The British Medical Association, a federation of nurses, joined in the alarming statements on Monday. “It’s not true that the country doesn’t have the resources to fix this mess,” said its president, Phil Banfield. “It’s a political decision and patients are dying unnecessarily because of that decision.” Banfield described the current situation as “untenable” and called for “immediate” action by the government.
The British government blames the consequences of the corona pandemic and the flu wave for the current situation and guarantees that it wants to do more for hospitals. In his New Year greetings, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak named the NHS as one of his priorities.
The free NHS has endured harsh austerity measures for over a decade. Recently, there have been several strikes by healthcare professionals, including nursing and emergency services staff. They wanted to increase pressure on the government to raise wages and improve working conditions. The Conservative government is turning down wage increases despite record inflation of over 10%.