According to an announcement from the UK National Health Service (NHS), at the end of June, 7.57 million people were waiting to start routine hospital treatment, and by the end of July, this number had increased to 7.68 million.
There was an increase of over 100,000 on waiting lists in just one month. As a result, the number of people waiting for treatment has been recorded as the "highest figure since August 2007 when records began."
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, in an announcement in August, stated that the government would not be able to meet its goal of reducing waiting lists, attributing the disruption in progress to strikes by healthcare workers and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sunak claimed that the increase in the number of people waiting for treatment was due to strikes and the COVID-19 pandemic.
