NHS waiting list will ‘probably go up’ in England, says minister

A Conservative minister has acknowledged the NHS waiting list, which stands at a record high with more than 7.4 million people waiting for treatment in England, will “probably go up” before it goes down.

Speaking on the 75th anniversary of its creation, the health minister Maria Caulfield claimed the NHS would be “thriving” in 25 years’ time, saying a two-year waiting time had “virtually been eliminated”.

But experts have called for more investment in the NHS, with Prof Philip Banfield, the British Medical Council’s chair of council, saying the health service is so fragile that it may not survive until its 80th anniversary.

The shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, said the NHS would die without “the necessary investment and reform” to change and modernise.

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Source: The Guardian, 5 July 2023