Nursing union leaders have criticised Sir Keir Starmer’s plan to cut waiting lists by encouraging staff to work overtime – saying “too often the NHS runs on the goodwill of staff”.
The Labour leader said he would pump an extra £1.1bn into the NHS to allow staff to work evening and weekend shifts.
He said his overtime plan would enable the health service to provide an extra two million operations, scans, and appointments in the first year of a Labour government.
The current NHS waiting list stands at around 7.7 million people.
But the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), which represents 500,000 members, was critical of the proposals, arguing nursing staff already work “so much overtime that is never paid” and that a “change in this culture is needed”.
“As part of their shift patterns, weekend work is routine for many,” the union said.
“Any Labour government would likely take office at a time of record unfilled nurse jobs, in excess of 40,000, and so the long-term answer is of course to have more staff overall.
“When many nurses already work additional full days to make ends meet financially, extra capacity is urgently required.”
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