Portsmouth MP Stephen Morgan has welcomed new data showing that NHS waiting lists in the South East have fallen by over 35,000 compared to when Labour came into power.
Across the country, NHS waiting list figures show a drop in April for the first time in 17 years (excluding the first year of the pandemic) and have fallen to the lowest level in two years.
The Labour Government met their promise of 2 million more appointments seven months early, and now more than 3.6million extra appointments have been delivered since July.
Mr Morgan described the falling waiting lists and rising number of appointments as ‘a clear example of Labour delivering on their promises and the steps being taken to get the NHS working for patients once again’.
The data follows the announcements made by the Chancellor in the Spending Review, with record levels of investment in our National Health Service to get the NHS back on its feet and fit for the future, enabling the NHS to deliver on the Government’s Plan for Change to cut waiting lists, improve patient care and modernise services.
Commenting, Portsmouth South MP Stephen Morgan said:
“After 14 years of Conservative Government our NHS was on its knees with waiting lists at record highs and Portsmouth patients left waiting far too long for treatment.
“I’m pleased to see the early results from the Government’s plan to get the NHS back on its feet, with waiting lists falling in our area.
“Given the scale of the crisis we inherited we know it will take time to truly turn our NHS around, but we can see the progress that has been made in just one year and I’m confident local people will soon start to feel that.”
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, said:
“We are putting the NHS on the road to recovery after years of soaring waiting times, by providing record investment and fundamental NHS reform.
“Thanks to our interventions and the hard work of NHS staff, the overall waiting list has now fallen in April for the first time in 17 years – dropping by almost a quarter of a million since we took office.
