NHS

Private firms providing services to NHS made £1.6bn profit in two years, research finds

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https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/apr/13/private-companies-nhs-services-profit-chpi-research

The profits would be enough to pay for 9,178 doctors or 19,428 nurses during the period. Photograph: Peter Byrne/PA

[Guardian] Exclusive: MPs say profit-making levels in England are ‘scandalous’ and call for cap on amount private companies can make from NHS

Private firms providing services to the NHS including healthcare and consultancy have made £1.6bn in profits over the last two years, research reveals.

The findings – on the basis of contracts worth £12bn – have prompted claims of “scandalous” profiteering, concern that the health service is being “taken for a ride” and calls for ministers to impose a cap on maximum profit levels.

The £1.6bn in profits made in 2023-24 and 2024-25 would have been enough to pay for 9,178 doctors or 19,428 nurses during that time, according to the Centre for Health and the Public Interest.

Its findings are based on analysis of NHS contracts in England, with 760 private firms providing services including diagnostic tests such as CT scans to patients, and treatments including hip and knee replacements, and for skin problems and mental health conditions.

The thinktank found:

  • £2bn of the £12bn of contracts went to firms with owners based outside the UK.
  • £533m of that £2bn went to companies owned by people living in tax havens such as Jersey and the Cayman Islands.
  • Firms, especially those owned by private equity outfits, used £353m of their £12bn NHS income to pay interest on debts.

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Original article continues at https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/apr/13/private-companies-nhs-services-profit-chpi-research

Continue ReadingPrivate firms providing services to NHS made £1.6bn profit in two years, research finds

NHS to miss targets for cutting A&E wait times and performance in England

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https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/mar/29/nhs-miss-targets-wait-times-performance-england-wes-streeting

Wes Streeting visiting Trafford general hospital in Manchester in February. The health secretary said last week the NHS was on track to reduce waiting times by the end of the parliament in 2029. Photograph: Martin Rickett/PA

Exclusive: Health secretary’s pledges in doubt as analysis shows health service will not deliver key improvements

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The health service in England will not deliver a series of milestone improvements in its performance that ministers demanded it achieve by the time the fiscal year ends on Tuesday, a Guardian analysis of the NHS’s most recent data has found.

The lack of progress raises questions about pledges made last week by Wes Streeting, the health secretary, to get key waiting times back on track by the end of the parliament in 2029.

The findings will concern Keir Starmer, the prime minister, given Labour’s commitment to “get the NHS back on its feet” and the public’s strong desire to see an end to the routinely long waits for care that crept in from 2015.

The gloomy picture on waiting times also comes despite the NHS handing hospitals an extra £120m in recent weeks to fund a pre-deadline “elective sprint” – of extra appointments and more operations – intended to bolster its chances of delivering the necessary improvements by 31 March.

Streeting has repeatedly promised to ensure that 92% of people waiting for non-urgent hospital care such as appointments and operations get it within 18 weeks by 2029. However, the NHS only saw 61.5% of patents within 18 weeks in January. That was up on its 58.9% performance in January 2025 but still too low to hit the 65% year-end target for 2025-26.

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https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/mar/29/nhs-miss-targets-wait-times-performance-england-wes-streeting

Continue ReadingNHS to miss targets for cutting A&E wait times and performance in England

Historic by-election win indicates Green Party could win over a hundred seats at next General Election

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The Greens are on track to win over a hundred seats at the next general election, if the historic swing achieved to win Gorton and Denton is replicated nationwide.

MP Hannah Spencer, Gorton & Denton February 2026

Local candidate Hannah Spencer delivered a stunning by-election victory that more than tripled the party’s vote.

In 2024 the Green Party secured just 13.2% of the vote in Gorton and Denton – one of Labour’s safest seats – but Hannah Spencer has achieved 40.7% of the vote, 14,980 votes, with a swing of 27.5%.

New Green Party MP Hannah Spencer said: “I’m grateful, and thrilled, that the people of Gorton and Denton chose hope over hate and elected me as their new Green Party MP. 

“This is the beginning of something massive.”

Green Party leader Zack Polanski said: “If we see a swing like this at the next general election, there will be a tidal wave of new Green MPs. When I was elected Leader of the Greens I said we were here to replace Labour and I meant it. Hannah was a fantastic candidate and I know she’ll make a brilliant MP.”

Hannah Spencer MP added: “I’m proud to have run a positive, inclusive campaign focused on the issues that matter most to local people: bringing down the cost of rent and bills, protecting the NHS, properly funding our public services, and ending Britain’s complicity in genocide. 

“I’d like to thank everyone who voted for me. They know they can trust me and the Green Party to deliver on our promises.

“I also want to thank the thousands of volunteers who gave their time, skills and energy to help us reach as many voters as possible with our message.

“The Greens are the only party with a real plan to improve everyday life for the people in Gorton and Denton and across the country.”

Zack Polanski added: “This used to be one of Labour’s safest seats. In this by-election almost half of their 2024 voters abandoned them and many switched to voting Green, meaning they finished 3rd. The Green Party saw a record-breaking swing in our direction and more than tripled our vote. 

“Labour fought a shameful, dirty campaign – spreading lies about Green policies and even faking a tactical voting website. They knew they couldn’t win, but they risked splitting the vote and letting Reform in.

“People everywhere will now know that voting Green is the way to defeat Reform. Many ex-Labour voters told our canvassers that they will never go back to a party that supports genocide, fuels racism, and has failed to deliver on its promise to improve life for people across the country.”

Continue ReadingHistoric by-election win indicates Green Party could win over a hundred seats at next General Election

MPs hear evidence during debate on NHS privatisation in Parliament

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/mps-hear-evidence-during-debate-nhs-privatisation-parliament

 A general view of staff on a NHS hospital ward

MPs have demanded that Health Secretary Wes Streeting “listen to experts” who warned against implementing his “disastrous” plans to further privatise the NHS.

At a debate chaired by Labour MP Richard Burgon in Westminster on Tuesday, MPs heard new expert evidence exposing that levels of privatisation within the health service were far higher than previously thought.

Mr Burgon said: “We need to push back against this Mandelsonian wing of the Labour party. I want Wes to hear what is being shared in this room.

“Privatisation is disastrous for patients and for workers. It’s not the way forward.”

The meeting with the NHS working group coincided with the publication of a report co-authored by campaigners Keep Our NHS Public and the 99% Organisation.

It found the level of private involvement in the NHS to be about 30 per cent, rather than the more widely known figure of 7 per cent.

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MPs including Rachel Maskell, Andy McDonald, Neil Duncan-Jordan heard testimonies on the “disastrous” state of privatisation in the NHS from health experts, NHS staff and economists.

Report co-author Mark E Thomas said: “The figure which is most referred to in this debate was 7 per cent of privatisation. But really we need to be thinking 30 per cent.”

He added: “In some specialties, more than 50 per cent of treatments are already paid for privately, such as ophthalmology for example. It’s the same for dentistry.”

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Original article at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/mps-hear-evidence-during-debate-nhs-privatisation-parliament

Keir Starmer confirms that he's proud to be a red Tory continuing austerity and targeting poor and disabled scum.
Keir Starmer confirms that he’s proud to be a red Tory continuing austerity and targeting poor and disabled scum.
Nigel Farage attacks the NHS
Nigel Farage attacks the NHS
Image of George Osborne asking where is the money to be made in the NHS
Image of George Osborne asking where is the money to be made in the NHS

Continue ReadingMPs hear evidence during debate on NHS privatisation in Parliament

NHS maternity units often cover up harmful errors in childbirth, report finds

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https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/feb/26/nhs-england-maternity-cover-up-childbirth-report

Recent rises in older motherhood and obese women having babies have contributed to maternity care becoming more complicated. Photograph: Jeff Gilbert/Alamy

Damning inquiry into services in England reveals falsification of medical records after ‘negligent’ care

Hospitals that cause harm and injury to women and babies during childbirth often resort to a “cover-up” of their mistakes, falsify medical records and deny bereaved parents answers, a damning report has found.

“Negligent” care has devastating emotional and psychological consequences for families, disputes between maternity staff have a “disastrous” impact on mothers, and ethnic minority and poorer women have worse outcomes because of racism and discrimination, Lady Amos said.

Recent rises in older motherhood and obese women having babies have also contributed to maternity care becoming more complicated, the ex-Labour cabinet minister added in a report the government commissioned amid mounting alarm about NHS childbirth services in England.

“The system is not working for women, babies and families, or for staff,” Amos concluded after spending months talking to hundreds of families and maternity staff.

“We have seen maternity and neonatal services trying to respond in difficult circumstances and dealing with competing pressures but too often failing to deliver the safe care that women, families and babies expect and deserve, at times with devastating consequences.”

NHS trusts continue to provide poor care because they are doing too little to improve its quality and safety as a result of not learning lessons from previous maternity scandals, she added.

Lady Amos, who chaired the investigation.
Lady Amos, who chaired the investigation. Her final report is due in the next few months.

“It is a source of continuing distress to families, and great frustration to staff, that the areas identified in previous reviews and investigations as requiring action do not seem to have been addressed or have only been partially addressed. This cycle must stop,” she said.

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Article continues at https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/feb/26/nhs-england-maternity-cover-up-childbirth-report

Continue ReadingNHS maternity units often cover up harmful errors in childbirth, report finds