Unhappiness with the NHS has reached record highs – but the public still supports it
The British public is the unhappiest it has ever been with the NHS, but still supports it in principle, a new survey has found.
The overall satisfaction with the NHS now stands at 29% – a fall of seven percentage points and the fourth-largest drop ever recorded in a single year. In 2010, satisfaction with the NHS was 71%.
The British Social Attitudes survey has tracked public opinion consistently since 1983.
Some 51% of people are unhappy with the healthcare service, a rise of 10 percentage points in a single year, and the highest levels of dissatisfaction since the survey began.
The 40th annual survey took place in September and October last year and asked 3,362 people from England, Wales and Scotland their opinions on health and social care.
The findings paint a worrying picture of how people perceive the NHS.
Over two-thirds of respondents (69%) chose long waiting times for GP and hospital appointments as one of the top reasons for dissatisfaction.
Accident and emergency departments have seen a sharp increase in the percentage of dissatisfied respondents, with a record 40% saying they are unhappy, according to analysis by the Nuffield Trust and The King’s Fund.
General practice (GPs), dentistry and inpatient hospital services were among the other areas reaching record levels of dissatisfaction, with the findings consistent across all ages, income groups, genders and political persuasions.
Of those who were satisfied with the NHS, the top reason was because NHS care is free at the point of use (74%), followed by the quality of NHS care (55%) and that it has a good range of services and treatments available (49%).
Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said the survey results should be a “red flag to the government”.
The results “should not be seen as a judgement of the efforts of frontline staff to recover services in the wake of the pandemic but rather, a sign that the NHS is not being given what it needs to fully deliver for its local communities”.
“With there being around 124,000 reported vacancies across the NHS in England and a maintenance backlog stretching over £10bn this is hardly surprising,” he added.
Almost 80% of NHS staff consider quitting
Unhappiness within the NHS is not restricted to members of the public, with a separate survey finding 75.5% of workers are considering leaving the service altogether.
The survey of 2,500 NHS employees by Organise found more than half are taking days off due to stress, anxiety or burnout.
The majority also said patients are experiencing medication errors, delays in procedures and compromised quality of care as a result.
It comes as thousands of NHS staff are striking with demands for better pay and improved working conditions.
Anabela De Barros, a recovery nurse working in London, told Sky News the pandemic left many NHS staff deeply traumatised.
“I have never seen so many dead patients in my life,” she said, speaking about her work during COVID.
“And it was nice that everyone was clapping for us. But I know nurses that are now going to food banks, so it’s not enough.”
Striking NHS junior doctors on the picket line
Ms De Barros has just voted to reject the latest pay deal offered to nurses.
“We’ve had Brexit, COVID and now the war in Ukraine has made the cost of living so high. We are just tired. We are exhausted. And it doesn’t seem like it is going to get better any time soon.”
Nat Whalley, CEO and co-founder of Organise – a worker-led network for fixing employment – called it a “ticking time bomb at the heart of our healthcare system”.
“We don’t need empty promises; we need tangible investments in the NHS that allow workers to thrive in their roles, without suffering from stress, anxiety, and burnout,” said Ms Whalley.
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Why are staff quitting the NHS?
Despite being unhappy, Brits still support the NHS
Despite the high levels of dissatisfaction with how services are operating, the public continues to show strong support for the principles underpinning the NHS.
Nine in 10 people backed the idea that the NHS should be free of charge when people need it.
But more than eight in 10 believe there is a major or severe funding problem for the service.
While taxation remains the favoured source of funding, more people believe the service should live within its budget.
Jessica Morris, report author and fellow at the Nuffield Trust, said: “It is clear that the level of unhappiness amongst the British public over the way the NHS is running is going to take many years to recover.”
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said the government was “hugely grateful” to NHS and social care staff for their working during the pandemic and dealing with the subsequent backlog.
“Cutting waiting lists is one of the prime minister’s five priorities and so far, we have virtually eliminated waits of over two years for treatment and latest figures show the number of patients waiting over 18 months has reduced by 80% from the peak,” they added.
A spokesperson for NHS England said: “The NHS is taking significant steps to further improve patient experience, including our recently-launched blueprint to recover urgent and emergency care alongside continuing to slash the long waits for elective treatment which inevitably built up during the pandemic, and we are working on new plans to boost primary care for patients as well as publishing a long-term workforce strategy shortly.”
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They also highlighted the government’s £14.1bn investment in health and social care over the next two years.
Wes Streeting MP, Labour’s shadow health secretary, said: “Support for the values that the NHS was built upon are unshakable. It will fall to the next Labour government to reform and rebuild the NHS, so it once again delivers quality care for patients, free at the point of use.”
A 14-year-old boy has died and a 13-year-old boy is in a critical condition after getting into difficulty in the River Tyne.
Emergency teams launched a large rescue operation yesterday afternoon after receiving reports two boys had got into trouble in the water near Ovingham, Northumberland.
One of the boys, aged 13, was rescued from the river and taken to hospital, where he remains “in a critical condition”, Northumbria Police said in a statement on Sunday morning.
Ovingham Bridge on the River Tyne connects Ovingham with Prudhoe. Pic: Google Street View
Police cordon set up near Prudhoe, across the River Tyne from Ovingham
A huge search, which involved the police, ambulance, fire and mountain rescue services, then continued as crews raced to find the second boy.
“Sadly, the 14-year-old’s body was later found in the water and he was pronounced dead at the scene,” police said.
A police cordon was set up across a footpath near Prudhoe, across the River Tyne from Ovingham
Chief Superintendent Helena Barron, of Northumbria Police, said it was an “absolutely tragic incident”.
She added: “Our thoughts are with the families of both boys at this difficult time as we continue to support them.
“A number of agencies were involved in the incident and their support was hugely appreciated.
“It is with great sadness that we could not provide a more positive update.”
Police said the parents of both boys are being supported by specially-trained officers.
Billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe has told Sky News that Britain is ready for a change of government after scolding the Conservatives over their handling of the economy and immigration after Brexit.
While insisting his petrochemicals conglomerate INEOS is apolitical, Sir Jim backed Brexit and spent last weekend with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer at Manchester United – the football club he now runs as minority owner.
“I’m sure Keir will do a very good job at running the country – I have no questions about that,” Sir Jim said in an exclusive interview.
“There’s no question that the Conservatives have had a good run,” he added. “I think most of the country probably feels it’s time for a change. And I sort of get that, really.”
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Man Utd ‘is a very big challenge’
Sir Jim was a prominent backer of leaving the European Union in the 2016 referendum but now has issues with how Brexit was delivered by Tory prime ministers.
“Brexit sort of unfortunately didn’t turn out as people anticipated because… Brexit was largely about immigration,” Sir Jim said.
“That was the biggest component of that vote. People were getting fed up with the influx of the city of Southampton coming in every year. I think last year it was two times Southampton.
“I mean, no small island like the UK could cope with vast numbers of people coming into the UK.
“I mean, it just overburdens the National Health Service, the traffic service, the police, everybody.
“The country was designed for 55 or 60 million people and we’ve got 70 million people and all the services break down as a consequence.
“That’s what Brexit was all about and nobody’s implemented that. They just keep talking about it. But nothing’s been done, which is why I think we’ll finish up with the change of government.”
Read more:
Sir Jim’s mission to succeed at ‘the one challenge the UK has never brought home’
UK needs to get ‘sharper on the business front’
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has indicated an election is due this year but Monaco-based Sir Jim is unimpressed by the Conservatives’ handling of the economy.
“The UK does need to get a bit sharper on the business front,” he said. “I think the biggest objective for the government is to create growth in the economy.
“There’s two parts of the economy, there’s the services side of the economy and there’s the manufacturing side. And the manufacturing, unfortunately, has been sliding away now for the last 25 years.
“We were very similar in scale to Germany probably 25 years ago.
“But today we’re just a fraction of where Germany is and I think that isn’t healthy for the British economy… particularly when you think the north of England is very manufacturing based, and that talks to things like energy competitiveness, it talks to things like, why do you put an immensely high tax on the North Sea?
Analysis: Labour on ‘smoked salmon offensive’ – and it’s working
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s comments carry weight because of who he is.
A billionaire business boss and Brexit backer who employs thousands of people should be naturally allied to the Tories.
Instead he seems to be calling time on them. Symbolically, that matters.
But what’s more important is that this mirrors what appears to be going on in business more broadly.
Labour has made a concerted effort to woo the private sector, with senior figures embarking on a “smoked salmon offensive” of breakfast meetings with top executives. And it’s working.
Commerce events held by Labour now pack out as firms pick up on the electoral direction of travel. Tensions still exist though.
Labour plans for a strengthening of workers’ rights and union power unnerve some.
Then there’s the persistent worry about the wider instincts of the party towards the commercial sector.
Or to put it another way, there are plenty of people in Labour that think someone like Sir Jim – a billionaire petro-chemical boss based in tax-free Monaco – is not part of the solution, but part of the problem.
“That just disincentivises people from finding hydrocarbons in the North Sea, in energy.
“And what we need is competitive energy. So I mean, in America, in the energy world, in the oil and gas world, they just apply a corporation tax to the oil and gas companies, which is about 30%. And in the UK we’ve got this tax of 75% because we want to kill off the oil and gas companies.
“But if we don’t have competitive energy, we’re not going to have a healthy manufacturing industry. And that just makes no sense to me at all. No.”
‘We’re apolitical’
Asked about INEOS donating to Labour, Sir Jim replied: “We’re apolitical, INEOS.
“We just want a successful manufacturing sector in the UK and we’ve talked to the government about that. It’s pretty clear about our views.”
Sir Jim was keener to talk about the economy and politics than his role at struggling Manchester United, which he bought a 27.7% stake in from the American Glazer family in February – giving him an even higher business profile.
Old Trafford stadium in Manchester. Pic: AP
Push for stadium of the North
He is continuing to push for public funds to regenerate Old Trafford and the surrounding areas despite no apparent political support being forthcoming. Sir Keir was hosted at the stadium for a Premier League match last weekend just as heavy rain exposed the fragility of the ageing venue.
“There’s a very good case, in my view, for having a stadium of the North, which would serve the northern part of the country in that arena of football,” Sir Jim said. “If you look at the number of Champions League the North West has won, it’s 10. London has won two.
“And yet everybody from the North has to get down to London to watch a big football match. And there should be one [a large stadium] in the North, in my view.
“But it’s also important for the southern side of Manchester, you know, to regenerate.
“It’s the sort of second capital of the country where the Industrial Revolution began.
“But if you have a regeneration project, you need a nucleus or a regeneration project and having that world-class stadium there, I think would provide the impetus to regenerate that region.”
UK
Strictly Come Dancing star Giovanni Pernice denies claims of ‘abusive or threatening behaviour’ on show
Strictly Come Dancing star Giovanni Pernice has rejected allegations that he displayed “abusive or threatening behaviour” while working as a professional dancer on the show.
The 33-year-old Italian dancer said he was “surprised” amid reports the BBC is looking into complaints about his conduct.
A legal firm acting on behalf of the complainants said the broadcaster is “evidence gathering” – but the BBC has not confirmed that any probe has been launched.
In the statement shared on Instagram, Pernice wrote: “To my dear fans, you will be as surprised as I am that allegations have been made about my dance teaching methods in the media this week.
“Of course, I reject any suggestion of abusive or threatening behaviour, and I look forward to clearing my name.”
He added: “Those who have followed my journey on Strictly Come Dancing over the last decade will know that I am passionate and competitive.
“No one is more ambitious for my dance partners than me.
“I have always striven to help them be the very best dancers they can be.
“This has always come from a place of love and wanting to win – for me and my dance partners.”
Pernice signed off the message by writing: “Thank you all once again for your continued love and support! Giovanni.”
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A statement from law firm Carter-Ruck to the PA news agency said: “There have been numerous serious complaints made to the BBC who are now in the process of evidence gathering.
“As it is still an ongoing matter no further comment can be made at this stage.”
The Sun, which first reported suggestions that an investigation was underway, also claimed Pernice had quit the show.
Neither the BBC nor Pernice has confirmed his departure.
Sicily-born Pernice has been on the BBC One celebrity dancing show since 2015.
In 2021, he lifted the Strictly glitterball trophy for the first time alongside EastEnders star Rose Ayling-Ellis, who was the first deaf contestant to win. He had appeared in three show finals previously.
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He also holds the Guinness World Record for most jive kick and flicks in 30 seconds, which he achieved on the BBC’s Strictly It Takes Two show in 2016.
The BBC was approached by Sky News but declined to comment.
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