It is not a fact; it is how one presents the facts and the position. It is not surprising that the Deputy, given her political perspective, offered the view she has. I would offer a counter view. There has been a significant increase in activity in the health services since this Government came to office. There has been a dramatic increase in the numbers attending on both an in-patient and out patient basis and in day cases. The numbers attending on a day case basis is up 10% this year. The level of activity has increased dramatically and more people are being treated in our hospitals this year than in the previous two years.
One must look at the waiting list issue in the context of the overall volume of activity in the health services. We have invested significantly in the waiting list initiative and have made inroads in a number of areas and will continue to do so, particularly on the cardiac front. Making significant inroads on the cardiac front will require additional capacity in terms of theatre capacity, investment and availability of beds and so on. That is ongoing.
In terms of those most in need, there are two categories. There are those who cannot afford private health care. That is the basis of yesterday's initiative, on top of the £22 million we made available at the beginning of the year. The purpose is to increase the number of procedures that will be carried out at the end of the year and to give people in that situation the opportunity to access them. The clinicians have a key role in identifying and prioritising those who are most in need from a clinical perspective.
The proposals before us yesterday arose from consultations we have had with the health boards' chief executive officers, beginning almost eight weeks ago. We asked them to make proposals on what additional procedures they could undertake, taking on board human resource constraints, strengths and weaknesses in terms of physical capacity, and so on. The plans they produced, which we have endorsed and funded, have taken on board issues pertaining to consultants, staff availability, nursing availability, and so forth.