Last week I spoke from the Opposition front bench in a Parliamentary debate about cancer care.

England’s 28 cancer networks have played an absolutely vital role in improving the quality of cancer care in recent years. These networks bring together cancer experts from hospital and community services, share best practice and involve cancer patients and the groups that represent them.

I am extremely concerned that the Government is now planning to cut funding for cancer networks. When I questioned the Care Minister Paul Burstow MP during the debate he confirmed that the indicative budget for all clinical networks in future is £10 million a year, when in 2012/13, the funding for cancer networks alone was £18.5 million.

This massive cut puts the future of cancer networks in danger, and risks destroying the foundations of better cancer services in England. I will be fighting this reckless decision and demanding the Government protects the funding for cancer networks, as they promised.

You can read my speech here or the newspaper coverage of the cuts to cancer networks in the Guardian and Daily Telegraph.