The Labour party has criticised the Conservatives for being
too focused on fighting amongst themselves to carry
out basic functions of government.
The NHS is currently facing a massive hit, with figures
showing that 6.6 million patients are waiting for planned NHS
care, the highest number on record. It has been found that one in
nine people are now waiting for NHS care, and for longer than
ever before.
Holidays have also been impacted by queues, delays, cancellations
– and only if you can get a passport to begin with, with tens of
thousands of people waiting over ten weeks.
Lorry drivers are continuing to wait up to 15 hours at Dover,
with the critical incident declared as the “worst experienced”
congestion ever recorded.
The crown courts backlog has increased on average by 43% in last
five years, leaving victims waiting endlessly for justice. One in
eight courts has seen the backlog more than double since 2017,
with one third seeing increases of over 50%.
The Conservatives have neglected to grip these issues and unclog
these backlogs, instead focussing on taking lumps out of each
other for the sole benefit of Conservative Party members. All
while services decline at rapid speed across key sectors.
MP, Labour’s Shadow Chief Secretary to the
Treasury, said:
"As the Tory leadership candidates fight one another to win the
backing of their members, neither of them has a plan to sort out
the delays and backlogs clogging up Britain and making life more
difficult for the public. After 12 years of Conservative
Government why are so many areas of life not working properly?
“The Conservatives have created ‘Backlog Britain’. We are
experiencing high inflation and low growth, people are struggling
to access the healthcare they need, goods are at a standstill,
and working families are facing a daily battle to get by.
“All of this is a direct result of this Government’s failure to
get a grip.
“Only a Labour government can deliver the fresh start we need.”
Ends
Notes to editors:
DHSC
Latest NHS referral to treatment waiting times
data: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/rtt-data-2022-23/#May22
HO
Tens of thousands of people
are waiting over ten
weeks to receive a new passport according to the latest
government data, with a recent PQ revealing only 15 staff
are working on the phones on average each day, after
two dozen non-frontline staff had to be trained up.
DfT
Lorry drivers were waiting up to 15
hours at Dover, as a critical incident was declared due to the
“worst experienced” congestion ever recorded. Port operators and
local leaders in the area have warned of more
disruption to come as things remained “on a knife edge.”
Long queues, delays and cancellations continued at airports, with
British Airways taking the
unprecedented step of suspending all sales of tickets for
short-haul flights out of Heathrow due to strict caps on capacity
implemented by the airport.
Inflation
Rising inflation may be pushing family finances to the brink, but
the low wage spiral facing so many in Britain isn’t new. It’s the
result of a decade of Tory mismanagement of our economy meaning
living standards and real wages have failed to grow.
Taking VAT off energy bills would push inflation downwards. The
Conservative Government can act on this now, doing more to help
people’s pockets and contributing to steadying inflation.
This government has created a low growth high tax economy. If
they got a grip of it, took steps to boost the economy and get it
growing again – rather than whacking up taxes and wasting
billions of pounds, then that would also go some way to tackling
inflation.
We need more than sticking plasters. That’s why Labour will build
a stronger, more secure economy.
