Welsh Health Minister Eluned Morgan accuses Steve Barclay of 'political stunt' in NHS comparison
The Welsh health minister Eluned Morgan has accused Steve Barclay of a "political stunt", after his criticism of the nation's waiting lists.
Baroness Morgan rejected the Health Secretary's comments, after he said he would be "open to requests" for patients from Wales and Scotland to be treated on the NHS in England amid record waiting lists.
According to the latest NHS data for Wales, there were approximately 748,400 "patient pathways" waiting for treatment in May. As Wales and England measure NHS performance differently, it is difficult to make direct comparisons.
Mr Barclay told the BBC that England had "virtually eliminated waits of over 18 months, whereas in Wales [...] there are over 70,000 patients waiting more than 18 months."
He continued: "In fact, many of your listeners will be surprised to learn there are four times as many patients waiting over a year for treatment in Wales compared to in England.
"That is despite Keir Starmer saying that Wales is the blueprint for what they would do in England."
However, Baroness Morgan said progress had recently been made to improve the NHS in Wales, adding that Cardiff was "far more honest with the public" over health service data than London.
Speaking to ITV Wales, she said: "We're very pleased that he's made this offer and if it's a free offer, there's no question about it, we'd be taking him up on it.
"I've got no doubt at all, this isn't a free offer this is a political stunt to try and draw attention away from the fact that actually in England they have the highest waiting lists ever - 7.5 million people waiting.
"Of course, in Wales, we count very differently. I think we're more honest with the public in Wales."
According to the most recent NHS England data, 7.6 million people were waiting to start treatment at the end of June.
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