Meetings

The Committee considered correspondence on the petition and agreed to:

·         Make arrangements for the petitioner to be informed once the date for the plenary date has been announced;  

·         await the plenary debate before determining whether to take further action or close the petition; and

·         ask the Minister to address the points raised by Public Health Wales about ‘non-urgent suspected cancer’ .

The Committee considered correspondence from Public Health Wales along with further comments from the petitioner and agreed to:

1.   Write to Public Health Wales, copying in the Minister for Health and Social Services, seeking further details on the timescale for the provision of the tailor made information; and

2.   Given the significant time period since the petition was submitted, request a short, focussed research brief, drawing together all the various strands of information.

The Committee considered correspondence on the petition and agreed to write to Public Health Wales clarifying their role in relation to patient information about cancer services.

The Committee considered correspondence on the petition and agreed to share the petitioner’s information with the Minister for Health and Social Services, highlighting the areas for improvement identified, and asking how he intends to take these forward.

The Committee agreed to forward a copy of the transcript to the petitioners for comment.

Minister for Health and Social Services, Lesley Griffiths AM

The Minister answered questions from the Committee on the National Cancer Standards, the Cancer Delivery Plan and patient experience.

The Committee considered an update to this petition.

Actions

The Committee agreed to write to the Minister for Health and Social Services seeking a timetable for the publication of the national delivery plan for cancer.

The Committee agreed to invite the Minister for Health and Social Services to give oral evidence on compliance once the national delivery plan is complete.

The Committee considered an update to this petition.

Actions

The Committee agreed to:

·         Write to the new Minister for Health and Social Services seeking an update on current levels of compliance with the National Cancer Standards and asking what action the Welsh Government is taking to ensure full compliance across the whole of Wales.

·         Dependent on the response from the Minister, and given the Committee’s perseverance with this petition, consider a more public response to non-compliance with the National Cancer Standards.

·         Considering inviting the petitioners to give oral evidence to a future Committee.