Prime Minister's question asked in the House of Commons, by Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat). It was answered by Gordon Brown (Labour) on Wednesday, 21 October 2009 on behalf of the Prime Minister.

Engagements

Question: The Government's cancer reform strategy states that no cancer patient should live further than 45 minutes' travelling distance from their nearest cancer treatment unit. Yet in my constituency, no cancer patient lives within 45 minutes' travelling distance of the nearest cancer unit in Preston. We as a local community are campaigning to bring a cancer unit to our hospital in Kendal. Will the Prime Minister agree to meet cancer patients, myself and local NHS workers to ensure that we get a cancer unit in Kendal as a matter of urgency?

Answer: The Secretary of State for Health will be happy to meet the hon. Gentleman, but he knows that these decisions are made by local clinicians, not by central Government. We have made proposals to bring diagnostic services nearer the community, so that people may not in future have to travel to hospital for their diagnosis and care. That is something that we have proposed should be introduced in future years, but again, that depends on our willingness to fund the capital investment of the national health service, which I hope the hon. Gentleman will support.

Secondary information