Written - Announcement of £4.5million for cancer services

Tackling cancer is a top Assembly Government health priority and as such we have welcomed the Health and Social Services Committee’s policy review of cancer services and accepted its recommendations.

Cancer services in Wales will now receive £4.5 million additional funding, from 2007/08, to support implementation of the Assembly Government’s policy, Designed to Tackle Cancer in Wales and the review’s recommendations.  

The funding will be allocated to the Regional Cancer Networks.  Decisions on how best to use the allocation in direct support of the Network action plans and achievement of the National Cancer Standards will be made regionally by Local Health Boards and Health Commission Wales at Network  Board level.  It will also be important to ensure that those services commissioned by Health Commission Wales are taken fully in to account as part of this process.

A small element of this funding will be used centrally to support all Wales initiatives such as support for training for cancer Multi Disciplinary Teams and the further development of the Cancer Information Framework.

This approach would support the implementation of the new regional commissioning arrangements and in turn help emphasise the role of the Networks in directing commissioning decisions.  Both were key issues within the Committee’s review.