Responding to the Government's elective reform plan to end the waiting lists backlog, Prof Phil Banfield, chair of BMA council, said:

“The Government has given itself an ambitious goal to end the waiting list backlog that we’ve seen spiral out of control as a result of more than a decade of under-investment in the NHS. Setting out a plan with bold steps to overhaul the way in which patients receive their treatment is a welcome sign that ministers are serious about giving this country the healthcare service it needs. This is no less than patients deserve and new diagnostic centres and surgical hubs, when fully resourced, can be a part of the solution.”

“Doctors have been just as frustrated as their patients by the lack of facilities to deliver care and want to bring waiting lists down, but the reality is that without the workforce to meet constantly rising demand, we will not see the progress we all hope for. To make significant and lasting inroads into the existing 7.5 million waiting list backlog, more is needed than relying on the good will of exhausted staff or new technology.

Funding for hospitals and GPs to recruit and retain doctors and the modernising of facilities to utilise their skills efficiently and effectively, are priorities to deal with the chronic burnout that has created the current workforce crisis. Only when the government has laid out its concrete steps to fully support the NHS workforce can we be confident that they have a plan which can achieve this target. Everything is possible when doctors, as the medical profession, are fully engaged and on-board, which has sadly not been the case across the last government. I look forward to sitting down with government to agree the practicalities of how to make this aspiration a reality.

Notes to editors

The BMA is a professional association and trade union representing and negotiating on behalf of all doctors in the UK. A leading voice advocating for outstanding health care and a healthy population. An association providing members with excellent individual services and support throughout their lives.