Satisfaction with NHS hits lowest level on record

POOR access to GPs and long waits for hospital treatment have led to public satisfaction with the NHS across Britain hitting the lowest level on record.

Fewer than one in four (24%) people were satisfied with the health service in 2023, down five percentage points on the previous year and the lowest level since records began in 1983, according to findings from the British Social Attitudes poll.

The study, of 3,374 people in England, Wales and Scotland, is seen as the gold-standard test of how people feel about the NHS.

While satisfaction with the NHS peaked in 2010, when 70% of people were satisfied with the health service, it has since fallen.

And since 2020, satisfaction has fallen by 29 percentage points.

However, support for the founding principles of the NHS remains high, with 91% believing the NHS should be free of charge when people need to use it, 82% agreeing it should be primarily funded through taxes (82%) and 82% saying the NHS should be available to everyone. Findings from the poll showed:

■ 52% of people were dissatisfied with the NHS, the highest proportion since the survey began;

■ The main reasons for dissatisfaction are waiting times for GP and hospital appointments (71%), followed by staff shortages (54%) and the Government not spending enough money on the NHS (47%);

■ In a marked change, Tory supporters reported only marginally higher levels of satisfaction with the NHS than Labour supporters in 2023 (29% versus 24%); and

■ Just 34% of people were satisfied with GP services in 2023, the lowest level of satisfaction recorded since the survey began.