NHS patients still face postcode lottery for urgent care, damning MPs’ report finds
Patients in need of urgent medical attention are still subject to a postcode lottery where the quality of care depends on where they live, MPs have warned.
There are still wide variations in ambulance response times depending on region, MPs on the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said, as they found performances in key services had fallen “far below the standard the NHS says patients should expect and receive”.
It said that despite the NHS having “more money and staff than ever before”, it had made “poor use” of its resources to improve access for patients.
The committee said that although the NHS budget in 2023-23 came to £152bn – £28bn more than in 2016-17 – the performance of urgent and emergency care services “has been deteriorating for many years”.
Productivity, which had been improving before the COVID-19 pandemic, subsequently fell 23% over the two years from 2019-20 and 2020-21, the MPs noted.
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The PAC report comes after the NHS waiting list in England hit a record high, with an estimated 7.75 million people waiting to start treatment at the end of August – up from 7.68 million in July.
The committee’s inquiry also examined delays in hospital discharges, which increased to an average of 13,623 patients in the fourth quarter of 2022-23 from 12,118 people during the same period the previous year.
Dame Meg Hillier MP, chair of the committee, said: “Anyone who has had recent contact with the NHS knows it is in crisis.
“Patients suffering long waits and hard-pressed staff working in a system which is not delivering deserve better. The PAC’s role is to analyse the underlying numbers, and attempt to provide a ‘get well soon’ plan for the NHS.
“The government and health system need to be alert to the serious doubts our report lays out around the workforce crisis, both the approach to tackling it now and the additional costs of funding it in the future.”
The PAC report found that people in some parts of the country are having to wait, on average, more than three minutes longer for an ambulance to arrive when they are facing a life-threatening emergency.
In 2021/22, average ambulance response times for the most serious incidents, including cardiac arrests, varied from six minutes 51 seconds for the London Ambulance Service to 10 minutes 20 seconds for the South Western Ambulance Service.
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‘I’ve lost control of my birth’
Ambulances aim to respond to the most serious life-threatening injuries and illnesses in an average time of seven minutes.
Along with variations in ambulance response times, the report also highlighted issues with sending patients home when they no longer need hospital care.
The length of stay in the worst-performing areas for discharging medically fit patients is more than double that of the best-performing areas, according to the report.
“Not enough [is] being done to address the systemic issues with discharges that lie within the gift of the NHS and its hospitals, and which cannot be blamed on external factors,” the MPs said.
“The NHS has not met targets for ambulance handovers since November 2017 and for A&E waits since July 2015, with wider declines in performance across the board.”
Meanwhile, they said the NHS’s long-term workforce plan includes only a commitment of an additional £2.4bn to cover training costs for the first five years of the 15-year plan.
The MPs said they were “unconvinced” by NHS England’s approach to address workforce shortfall, saying its desire to retain 130,000 staff who would otherwise leave over the next 15 years was an “aspiration which seems highly doubtful”.
Professor Julian Redhead, NHS England’s national clinical director for urgent and emergency care, said: “While this report includes data which is more than two years old and coincided with a once-in-a-generation pandemic, it is right to note the NHS has been under increasing pressure with staff experiencing record A&E attendances, hospitals fuller than at any point in their history and with thousands of beds taken up each day, in part, due to pressures in social care.
“It is testament to the hard work of staff and results of our NHS winter plan – rolling out 800 new ambulances, 10,000 virtual ward beds and work towards 5,000 extra core beds – that waiting times for ambulances, 999 calls and in A&E have improved across the country during this financial year.
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“This progress has come as the NHS has committed to delivering £12 billion of annualised savings by 2024/25 – all while dealing with more than 100,000 staff posts being vacant.”
Royal College of Nursing Director for England, Patricia Marquis added: “Another day, and yet another report into failing NHS services that cannot keep patients safe.
“Nursing staff have been sounding the siren on staff shortages for years, but the government remains more focused on soundbites than solutions.
“We need the government to take urgent action, to stop our nursing staff leaving the profession. Patient care demands it. We are crying out for funding and detail on the workforce plan – there is still very limited progress on closing the gap in nursing vacancies.”
The Department of Health and Social Care has been approached for comment.
UK
Reward of £20,000 offered to identify parents of three siblings abandoned as babies over eight years
A £20,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to the identification of the parents of three siblings found abandoned in London over eight years.
The Metropolitan Police said that despite more than 450 hours of CCTV being reviewed, the parents of the three children, known as Elsa, Roman and Harry, remain unidentified.
However, it is believed their mother has lived in an area of east London “over the past six years”.
Elsa was believed to be less than an hour old when she was found by a dog walker on 18 January last year, in East Ham, east London.
In the months that followed it was found that she had two siblings who were also abandoned in similar circumstances, in the same area of London, in 2017 and 2019.
On Saturday, police said the independent group Crimestoppers had offered a £20,000 reward for information passed to the charity, which will expire on 18 April.
Detective Inspector Jamie Humm, of the Met’s child abuse investigation team, said: “We have carried out extensive inquiries over the past year to try and locate Elsa’s parents.
Baby Roman. Pic: Met Police/PA
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“This has involved reviewing over 450 hours of CCTV and completing a full DNA structure of the mother.
“We have serious concerns for the wellbeing of the parents, especially the mother, and are continuing to work closely with Newham Council and appeal for the public’s help for information.
“I believe that someone in the area will have been aware of the mother’s pregnancies and that within the community there may be (or) have been concerns for this mother’s welfare.
“Thanks to the DNA work of forensic colleagues, police will be able to eliminate any unconnected person quickly and easily, as such I would ask you to contact police with confidence.”
The baby was found at the junction of Greenway and High Street South in Newham. Pic: PA
Elsa was found wrapped in a towel in a reusable shopping bag, of which police have also released a new image, and was kept warm by the dog walker. She was uninjured.
Police said at the time that it was “highly likely” that she was born after a “concealed pregnancy”.
The Boots bag in which Baby Elsa was found abandoned by a dog walker in Newham on 18 January 2024. Pic: Met Police/PA
The BBC reported that at an initial court hearing, East London Family Court was told it took doctors three hours to record Elsa’s temperature because of the cold, and the Met Office said that temperatures dropped to as low as -4C on the night she was found.
Hospital staff named her Elsa in a reference to the character from the film Frozen.
The police investigation into the identity of the children’s parents continues, and anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or post @MetCC ref Operation Wolcott.
People can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously at any time on 0800 555 111 or via Crimestoppers-uk.org.
Fresh appeals have been made for information on what would have been the 20th birthday of Ellis Cox, who was shot dead in Liverpool last June.
A number of people have been arrested in connection with the murder at Liver Industrial Estate, but no one has been charged yet.
The 19-year-old’s family and police have paid tribute to him and called for those with information to come forward.
He was shot in the back after a confrontation between his friends and another group of up to three males on Sunday 23 June.
Ellis Cox who was shot dead in June 2024. Pic: Merseyside Police
His mother Carolyn paid tribute in an appeal to coincide with what would have been his 20th birthday.
“He was so kind… so laid back, so calm, so mature for his age. And he was just funny. Very funny.
“He was my baby… no mum should have to bury a child. He was my life. And I don’t know what to do without him.”
Mum Carolyn Cox (left) and aunt Julie O’Toole (right) are looking for answers
Ellis’ mum described him as ‘kind” and “funny. Pic: Merseyside Police
Meanwhile, his aunt Julie O’Toole said he was “the sort of person I think you’d be hard pressed to find anyone to say anything negative about. He was loyal, fiercely loyal… everything was about his family”.
To pay tribute to Ellis, Liverpool City Council will be lighting up the Cunard Building and Liverpool Town Hall in orange on Saturday.
DCI Steve McGrath does not believe Ellis was involved in criminality
Detective Chief Inspector Steve McGrath, the senior investigating officer, spoke about the information gathered so far, six months on from Mr Cox’s murder.
“I’m satisfied that the group that he was with was probably the target… and I would say that’s got something in relation to do with localised drug dealing in that area. But Ellis had no involvement in that whatsoever,” he said.
He added that police are looking for “really significant pieces of evidence now”, including “trying to recover the firearm that was used in relation to this, looking to recover the bikes that were used by the offenders”.
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Mrs Cox also appealed for people to come forward with information.
“If you know anything, don’t let us get to [his] next birthday and still know nothing.
“We need to get justice for Ellis. And we need to get the people who took him from us off the streets.”
Former Manchester United and Scotland footballer Denis Law has died, at the age of 84.
In a statement, his family said: “It is with a heavy heart that we tell you our father Denis Law has sadly passed away. He fought a tough battle, but finally, he is now at peace.
“We would like to thank everyone who contributed to his wellbeing and care, past and much more recently.
“We know how much people supported and loved him and that love was always appreciated and made the difference.”
Denis Law in 2005. Pic: PA
The Aberdeen-born footballer previously announced in August 2021 that he had been diagnosed with dementia.
A prolific striker, Law scored 237 goals in 404 appearances for Manchester United, for whom he signed for a then-British record transfer fee in 1962.
He is the only man to have two statues dedicated to him at Old Trafford – one on the Stretford End concourse, the other as part of the United Trinity statue overlooking the stadium’s forecourt beside fellow great George Best and Sir Bobby Charlton.
Denis Law, third from left, as a statue featuring him alongside Sir Bobby Charlton and George Best – known as the ‘holy trinity’ – was unveiled in 2008. Pic: AP
The only Scottish player to have won the Ballon d’Or award, in 1964, he was also part of United’s triumphant campaign in the 1968 European Cup – in which they became the first English club to ever win the competition.
In a statement, the club said: “Everyone at Manchester United is mourning the loss of Denis Law, the King of the Stretford End, who has passed away, aged 84.
“He will always be celebrated as one of the club’s greatest and most beloved players.
Denis Law, centre, during Manchester United’s triumphant European Cup campaign in 1968. Pic: AP
“The ultimate goalscorer, his flair, spirit and love for the game made him the hero of a generation. Our deepest condolences go out to Denis’s family and many friends. His memory will live on forever more.”
Wayne Rooney, former United captain and the club’s all-time record goalscorer, described Law as a “legend”.
“Thoughts with all Denis’s family and friends,” he said in an online post.
Another former United captain, Gary Neville, said: “A great footballer and a great man. It’s a privilege and an honour to have spent time in your company. The King of the Stretford End.”
A tribute from the Scotland national team said Law was “a true great”.
“We will not see his likes again,” it said.
Law also played for Huddersfield Town, Manchester City, and Italian club Torino during his club career, and made 55 appearances for Scotland, scoring 30 goals for his country.
Manchester City said in a post on X: “The whole of Manchester, including everyone at City, is mourning with you. Rest in peace, Denis.”
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