Hello everyone,
Welcome to our first campaigning update of 2026 — a slightly breathless (and brief) edition to match the pace in Westminster this week. As the photos of Jana and Hugh from Wednesday show, it has been a busy start to the year, with two important debates for our community taking place in Parliament.
Watch the debates
Read the debates on Hansard
When it comes to tissue storage, Brain Tumour Research is calling on Government to ensure that fresh-frozen tissue storage is available in all possible instances and worked closely with the Shadow Ministerial Health Team to help shape their response to this debate, providing briefings on policy and key issues.
There is much to digest following these two important events in Westminster Hall, but there are two points we would like to direct you to.
Firstly at both debates we heard from Ashley Dalton, the Minister responsible for delivering the National Cancer Plan, expected at the beginning of February and also expected to make specific mention of brain tumours.
Ms Dalton has her own cancer story and as she began her response to the debate on Less Survivable Cancers she apologised for her “slightly tardy arrival, which was due, ironically, to the somewhat unpredictable effects of cancer chemotherapy. I am well, however, and have enjoyed the debate immensely”.
It has been clear that the Minister enjoys the respect and support of her Parliamentary colleagues and we, at Brain Tumour Research, have found her friendly, approachable and constructive in the dealings that we have had with her.
She has said that her lived experience means that delivering the National Cancer Plan is a very personal privilege for her.
Secondly, at the conclusion of the tissue storage debate the minister spoke of working “to make 2026 the year that we shift the dial for patients with brain cancer”.
These are words of optimism to open 2026. Something else to be optimistic about is that next week we will be in Westminster again for the second reading of Scott Arthur’s Rare Cancers Bill in the House of Lords. We were at the gestation of this Bill and have helped nurture and shape its progress to this point. We are hugely excited to be reaching this next step and as soon as we know what news there is on the Bill’s progress towards becoming an Act we will let you know.
Please do keep in touch with us on social media and by reading our latest news updates to keep abreast of what is happening the world of Brain Tumour Research campaigning.
So that’s the first update of 2026 – thank you for being with us as we begin another campaigning year.
We will be back next week and as well as wishing you a peaceful time until then the whole campaigning team sends our best wishes to you all for the New Year.
Karen, Hugh, Katherine and Jana.
