Record high hospital waiting list in England as 5.1 million need treatment
The number of people waiting for routine hospital treatment has topped five million – the highest number ever recorded.
In total 5,122,017 million people were waiting to begin treatment at the end of April, 2021, NHS England figures show – the highest number since records began in August 2007.
The figure has increased every month since May 2020, when it was 3.83 million people.
It means the number of people having to wait longer than 52 weeks to start treatment is around 35 times higher than those waiting a year earlier.
The surge in NHS waiting lists comes amid warnings staff face burnout
Just over 11,000 people had to wait more than a year to begin treatment in April 2020.
But in April this year the number stood at 385,490 – down from 436,127 in the previous month.
It comes days after MPs warned NHS and social care staff burnout has reached an “emergency” level and poses a risk to the future of services – as former health secretary Jeremy Hunt said healthcare staff are facing “unacceptable pressure” at work.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock is this morning being grilled by MPs over the government’s response to the pandemic after former Downing Street advisor, Dominic Cummings, said he should have been fired for his handling of the crisis.
Mr Hancock hit back by saying: “You can’t respond to a pandemic by pointing fingers”.
Matt Hancock is being questioned by MPs over the government’s handling of the pandemic
The longest waits were for treatments like knee or hip replacements.
People with arthritis are “bearing the brunt” of the covid crisis said Tracey Loftis, head of policy and public affairs at charity Versus Arthritis.
“It is critical that people with arthritis are not left struggling in pain with their lives put on hold,” Ms Loftis said.
“As longer waits lead to more severe joint damage and reduce the chance of future operations being successful, this issue becomes even more unacceptable.”
Brenda, 61, from Petersfield, has been waiting more than a year for a double hip replacement.
She’s put her house on the market because climbing the stairs is such a struggle.
She told Sky News: “I haven’t left my house for a year now, apart from going to my hospital appointments.
“I’ve been told I’m definitely still on the waiting list for surgery, but they can’t give me any indication of a timeline. They just leave you hanging, thinking what am I going to do with my life?”
People in need of hip or knee replacement operations face long delays for treatment
Almost 210,000 urgent cancer referrals were made by GPs in England in April 2021 – more than double the 80,031 made a year earlier, the NHS England data showed.
The equivalent figure for April 2019 was 199,217.
And just over 64% of patients are being treated within the government’s 18 week target.
Prior to the pandemic, this number was around 83% – 90% but plunged to a low of 46.8% last July, at the end of the first COVID-19 wave.
It has been around 65% for most of this year.
Meanwhile A&E hospital admissions in England have risen 65% compared to a year ago, NHS England said – but this is said to be a reflection of lower than usual numbers for May 2020 due to the pandemic.
A total of 2.08 million attendances were recorded in May 2021, up from 1.26 million in May 2020.
The equivalent figure for May 2019, a non-pandemic year, was 2.17 million.
The UK will “set out a path” to lift defence spending to 2.5% of national income in the spring, the prime minister has said, finally offering a timeframe for an announcement on the long-awaited hike after mounting criticism.
Sir Keir Starmer gave the date during a phone call with Mark Rutte, the secretary general of NATO, in the wake of threats by Moscow to target UK and US military facilities following a decision by London and Washington to let Ukraine fire their missiles inside Russia.
There was no clarity though on when the 2.5% level will be achieved. The UK says it currently spends around 2.3% of GDP on defence.
Ukraine leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Sir Keir Starmer and NATO boss Mark Rutte in October. Pic: PA
Ukraine war latest: Follow live updates
A spokeswoman for Downing Street said that the two men “began by discussing the situation in Ukraine and reiterated the importance of putting the country in the strongest possible position going into the winter”.
They also talked about the deployment of thousands of North Korean soldiers to fight alongside Russia.
“The prime minister underscored the need for all NATO countries to step up in support of our collective defence and updated on the government’s progress on the strategic defence review,” the spokeswoman said.
“His government would set out the path to 2.5% in the spring.”
The defence review will also be published in the spring.
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While a date for an announcement on 2.5% will be welcomed by the Ministry of Defence, analysts have long warned that such an increase is still well below the amount that is needed to rebuild the armed forces after decades of decline to meet growing global threats from Russia, an increasingly assertive China, North Korea and Iran.
They say the UK needs to be aiming to hit at least 3% – probably higher.
With Donald Trump returning to the White House, there will be significantly more pressure on the UK and other European NATO allies to accelerate increases in defence spending.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after one man died and another was critically injured in a shooting in Birmingham.
Police were called to Rotton Park Road in Edgbaston, just before 11pm on Friday, to reports that two people had been shot.
One man, in his 20s, was found in a car but was pronounced dead at the scene.
Another man, in his 30s, was found injured at a bus stop, and was taken to hospital where he remains in a critical condition, West Midlands Police added.
Firearms officers arrested a man in his 30s on suspicion of murder just before 12.30am. He remains in custody.
Officers remain on the scene, with road closures in place. The force said reassurance patrols will also be taking place.
Detective Inspector Nick Barnes said: “This is a tragic incident, and we have worked through the night to understand exactly what happened.
“We’ve already made good progress and arrested a suspect, but I still need to hear from anyone who was in the area that we’ve not already spoken to.
“This happened near the busy junction with City Road and it may be that you’ve got dashcam footage or mobile phone footage from the area just before 11pm.
“We really need to hear from you so that we can build as clear a picture as possible of what happened.”
Officers are urging anyone with information to get in contact, with anonymous tips also taken via Crimestoppers.
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