Labour says waiting for cardiac and cataract surgery is falling

Latest figures for April show the numbers waiting for treatment in Wales increased from March by more than 8,000, from 294,243 to 302,730.

Opposition parties said they showed Labour was failing to tackle NHS problems.

But Ms Hutt cited shorter waits for treatment such as cardiac and cataract surgery and predicted "even more good news" this summer.

Millions of pounds are going into schemes designed to alleviate the waiting list problem and yet it is getting worse Conservative Jonathan Morgan

Statistics last month showed a drop in waiting times, which was hailed by the minister as evidence of the impact of new money, with patients offered the chance to be treated at hospitals further away.

But the Conservatives said the new figures showed 12,000 more people were waiting for treatment than a year ago.

Tory assembly health spokesman Jonathan Morgan said: "For all the government's promises on waiting lists, they are now even missing their own targets.

Many patients have refused an offer to be treated further away

"Millions of pounds are going into schemes designed to alleviate the waiting list problem and yet it is getting worse.

"Well over 10 per cent of the Welsh population is now on an NHS waiting list.

"Jane Hutt hailed last month's waiting list figures as 'an historic fall', yet what today's figures demonstrate is that the previous month's statistics were an oddity and we are now back on track with numbers rising again."

'Limited support'

Plaid Cymru health spokesman Rhodri Glyn Thomas said the rise was despite the announcement of more funding and the new scheme.

Mr Thomas said: "Despite all the noise coming from the Labour assembly government that they are finally getting to grips with waiting times in Wales, what we are seeing so far is another example of the recent comments made by the Audit Commission that health spending 'is not being used effectively and efficiently'."

Our policies are having an effect, and we can expect even more good news on waiting times... over the summer Health Minister Jane Hutt

He said there had been a low take-up of the offer to patients to have treatment at hospitals away from their home area.

"In Swansea alone, only one in six patients have taken up the offer," said Mr Thomas.

"There may be a variety of reasons why patients are not attracted by this scheme, one of which is the limited support it offers relatives of patients to accompany them during the period of stay for treatment."

Ms Hutt said: "This month's figures speak for themselves, showing falls in waiting times in all key areas over the past year".

She said a year ago there were 5,500 people waiting more than 18 months.

This would have fallen to just over 1,000 "if we do not count those patients that have turned down the opportunity of having their treatment earlier, and thus elected to remain on the waiting list at their original hospital," said Ms Hutt.

She cited a number of other falls. For the past year, nobody had waited over 12 months for cardiac surgery, and nobody waited over six months for an angiogram.

Ms Hutt said: "Clearly, our policies are having an effect, and we can expect even more good news on waiting times when our second offer initiative starts to pay off over the summer."