THE STORY of Jon Tuvnes is sadly all too familiar.

It is not dissimilar to that of Councillor Ron Jones, which we featured just a couple of weeks ago.

Here is a man waiting for a heart by-pass operation which did just not materialise in the three and a half years after he was told he needed it.

His poor family has been left knowing that he died waiting for treatment which could have saved his life. How cruel that is.

Further, as we are also reporting today, the delays do not appear to be confined to identified heart conditions.

Here in Gwent several patients are having to wait weeks and weeks for the initial tests to find out if and what treatment they need before they go on any waiting-list for the actual surgery.

This is just unacceptable.

But, and this is something we feel strongly about, what is needed now is action to sort this out.

What is definitely not needed is another political row between the masters of the NHS in England and those at the Assembly.

If there are problems in the NHS in Wales, and there seem to be in the delivery of treatment for heart disease, then the Assembly needs to find out why.

The Welsh Government can blame nobody but themselves for any failings in our NHS.

The same party has after all been running the health service in Wales since 1999.