NHS waiting lists have fallen to the lowest for two years but progress is at risk from doctors’ strikes.
The backlog was down to 7.36million in May, from a peak of 7.77m in 2023.
2
Hospitals had their busiest May on record with 75,000 treatments, 80,000 scans and 78,000 A&E visits every day.
Health chiefs warn staff’s efforts could go to waste if the British Medical Association’s five-day strike goes ahead at the end of the month.
Waiting lists were the highest in history during the last run of strikes and are expected to rise again if walkouts drag on.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “Our NHS is finally moving in the right direction but this recovery is only just beginning and it is fragile.
“I am once again urging the BMA to abandon their unreasonable rush to strike.”
Prof Meghana Pandit, of NHS England, added: “It would be hugely disappointing if this progress were to stall this summer due to industrial action.”
An official survey also showed patient satisfaction with GP surgeries has increased compared to last year.
But cancer waiting times appeared to get worse in May compared to April.
Tim Gardner, from the Health Foundation think-tank, said: “Last week the government’s 10-year Health Plan outlined an ambitious vision to make the NHS fit for the future.
“The statistics published today highlight the scale of the challenge in making that vision a reality.”
2
