NHS in ‘full blown crisis’ and will miss targets to cut cancer waiting lists, MPs warn

Sign up for our free Health Check email to receive exclusive analysis on the week in health Get our free Health Check email Get our free Health Check email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. email rebecca.thomas@independent.co.uk Dame Meg Hillier MP, chair of PAC, said: “Despite a significant cash injection meant to begin to help the recovery from the pandemic, the NHS is in full-blown crisis and all the metrics are going in the wrong direction.” She said evidence given to PAC shows the NHS will not achieve its plan to reduce its 7 million backlog by 2023, meaning the nations’ health and quality of life will “go backwards”. The PAC report also said NHS England must shift its focus which would mean “difficult trade-offs” to address inequalities facing patients across different areas. “We do not expect the NHS to achieve the significant and ambitious targets of its current recovery plan, but it must now step up and show that leadership for a realistic way forward, with targets that have patients seeing the real improvements.” Tim Gardner, senior policy fellow for the Health Foundation, said: “Today’s report is a reminder that tackling the backlog needs wider action to address pressures on social care and NHS workforce shortages, which are the result of long-term failures in government policy.” Sir Julian Hartley, chief executive of NHS Providers, said trusts areas working hard to tackle backlogs and meet their next target of eliminating all patients waiting more than 78 weeks. “As ever, we need the public to know that the NHS is there for them and people should continue to come forward for the care they need if they have health concerns.” A department of health and social care spokesperson said the NHS “has already made strong progress in tackling the Covid backlogs”, adding: “We are working to reduce the 62-day cancer backlog – which has fallen nine per cent since peaking in 2020 – but we know there is more to do.