As you probably know by now, fighting for the health service we all want is a big big issue for me.

For years now I have been doing all I can to try to improve cancer treatment in south Cumbria and I’m pleased that we have made progress.

We now have a chemotherapy unit in Kendal but the job simply isn’t done until we get a radiotherapy unit and I am keeping pushing on that front.

But it’s not just about cancer. Another area of health care I have been really focused on is that of mental health and especially mental health in children.

Every week I get a letter from one parent or another telling me the tragic story of their child and their eating disorder.

I know this is seen as a particular issue with girls but the other day I saw a report saying that the number of boys admitted to hospital with eating disorders had doubled since 2010.

It is a big problem for all children. Just ask any teacher.

The key issue with eating disorders and self-harming and anxiety and any mental health issue that young people experience is that the sooner they are treated the better.

The longer these illnesses are allowed to continue the more entrenched the behaviours and thinking processes become and the harder it becomes to treat.

And let’s be honest it is just desperately sad to see any young person suffer in this way for any longer than is absolutely necessary.

This government is very keen on saying that it is addressing issues like this by setting targets. But in Cumbria these targets are being tragically missed. Every child with an eating disorder is meant to be seen by a psychologist within four weeks of being referred. But in Cumbria only a quarter of children experiencing these issues are seen within that timeframe. 15 per cent of them have to wait more than three months and not one of those who are described as “urgent” were seen within the target time of one week.

Twice this month I have asked the Department of Health to provide me with some simple facts like how many appointments for children under 18 were asked for over the past ten years (I wanted to see if, as we all suspect, this is a growing issue) and on both occasions I was told that this information was not held by the department.

On top of this I learned earlier in the year that the government’s cuts in the money it provides to Cumbria County Council mean that they only have £75,000 available to spend on what is called “Tier One” mental health preventative care. Tier One is the care that is provided to try to pick up early symptoms in children who may be experiencing issues in this area. That is 75p per child to help catch this issue early. It’s a joke.

That at heart is my issue. I don’t think anyone is giving this problem the attention it deserves.

Meanwhile our children continue to suffer.