NHS Confederation responds to the Labour party's proposals to cut waiting lists

Responding to the Labour party's proposal to create an extra 2 million appointments a year, Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said:

“NHS leaders will welcome the Labour’s intention to increase elective activity by increasing overtime payments for frontline staff to work more shifts over weekends.

“The NHS is already a 24/7 service and many trusts are known to use weekends to tackle some of their minor or low-risk procedures, so this funding boost would be a much needed addition when the backlog in England currently stands at 7.7 million.

“Right now, the single biggest limiting factor for why the NHS cannot perform even more elective activity is the ongoing strikes, which saw 120,000 appointments cancelled last week.

“The NHS is under-staffed and over-stretched so there has to be a plan to bring this industrial action to an end.

“Even with a resolution to strike action, it will take time to deliver further increases to elective activity levels, which latest data suggests are already around 8% higher than pre-pandemic. Leaders are committed to doing this but this is the reality their teams and patients face.”