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Children’s health is facing a deadly crisis, with life-threatening illnesses, obesity, eating disorders, and infectious diseases soaring, a shock new government report reveals.

Sir Keir Starmer is blaming the Conservatives for a “broken NHS” and claims the Tories’ NHS reforms are “unforgivable and “hopelessly misconceived”.

The shocking findings on the deteriorating health of the nation’s children are revealed in a study by leading cancer surgeon and former health minister Lord Darzi.

He is raising the alarm bell on issues including:

• Falling vaccination rates for key childhood vaccinations – some declining for a decade – making measles and other infectious diseases more common;

• Prescriptions for ADHD medication for children and young people up 10% in the past year;

• Hospital admissions for children and young people with eating disorders up 82% since 2019-20;

• Children from most deprived backgrounds are now twice as likely to be obese by age five, and one in three children is obese by 11 in the poorest communities;

• Life-threatening and life-limiting conditions among children are up 40% in the past 20 years.

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“Too many are being let down,” Lord Darzi says in his report.

“Childhood is precious because it is brief; too many children are spending too much of it waiting for care. It is apparent that the NHS must do better,” he adds.

Lord Darzi’s report for Health Secretary Wes Streeting also reveals that more than 100,000 infants up to the age of two were left waiting for more than six hours in A&E departments in England last year.

He found a 60% rise in waiting times for that age group over the past 15 years, and 800,000 children and young people on NHS waiting lists for hospital treatment.

File pic: iStock
Image:
File pic: iStock

Some 175,000 were waiting between six and 12 months, and 35,000 waiting for more than a year, the report says.

He also uncovered that nearly 500,000 children and young people were on waiting lists for mental health support and that 160,000 of them had been waiting for over 12 months.

NHS is ‘broken’

Speaking ahead of the report’s publication, Sir Keir said: “The impacts of a broken NHS are being felt across the whole of our society – our children included.

“The challenges we’ve inherited are stark, but I’m determined to fix the foundations so that we not only rebuild our health service, but crucially also reform and renew it for the benefit of future generations.

“That also means equipping the NHS to prevent ill health, not just to treat it – so that all of us can live longer, healthier lives, from childhood to old age.”

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Health secretary: It’s clear to me the NHS is broken

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And in a TV interview, the prime minister said: “Everybody watching this who has used the NHS, or have relatives who have, know that it’s broken, they know that it’s broken, that is unforgivable, the state of our NHS.”

On the reasons for the crisis, Sir Keir said: “The money that was taken out of the NHS, particularly in the early years of the coalition from 2010 onwards, the Lansley reforms, which were hopelessly misconceived, and then of course COVID on top of all that, which has put us in this awful position for the NHS.”

He added: “It’s the last government that broke the NHS. Our job now, through Lord Darzi, is to properly understand how that came about and bring about the reforms, starting with the first steps – the 40,000 extra appointments. But we’ve got to do the hard yards of reform as well.”

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June: Starmer on reducing NHS waiting lists

Responding to the report, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing Professor Nicola Ranger said that “patient care is not at the standard it should be”.

“School nurse levels were slashed by the last government and that has had direct consequences on children’s health,” she said.

“Today’s children and adolescents, without early years or mental health support, pay a price similar to the most vulnerable adults without care packages.

“This week’s report must begin to provide answers and health and care professionals will look closely at where ministers see their role. A chronically understaffed NHS will remain a broken NHS.”

Shadow health secretary Victoria Atkins said: “After 14 years in opposition, with time to think about the issues facing modern-day healthcare, Labour’s instinct is to politicise children’s health, rather than provide solutions and reform of our NHS.”

She said that the Tories “always acknowledged there are pressures” on the health service, including the “impact of social media” and “growing reluctance in some parts of society to vaccinate children”.

“To find solutions to these issues requires serious and sober thinking, not headline chasing,” she added.

“Sadly, all Labour has done in health since the election is issue press releases, appoint cronies and give a budget-busting pay rise to striking junior doctors, with no plans for reform.”

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Roman Storm’s lawyers signal continuance if court allows hacker’s testimony

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Roman Storm’s lawyers signal continuance if court allows hacker’s testimony

Roman Storm’s lawyers signal continuance if court allows hacker’s testimony

The Tornado Cash co-founder is scheduled to go to trial on Monday, but his defense attorneys are still waiting on rulings for motions over witnesses in the case.

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Migrants deal a win for Starmer – and could help with fight against Reform

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Migrants deal a win for Starmer - and could help with fight against Reform

The bromance between Sir Keir Starmer and President Macron is so apparent – embraces all around.

This is some deft diplomacy from Sir Keir, who has been love-bombing his French counterpart ever since he became prime minister – trying to get closer ties, be it on security, on trade, and now of course on small boats.

And he has got a win today – he’s got President Macron to agree a deterrent deal.

Politics latest: Macron stokes undiplomatic Brexit row

You remember the Conservatives were trying the Rwanda plan to deter people from coming by sending them back to Rwanda, a third country, if they came here illegally.

What the prime minister has agreed with President Macron today is a big deal. It’s a one in, one out deal.

What they’re going to do is, if someone arrives here illegally, they will be sent back to France, and in return, the UK will accept a legitimate asylum seeker. It might be someone who has family ties.

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It’s going to start off really small – think of it as a pilot – as they’re going to test it out, see if it works.

It might be just a handful of people being sent back, maybe just under a thousand or so by the end of the year. But they will hopefully, for the prime minister, scale it up and it could become a real deterrent.

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I’ll leave you with just one more thought: As Prime Minister Starmer and President Macron were doing this deal today, Nigel Farage was in the English Channel documenting illegal migrants making that crossing – 79 people being picked up by Border Force, taken off a dinghy and into Dover.

Polling out this morning by Portland suggests four in 10 voters who are planning on going to Reform would go back to Labour if the prime minister tackles small boats and drives down the crossings.

There is a real political imperative for him to try to start to resolve this problem. It’s going to count at the ballot box – immigration is a top-three issue in this country when it comes to voters.

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US lawmakers to discuss crypto tax policy amid push to pass three bills

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US lawmakers to discuss crypto tax policy amid push to pass three bills

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The hearing notice suggested a focus on a tax framework for digital assets, but did not mention specific witnesses or policies previously proposed.

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