‘Continual state of crisis’: Public’s satisfaction with NHS is at a record low

Published

2 months ago

March 27, 2024

admin

Public satisfaction with the NHS has dropped to the lowest level on record, according to findings from a long-running poll.

Just 24% of people said they were satisfied with the health service in 2023, with poor access to GPs and long wait times for hospital treatment the main reasons for dissatisfaction.

More than 3,000 people across England, Scotland and Wales were surveyed for the British Social Attitudes poll, which is seen as a reliable barometer for how people feel about the NHS.

Satisfaction levels were down five percentage points from the year before – falling to the lowest level since records began in 1983.

From A&E to dentistry, satisfaction with every service is at or near historic lows. Results for social care were even worse, where just 13% were happy.

When asked what the most important priorities for the NHS should be, 52% said making it easier to get a GP appointment and 51% said increasing staff numbers.

Improving waiting times in A&E and for planned operations closely followed – chosen by 47% and 45% of people respectively.

Crucially however, support for the founding principles behind the NHS – free at the point of use, available to everyone and primarily funded through taxes – has remained constant.

This indicates the public do not want a change to the NHS – they just want the model they have got to work, a report analysing the poll said.

Public fiercely loyal to NHS principles

The headline makes grim reading for the NHS – but not for NHS staff.

There’s a clear distinction between the two.

Respondents to the survey are clearly dissatisfied with long waiting times.

That frustration is totally understandable.

But what they make clear is that they fully support NHS staff who they feel are doing a good job under extremely difficult circumstances.

They are also fiercely loyal to the institution itself and do not want its founding principle to change: free for all from cradle to grave.

They want see more funding for the health service and extra staff – and some are willing to see the extra money needed to come from more tax.

But politicians gearing up for an election will know that bringing the NHS up to the levels that recorded high satisfaction more than 10 years ago will require record investment.

‘Continual state of crisis’

Satisfaction with the NHS peaked 14 years ago in 2010, when 70% of people were satisfied with the health service. But since 2020, levels have dropped by 29 percentage points.

“A decade of squeezed funding and chronic workforce shortages followed by a global pandemic has left the NHS in a continual state of crisis,” the report said.

When it comes to funding a whopping 84% of people polled said they thought the NHS had a severe problem, with 48% voting that ministers should increase taxes and spend more on the health service.

It was people with the most monthly income that were more likely to choose “increase taxes and spend more on the NHS” than keep taxes the same or reduce them.

Dan Wellings, a senior fellow at the King’s Fund – which sponsors health and care questions in the poll – said political leaders should “take note” of how far satisfaction levels have fallen ahead of the upcoming general election.

Click to subscribe to the Sky News Daily wherever you get your podcasts

Professor Pat Cullen, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, added that any party wanting to be in Downing Street in a year “must demonstrate clear intent” of investing in nursing to improve pay conditions and stabilise the workforce.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said it was “fully committed” to a “faster, simpler and fairer NHS” and has seen “good progress” in cutting waiting lists in England.

“We are providing the NHS with record funding of nearly £165bn a year by the end of this Parliament, an increase of 13% in real terms compared to 2019,” they said.

“Overall NHS waiting lists have decreased for the fourth month in a row and we’ve delivered on our commitment to provide an extra 50 million GP appointments months ahead of schedule.”

UK

Next few years will be ‘most dangerous’ UK has ever known, Rishi Sunak to say in ‘major’ speech

Published

1 hour ago

May 13, 2024

admin

Next few years will be 'most dangerous' UK has ever known, Rishi Sunak to say in 'major' speech

Rishi Sunak will give a speech on Monday setting out “bold ideas to change society” – as he seeks to regain momentum following the defection of one of his MPs to Labour and a hammering at the local elections.

In what is being billed by Downing Street as a “major speech” in central London, the prime minister will outline “the stark choice facing the UK public” ahead of the general election later this year.

Mr Sunak has suggested he will go to the polls in the autumn, with Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron telling Sky News on Sunday that voters need time “to see our plan is working”.

In a bid to revive his faltering premiership, the Tory leader will say: “I have bold ideas that can change our society for the better, and restore people’s confidence and pride in our country.

“I feel a profound sense of urgency. Because more will change in the next five years than in the last 30.

“I’m convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous yet most transformational our country has ever known.”

👉 Tap here to follow Politics at Jack and Sam’s wherever you get your podcasts 👈

It is not clear what specific ideas the prime minister will set out.

A trail of the speech released by Downing Street says he will discuss safeguarding the nation’s security against threats like war and rising global immigration.

Mr Sunak will also set out his intention to capitalise safely on the opportunities presented by artificial intelligence.

He will go on to say: “Our country stands at a crossroads.

“Over the next few years, from our democracy to our economy to our society – to the hardest questions of war and peace – almost every aspect of our lives is going to change.

“How we act in the face of these changes – not only to keep people safe and secure but to realise the opportunities too – will determine whether or not Britain will succeed in the years to come.

“And this is the choice facing the country.”

The speech comes after a difficult week for Mr Sunak, who faced his second defection to Labour after Dover MP Natalie Elphicke crossed the floor to join the opposition benches shortly before PMQs on Wednesday.

Ms Elphicke, considered to be on the right of the Tory party, blamed the “broken promises of Rishi Sunak’s tired and chaotic government”, and said key deciding factors for switching have been “housing and the safety and security of our borders”.

The shock move made her the second Tory MP to join the Labour Party in 11 days after former minister Dan Poulter defected to the opposition, blaming NHS “chaos”.

Mr Sunak has also come under pressure after the Conservatives suffered a mauling at the local elections, losing nearly 500 council seats, the Backpool South by-election and the West Midlands mayoralty in a bruising set of results.

In the wake of the defeats, Mr Sunak was facing calls to tack both further right and further to the centre.

Time is running out to make up ground against Labour ahead of the election, which has to be held by 25 January at the latest.

UK

Rishi Sunak to argue UK is safer under Conservatives amid worsening global outlook

Published

1 hour ago

May 13, 2024

admin

Rishi Sunak to argue UK is safer under Conservatives amid worsening global outlook

Rishi Sunak will argue that Britain is safer under the Conservatives against the backdrop of two escalating conflicts likely to dominate the week.

In the last few days, the prime minister has broken with US President Joe Biden by insisting the UK should continue to supply arms to Israel.

It comes as Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu appears poised to mount another massive military operation in the southern Gaza town of Rafah against warnings from the US and UK.

👉 Listen above then tap here to follow Politics at Jack at Sam’s wherever you get your podcasts 👈

Meanwhile, there are fears in Whitehall that Russia could mount an operation on Kharkiv by the end of the week to retake Ukraine‘s second-largest city.

Both operations could trigger wider repercussions.

Amid this worsening global outlook, the Conservatives want to highlight what they say is the gap between Tory and Labour pledges on military spending.

Politics latest: Cameron warns Israel against Rafah invasion

Sunak announced last month that a future Tory government would ensure 2.5% of GDP will be spent on the military by 2030, while Labour says it will do it when the economic conditions allow.

After the initial announcement, Sunak wants to ensure he gets full public credit for the big spending commitment while pushing Labour on its failure to match the promise.

Labour says that the Tory spending plan does not add up.

On Monday, Sunak will use a set-piece speech to mount the argument that there is a need for security at home and abroad in an ever-increasingly dangerous world and describe the country as being at a crossroads at the next general election.

In a further major political dividing line, Labour has broken with the government and called this weekend for a suspension of arms to Israel, placing it alongside the United States.

However the Tory government is holding firm, arguing that now is not the time and that Britain only supplies a small amount of the munitions used by Israel.

Some people inside government suggest that the US government position is driven by President Biden’s need to take a tougher position to shore up votes in the upcoming election race.

Sunak’s Monday speech is one part of a set of security-themed announcements by the government, following Lord Cameron’s media blitz at the weekend.

On Monday, deputy foreign secretary Andrew Mitchell will address a Tory-leaning think tank, while on Tuesday Defence Secretary Grant Shapps will make a speech, with Chancellor Jeremy Hunt speaking on Friday.

Also, Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden will lead a trade delegation this week to Saudi Arabia.

Although boosting trade will be the focus, Saudi Arabia, like Qatar, is one of the backchannels used by the UK to deliver messages to Hamas.

UK

Police Scotland’s chief constable: SNP finance probe heading to prosecutors ‘within weeks’

Published

1 hour ago

May 13, 2024

admin

Police Scotland's chief constable: SNP finance probe heading to prosecutors 'within weeks'

The police investigation involving Nicola Sturgeon’s husband is “moving on” with prosecutors to receive a file within weeks, Scotland’s most senior officer has told Sky News.

The former first minister and SNP leader’s spouse, Peter Murrell, has been charged in connection with embezzlement of party funds.

In her first interviews since taking on the UK’s second biggest police force, Chief Constable Jo Farrell insisted her officers are “objective” but refused to be drawn on whether the long-running probe will end imminently.

The investigation, dubbed Operation Branchform, was launched in July 2021 after officers received complaints about how SNP donations were used.

There were questions about more than £660,000 raised for a second Scottish independence referendum campaign.

Police Scotland has said Nicola Sturgeon remains under investigation after she was arrested and released without charge in 2023.

The SNP’s former treasurer, Colin Beattie, was also detained for almost 12 hours for questioning in spring last year.

The 72-year-old has told Sky News he had heard “nothing at all” from police recently.

Murrell, 59, was chief executive of the SNP for two decades.

He quit the role weeks before his arrest and resigned his SNP membership in the wake of his police charge.

The probe has involved detectives seizing a £100,000 motorhome from outside the home of one of Murrell’s elderly relatives.

Officers concluded in April there is sufficient evidence to charge Murrell in connection with embezzlement of party funds.

The next stage is for Scotland’s prosecution service, the Crown Office, to receive a report on the case from police and decide whether to proceed to court.

A Crown Office spokesman said: “All (of) Scotland’s prosecutors act independently of political interference.

“As is routine, to protect the integrity of ongoing investigations, we do not comment in detail on their conduct.”

Chief Con Farrell was questioned by Sky News about why the investigation was taking so long to conclude.

She said: “It’s a live investigation, complex investigation and the matter has been progressed, and we expect the report to go to the Crown Office in a matter of weeks.”

Asked about this probe continuing in a general election year, she said: “We’ve investigated allegations. That’s moving on.

“We have very skilled, professional, objective individuals working on that case.”

The senior officer refused to say when the SNP probe would be fully concluded or whether other individuals would face further questions.

“I’m not going to make a commentary on the length of it. One person’s been charged, the report will go to the Crown Office and it’s a live investigation,” she said.

Ms Sturgeon unexpectedly announced her resignation as SNP leader and first minister of Scotland months before police arrested her and her husband.

She has always insisted the probe never played any part in her sudden departure from office.