Worst wait times on record

Patients in England are facing the worst wait times since records began, with one in six patients having waited longer than four hours in A&E to be seen in October.

The latest figures represent the worst performance since 2004, when target wait times were first introduced, sparking fears over further chaos during what’s predicted to be the bleakest winter in decades.

Only 83.6 per cent of patients in accident and emergency units were treated or admitted within four hours, far below the 95 per cent target of what’s considered safe.

A record number of patients – more than 4m at the end of September — were on waiting lists for non-emergency care.

A number of other key targets have been missed, with only 76 per cent of cancer patients starting treatment within 62 days – again far below the 85 per cent target. This equates to one in four patients with cancer waiting more than three months to be treated.

Targets were first introduced under a Labour government 15 years ago, but have been missed each and every year for the last three years under a Tory-led government.

The devastating figures come just four weeks before the general election. A damning October poll found that only 18 per cent of people trusted the Tories with the NHS, with Labour the most trusted party.

On Tuesday (November 12), Labour unveiled its rescue plan for the NHS, which will plough ÂŁ26bn in real terms into the service over the next four years. The party proposed a number of measures as part of this funding, including ÂŁ1bn a year in training and education budgets to tackle staff shortages and a major ÂŁ1bn expansion of public health services.

The party’s plans were welcomed by a number of organisations, including the Nuffield Trust, which said that with the new money, the “NHS could breathe a sigh of relief”.

“The extra money for investment in building and equipment is desperately needed and it is particularly encouraging to see some of this go towards general practice,” said Nuffield Trust chief executive Nigel Edwards on Tuesday (November 12).

“A 4 per cent increase a year will make a big difference compared to the 1.4 per cent average the NHS has grown used to in recent years,” he added. “It is enough to get most waiting times back on track over time…”

But responding to today’s latest wait time figures, Nuffield Trust chief economist Professor John Appleby warned that the NHS has reached breaking point.

“The number of people waiting on trolleys in corridors because no beds are available has already hit 80,000 – something we have only seen before in the very coldest part of the year. If this trend keeps going, I fear we could see 100,000 people stuck on trolleys this coming January,” he said.

“These are not acceptable waits, both for people who need urgent help and for the staff who desperately want to treat them.”

Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth slammed the Tories for what he said was “the worst NHS crisis on record”.

“Under Boris Johnson the NHS is in crisis and we’re heading for a winter of abject misery for patients,” he noted. “Our A&Es are overwhelmed, more so than ever. In every community there’s an ever growing queue of people waiting for treatment.

“The Tories spent a decade cutting over 15,000 beds. Now they should apologise to every patient languishing on a trolley and waiting longer for treatment.”

Unite national officer for health Colenzo Jarrett-Thorpe agreed.

“Today’s dire figures for the NHS in England on hospital waiting lists and the worst delays in A&E since 2004 are searing indictments of the Tories’ austerity programme since 2010,” he said.

“It is clear that in cash terms the NHS is in ‘intensive care’ and Boris Johnson’s claims to boost funding is an election mirage and can’t hide the Tories’ failure to sufficiently invest in the NHS.

“Labour, which founded the NHS in 1948, has a coherent plan to increase spending on the NHS and nurse it back to financial health,” he added. “Dedicated NHS staff are being stretched to the limit because of the Tories failed stewardship of the NHS which remains the jewel in the crown of the UK’s  welfare system. ”