NHS in critical state

NICOLA Sturgeon and Rishi Sunak have distanced themselves from a leaked discussion paper in which NHS chiefs in Scotland suggested it may be time to start charging the better-off for treatment.

Both made virtuous statements about their commitment to the founding principles of the service, saying it would always be free for all at the point of need.

But while a two-tier system may not be the answer, isn’t it time we had a grown-up conversation about the future of the NHS?

With 7million waiting for treatment, it is simply not working as it should. Yet politicians of all parties lack the courage to back a programme of real reform.

While medical staff do a sterling job, the organisation is monolithic, wasteful and inefficient. GP services too are struggling to cope, as anyone needing a speedy face-to-face appointment will testify.

Yes, there are chronic staff shortages, but the NHS must also do far better with the resources it has. Record sums have been injected, yet little seems to improve.

Asking patients to pay even a modest contribution towards their treatment would be politically toxic. But make no mistake, something has to change.

As the Scottish discussion paper says, the current NHS model ‘no longer works’.