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Just 10% of the UK population believes the government has the right policies in place for the NHS, according to new polling from Ipsos and the Health Foundation.
In England alone, this shrinks to just 8%, compared with a peak of 37% in 2008 and 2009, when Labour leader Gordon Brown was in power.
The Health Foundation says the results show “deepening public concern about NHS services”.
Two thirds think the NHS standard of care has dropped and will continue to deteriorate over the next year
The results are based on survey responses from more than 1,000 people aged 16 and older. The survey’s purpose was to discover public perceptions and expectations of the NHS.
It reveals that the public is deeply negative about the state of the NHS, with only a third (33%) agreeing that the NHS is providing a good service nationally, down from 43% in May 2022.
Worryingly, nearly two thirds (63%) of the public also believe that the standard of NHS care has deteriorated over the past year, with a similar number (62%) saying they think it will drop further over the coming months. This compares to 39% in May 2022.
Perceptions of the NHS are slightly more positive in other areas of the country, with 28% of people in Scotland and 19% of people in Wales thinking their government has the right approach.
Public do not want a “radical change”
The public now wants the government to take action to improve the health service. When asked what the government’s top priorities should be, around four in 10 said the government should address workload pressures and increase the number of NHS staff, while 35% said they should improve waiting times for routine services.
The vast majority (90%) agreed that the NHS should remain free at the point of use, but for this to continue, the public say the NHS needs an increase in funding. In total, 82% of respondents said the government should provide the health service with more funding, including 63% of Conservative voters.
Tim Gardner, Senior Policy Fellow at the Health Foundation, says the polling shows that voters don’t want a “radical change” to the current NHS model, “they just want the current one to work better”.
He said: “That public confidence in the government’s handling of the NHS has reached a new low should ring alarm bells in Number 10. Too many people are experiencing avoidable pain and suffering while they wait for treatment. The public has sent a clear message to government to increase funding for the NHS and address issues like long waits, high staff vacancies and pressure on doctors, nurses and other staff.
“If the government is committed to addressing the crisis in the NHS, it needs to produce a comprehensive plan, backed by sufficient investment, for getting the NHS and social care onto a more sustainable footing and urgently addressing workforce shortages.”