Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:31 pm on 2 October 2018.
Well, the number of people waiting over 36 weeks in July was 31 per cent lower than July of last year—52 per cent lower than the high point of August 2015. We expect continued improvement this year. The median waiting time in Wales has reduced from 10.9 weeks in September 2017 to 8.9 weeks in July of this year. We also continue to show significant improvements in diagnostic waits; performance continues to improve, even with the additional diagnostic test being reported from April 2018, with the number waiting over eight weeks at the end of July being 24 per cent lower than in July last year, and 82 per cent lower than the high of January 2014. Now, I could go on with more figures that show the improvement, but one thing I can say to her is that a Labour Government in Westminster would ensure that there are sufficient resources made available for the Welsh Government and also sufficient resources to turn around the dire performance of the NHS in England.