Fall in NHS waiting lists is not a Labour win | Letter

Priscilla Alderson asks how long the NHS will survive under a Burnham-Streeting government

A fall in NHS waiting lists is presented as a government success (From the NHS to new homes, Starmer’s successes and setbacks, 23 June). NHS authorities have paid providers £33 per patient to remove thousands of them from the lists, many still in great need, and a survey of nearly 2,600 people in England found 16% had used the private sector in the past year.

Fewer names on the lists help the government to seem to “reduce backlogs” and “meet waiting time targets”.