Record NHS waiting lists will continue to grow, Javid warns
The number of people in England waiting for hospital treatment has reached a new record level and patients have been warned it will go even higher.
A total of 5.6 million people were waiting to start treatment at the end of July, according to new figures from NHS England. This is the highest number since records began in August 2007 and includes those waiting for hip and knee replacements and cataract surgery.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid warned the number of people on waiting lists will continue to increase before the billions of pounds being pumped into the NHS starts to address the problem.
The number having to wait more than 52 weeks to start treatment stood at 293,102 in July 2021, down from 304,803 in the previous month, but more than three times the number waiting a year earlie...