' Motion

Date Tabled to Business Office04/11/2025

Date Selected By Committee04/11/2025

Date of Plenary Debate18/11/2025