Cabinet Minister for Health and Care, Mabon ap Gwynfor, responds to the latest NHS Wales activity and performance data.
We know these figures are not good enough. Too many people are still waiting too long for the treatment they need, and that is simply not acceptable.
Reducing the waiting list backlog is a key government priority, and we are not shying away from the scale of the challenge. That's why we have taken decisive action to deliver lasting improvements to waiting times, with a clear commitment that nobody should wait more than two years for treatment.
These clinically led plans, which have been backed by an extra £145m investment in NHS Wales, will reduce waits on a long-term and sustainable basis.
I expect to see progress soon. I have made it clear to health boards they are responsible for delivering these plans to reset how planned care is delivered in Wales.
I am glad that provisional data for September shows a reduction in the longest waits of more than two years, but I want to see these numbers falling on a consistent basis.
Emergency care facilities – including emergency departments - were exceptionally busy with more than 98,700 people attending in September, the highest for that month on record.
Performance against the four-hour target and the average time spent in emergency departments both improved slightly compared to the previous month, but we recognise too many people are spending too long in hospitals.
I will launch a new emergency and acute care policy framework next month setting out our expectations for health boards and partners.
This government is committed to being open about the challenges facing services, which is why we have removed the longstanding 'clinical exceptions' guidance.
Waiting times for all patients will now be based on the total time spent in an emergency department, including time spent on observation, recovery or waiting for transport.
This will improve the quality and credibility of the information we use to monitor patients' experiences.
We are anticipating a challenging end of the autumn and a difficult winter ahead.
To combat this we have initiated winter preparedness plans earlier than ever before and are moving towards a whole-year approach to system readiness and resilience, so we are better prepared for times of high demand on services.
Health boards and partners have winter plans in place to improve patient flow, strengthen system resilience and support timely discharge from hospital.
Progress has been made reducing the diagnostics patient pathways waiting to just over 111,600 in August, the lowest figure since September 2024, whilst the number of therapies pathways waiting also fell to just over 65,600.
More than 13,500 people were told the good news they did not have cancer and 2,000 people started their first definitive treatment in August.
Our NHS and social care staff do an incredible job, often under real pressure, to make sure people across Wales get the care they need. I want to thank them for everything they do, and for the compassion they show every day.