Improve the speed and consistency of access to primary care.

Be prepared to re-introduce the mandating of mask wearing on public transport and in confined spaces.

Mandate FFP2/3 face-mask wearing for NHS staff in health-care settings.

Extend public-facing Covid-19 and flu-vaccination strategies to all those aged over 18.

Campaign for widespread and early Covid-19 and flu vaccinations across the NHS workforce.

Set up a winter-crisis taskforce and settle additional funding early.

We propose 12 actions that will require the collaboration and commitment of national and local government, the NHS and the private sector – and which together will give the NHS the best possible chance to survive this winter. We call for the government to immediately: focus leadership minimise demand on the service improve patient flow and efficiency and maximise capacity. Here, we set out our action plan to save the NHS this winter. While these are all helpful policies, they will be insufficient and the government must go further to support the NHS and help it manage the unprecedented pressures it faces this winter. Last week, NHS England set out a package of measures to boost capacity ahead of winter, including plans to increase available hospital beds, bolster 111- and 999-response staff, expand international recruitment and provide more funding for mental-health services. It is vital therefore that we minimise the spread of Covid-19 and flu this winter. A recent report from the Bank of England found a staggering 17 per cent of the UK’s working population was self-reporting as long-term sick in the first quarter of 2022, with Long Covid making a growing contribution to this figure. This call for immediate action has been echoed by the Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee Jeremy Hunt.Ĭonsidering the situation beyond the NHS, both resurgent Covid-19 and flu pose a significant threat to the labour market and the economy at a time of growing economic instability. With circumstances expected to deteriorate further over the coming months, the government must act immediately to avoid catastrophe. The NHS and social-care system is already in real trouble, as seen by the record ambulance-response times, growing waiting lists, increased staff absences and workforce burnout. While Rishi Sunak has pledged to put the country on a “crisis footing” from the first day of taking office, there has been little detailed discussion between the two shortlisted Conservative candidates on plans to address the impending health emergency the UK faces.

The new prime minister will be announced on 5 September, leaving little time to prepare before winter.

A perfect storm of acute pressures driven by Covid-19, a resurgent flu epidemic and the indirect effect of the cost-of-living crisis will combine with the unprecedented elective-care backlog and a workforce that is already depleted and exhausted.

The service is fast approaching what is likely to be the most challenging period in its 74-year history. The National Health Service (NHS) is on the brink of disaster and the government must immediately prepare for an existential crisis this winter.

Two point hospital save location