Starmer NHS speech: Government risks “putting hip replacements over heart attacks” as 12-hour A&E waits soar

EMBARGO: 22:30 Sunday 5 January

• Lib Dems warn that Government risks “putting hip replacements over heart attacks” by neglecting the crisis in emergency care and ‘bed blocking’ caused by the social care crisis.
• Figures reveal almost 200,000 12-hour “trolley waits” in A&E since Labour took office last July.
• Average of 1,330 patients a day are facing waits of 12 hours or more before being admitted to hospital from A&E.
• Lib Dems have urged the Government to complete social care review by end of year rather than 2028.

The Liberal Democrats have warned that the Government’s plan for NHS waiting lists due to be announced today [Monday 6 January] risks “putting hip replacements over heart attacks” unless it also tackles the crises in both emergency care and social care that are backing up A&E.

It comes as analysis by the party of NHS estimates has revealed there have been almost 200,000 12-hour “trolley waits” in A&E since the start of July, when the Labour government took office. That means that an average of 1,330 people a day had to wait more than 12 hours to be admitted to hospital from A&E between July and November. 

The Royal College of Emergency Medicine has predicted that there will be at least 14,000 unnecessary deaths due to delays in A&E this winter.

Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper MP said:

“These figures are shocking. In his speech today the Prime Minister can’t ignore the fact that emergency care is in urgent need of support. Thousands of patients who are well enough to leave hospital can’t be discharged because social care is in crisis. 

“With thousands of people waiting longer than 12 hours in hospital corridors on his watch, the need for urgent social care reform is even more pressing. A three-year review just won’t cut it.

“This winter we’re seeing the consequences of inaction for our NHS yet again. After years of disastrous neglect of our health and care services under the Conservatives, patients and NHS staff deserve better.”

Liberal Democrat Health and Social Care Spokesperson Helen Morgan MP said:

“It is a scandal that patients who need urgent care are being left waiting for hours in trolleys and hospital corridors.

“We know that these long waits in A&E are not just distressing for patients but can have serious consequences for their health.

“The Government risks putting hip replacements over heart attacks unless it brings forward a wider set of measures to improve emergency care, and delivers social care reform at speed, not years from now.

“NHS waiting lists soared during years of failure under the Conservatives and must be brought down. But the Government can’t ignore emergency care, social care and other wider pressures that will leave our NHS buckling under the strain.”

ENDS

Notes to Editor:

1. Analysis with a monthly breakdown is here, including links to the sources with data explanations.
   1. Party analysis of the latest NHS data shows that between July and November 2024, an estimated 199,563 patients waited more than 12 hours to be admitted to hospital from A&E. This is up almost 18% on the same period last year. An average of 1,330 people a day have had to wait more than 12 hours to be admitted to hospital from A&E between July and November 2024.
2. Data is only available up to and including November 2024. This means that it is highly likely that more than 200,000 people waited more than 12 hours for hospital admission if December were to be added.
3. A “trolley wait” is the time between when a doctor in A&E decides that a patient's condition is serious enough that they need to be admitted to hospital for further treatment and when the patient is actually admitted. Many of these patients will already have waited several hours at A&E before getting that assessment. Definition here.
4. RCEM analysis referenced here.