Debate contribution: Cancer Services and Outcomes
Debate contribution by Mr Danny Donnelly on .
- MLA
- Mr Danny Donnelly
- Party at the time
- Alliance Party
- Date
- 18 November 2025
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Private Members' Business
- Heading
- Cancer Services and Outcomes
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5244912
Read the official Assembly record
Text
In 2008, the Department of Health set a target that 95% of patients must begin treatment within 62 days of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer. In June 2008, we were close, achieving an 88% compliance rate. By June 2025, that figure had collapsed to just 33%. In 2008, the target was that 100% of breast cancer patients would be seen within 14 days following an urgent referral. In June 2008, it was delivered for 99% of patients. By December 2024, that promise was broken for the majority of patients, with only 30% being seen within the target time. We have heard of the risks of delayed diagnosis. Those are not just statistics but stark evidence of almost 20 years of systemic failure. The people who are affected are our friends, family members and neighbours. Recently, I spoke to a constituent who is a young mum. She had been red-flagged by her GP and told that she would have a 10-week wait for an urgent breast assessment. Imagine the stress of that 10 weeks, knowing that the target is two weeks. Often, we hear the phrase, "Change does not happen overnight", but neither does that kind of neglect and dilapidation. It is a pattern of continually losing sight of real priorities. The evidence is unambiguous. The question now is not whether the system is failing but what we intend to do about it. What we need now is focus — focus on early diagnosis, focus on shortening treatment waits, focus on building the workforce that we require and focus on ensuring that investment is aligned with need. Delivering better cancer outcomes is achievable. Embracing an all-Ireland approach offers the opportunity to improve the availability of services. Recently, I attended the North/South Inter-Parliamentary Association plenary session, where one of the topics under discussion was cross-border cancer care. We heard that, while our regions operate distinct systems, our progress and challenges in cancer care are strikingly similar. Crucially, cross-border collaboration is not a theory but a proven model. Existing successes, including the North West Cancer Centre at Altnagelvin, radiotherapy sharing, joint research and integrated care pathways, demonstrate that cooperation is a feasible and essential path to building resilient cancer services for all citizens on this island. Previously, we heard in the Chamber about the sad death of young mum Catherine Sherry, who was severely immunocompromised, after travelling to London for treatment that is available in Dublin. Reports of the All-Island Cancer Research Institute and a cancer summit endorse the plan, highlighting the unique potential to leverage health data to save lives, drive innovation and become a global leader in oncology research. We must seize opportunities that allow us to move away from the two decades of failure and give us the chance to provide better services, better outcomes and a system that the people of Northern Ireland can rely on in their time of need. That must go hand in hand with addressing the dignity of survivors. We must also ensure that a person who has survived cancer is not discriminated against by other systems. I refer specifically to the right to be forgotten, which was highlighted recently at the all-party group on cancer, chaired by Stewart Dickson. That principle ensures that cancer survivors can return to a productive life without facing financial discrimination just because they have been through a serious illness. Research suggests that that should be after five years. There is so much work to be done to restore faith in our systems and deliver for those who have faced or are facing cancer. We need to start somewhere. This is our opportunity to stop managing decline and start building something that works.
615 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.04 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.96).
- No identity-based framing was identified (1.00).
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.03 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.01 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.02 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.02 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.96 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.04 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 1.00 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.00 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-related subject | 0.40 |
| Disability (including neurodivergence and mental health), disabled people and disability or sickness benefits | 0.28 |
| Sexism, misogyny, ageism and other equality groups | 0.19 |
| Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues | 0.08 |
| Another identity-related subject | 0.03 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 14:02 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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