Dr Rahmeh Aladwan(@doctor_rahmeh):The first government in British history to pay NHS trusts to remove patients from waiting lists was Labour under Starmer and Streeting. They offered a £33 bounty per extra patient. That's an estimated £32.5 million for almost 986,000 extra patients removed in a single year. Patients were removed if they did not respond to texts or letters— even if they never received them. Deadlines as short as 72 hours. Some were removed for being pregnant, after 'clock resets' of lists, or after 'not attending' appointments that were never sent. This is the 'fastest fall in NHS waiting lists for 17 years' Starmer is boasting about.

2026.06.24 16:02

The first government in British history to pay NHS trusts to remove patients from waiting lists was Labour under Starmer and Streeting. They offered a £33 bounty per extra patient. That's an estimated £32.5 million for almost 986,000 extra patients removed in a single year. Patients were removed if they did not respond to texts or letters— even if they never received them. Deadlines as short as 72 hours. Some were removed for being pregnant, after 'clock resets' of lists, or after 'not attending' appointments that were never sent. This is the 'fastest fall in NHS waiting lists for 17 years' Starmer is boasting about.