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Sir Keir Starmer will on Monday unveil plans to cut waiting lists for the National Health Service in England as the prime minister tries to meet a key election pledge after a bruising first six months in office.
Under the plan, the government intends to offer an extra 450,000 appointments for tests and checks at local diagnostic centres that will be open 12 hours a day, seven days a week.
GPs will be able to refer patients directly to the centres as appropriate, where they will be able to receive a broad range of tests without having to see a specialist doctor.
Expanding access to the centres is a central part of the government’s ambition to reduce current waiting lists of 7.5mn people in England.
In its manifesto, Labour promised that by the end of this parliament 92 per cent of patients would begin treatment for an ailment or get the all-clear within 18 weeks.
Just 59 per cent of patients currently meet that 18-week target and Starmer will set a new interim target of 65 per cent to be met by March next year.
The government will also publish a new “Elective Reform Plan” for the NHS setting out ways to achieve the 18-week interim target.
“NHS backlogs have ballooned in recent years, leaving millions of patients languishing on waiting lists, often in pain and fear. Lives on hold,” Starmer will say in speech on Monday. “This elective reform plan will deliver on our promise to end the backlogs.”
As well as expanding the use of community diagnostic centres, Labour is aiming to increase the availability of same-day tests and consultations.
The government will also set out plans to create 14 new surgical hubs within existing hospitals focused on less complex procedures such as orthopaedic work and cataract surgery.
Hospitals in England that deliver the fastest improvements in waiting times for care will be rewarded with a share of millions of pounds in extra investment for buildings and equipment, the FT revealed last week.
NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard said: “The radical reforms in this plan will not only allow us to deliver millions more tests, appointments, and operations, but do things differently too — boosting convenience and putting more power in the hands of patients, especially through the NHS app.”
But Ed Argar, shadow health secretary, said it was the last Tory government that “revolutionised” the diagnostic process by rolling out 160 Community Diagnostic Centres. “After 14 years in opposition, the Labour party have no new ideas of their own for the NHS — despite promising change,” he said.
