Waiting lists soaring in Basingstoke, up 96% in a decade – new analysis

Across the UK more people are stuck on the NHS waiting lists than ever – over 6.6 million. Today, new analysis from Basingstoke Labour, based on this month’s NHS waiting lists data, reveals there are now 96% more people on waiting at Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust than there were ten years ago.

The Conservatives cannot blame this rise on the pandemic – across the country waiting lists in March 2020 were already 66% higher than in 2012. The UK went into the pandemic with more than 4 million people waiting for care. Here in Basingstoke, waiting lists were already 49% higher than in 2012.

The news comes as a new report from MPs reveals the NHS is facing its worst staffing crisis – putting patient safety at serious risk.

Publishing the analysis, Alex Lee, Basingstoke Labour’s Communication Officer and Councillor for Winklebury & Manydown said,

“Waiting lists in Basingstoke are soaring, and that means – at best – patients are left in pain and in fear for far longer than they should be, and sadly it also means that more and more people are dying whilst waiting for care.

“Even the Conservative leadership candidates admit that 12 years of Tory rule has left the NHS in crisis, but instead of solving the problem, they are fighting a leadership contest pledging to cut taxes with no plans to pay for them. This is backlog Britain, and the truth is the longer the Conservatives are in power the longer patients will wait for care.

“The next Labour government will have to rescue the NHS from the dire state it has been left in by the Conservatives – but we have a plan. Labour will ensure that our health service has the staff, equipment, and modern technology to provide the care we need.”