Wokingham MP welcomes cancer plan
Clive Jones was the first MP to ask for the plan in this parliament
Clive Jones has welcomed the government's National Cancer Plan which has been published today.
The Wokingham MP has repeatedly pressed Ministers on missed treatment targets
and called for urgent action to tackle workforce shortages and delays in diagnosis.
Clive Jones has previously spoken about his own experience of cancer and has
used that experience to campaign for earlier diagnosis and better treatment for
patients.
Clive Jones has raised concerns about delays locally. At the Royal Berkshire
Hospital alone, 721 patients waited longer than the 62-day standard between
January and November 2025, according to Liberal Democrat data.
Across the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire West Integrated Care
Board area, just 71.6% of patients began treatment within 62 days, well below the
national target of 85% according to Cancer Research UK.
The National Cancer Plan focuses on rare and less survivable cancers, which Clive
Jones consistently called for to be included, including during his Westminster Hall
Debate on less survivable cancers. The plan also aims to catch rarer cancers earlier,
give patients better access to research and clinical trials, and appoint a national lead
for rare cancers.
It also introduces easier ways for patients to get care, improves breast cancer
screening for those at higher risk, and aims to make the NHS App the main way to
manage cancer care by 2028.
Ambitious
Clive Jones, Liberal Democrat MP for Wokingham, said:
“It’s now over a year since I first called for the National Cancer Plan in October 2024, I
welcome the announcement of the plan and the ambitious aims it outlines.
“Cancer affects half of the UK’s population in some form. When I was diagnosed with breast
cancer in 2008. In subsequent years, especially the last 10 years under the Conservatives,
serious flaws in our cancer care system have become clear.
“My diagnosis was delayed after my symptoms were dismissed by a GP, who told me that
men do not get breast cancer. This delay allowed the cancer to spread to my lymph nodes.
“The ambitious promises set out in this plan look good on paper, but without new and
targeted funding, they will be extremely difficult to deliver.
“Without meaningful investment, early diagnoses will continue to be delayed, workforce
shortages will persist, research will suffer, and children and those with less survivable
cancers will continue to face worse outcomes.
“I urge the Government to commit the targeted funding needed to reform cancer care in the
UK to ensure this plan changes the lives of cancer patients."