June 02, 2026 - 239 views
Wales’ new Health Minister has unveiled an ambitious plan to tackle NHS waiting lists, recruit more family doctors and move more healthcare services closer to people’s homes.
Mabon ap Gwynfor outlined a series of measures aimed at reducing pressure on hospitals and improving access to care across Wales.
Among the key pledges is the development of up to ten new surgical and diagnostic hubs over the next four years. The facilities are designed to increase NHS capacity, speed up diagnosis and treatment, and help reduce waiting times.
The Welsh Government has also pledged to eliminate all two-year waits for treatment within months and bring overall waiting lists back to pre-pandemic levels before the end of the current Senedd term.
Plans have also been announced to recruit up to 100 new salaried GPs and expand access to out-of-hours primary care services in an effort to reduce demand on busy hospital departments.
Community healthcare services will also be strengthened, with a greater emphasis on helping people receive care closer to home and ensuring patients can leave hospital sooner when medically fit to do so.
The Health Minister also confirmed work is underway on a new ten-year Digital and Data Strategy to modernise NHS systems and infrastructure, while a long-term workforce strategy is due to be published later this year.
Meanwhile, concerns over employment opportunities for newly qualified nurses, midwives and paramedics will be addressed through a dedicated summit after shortages of available posts emerged for this year’s graduates.
Announcing the plans, Mr ap Gwynfor said too many people in Wales were enduring lengthy waits for treatment.
“Having to wait years for treatment, with all the pain and anxiety that entails, is an intolerable reality for far too many people in Wales,” he said.
“With urgency, decisive action and ambition, we will protect the NHS and build a healthier, fairer Wales — with a health and care system that puts people first and delivers the change our nation needs.”
The announcement represents one of the first major policy statements from the new Welsh Government’s health team and signals a renewed focus on cutting waiting lists and reforming healthcare delivery across Wales.
