The NHS in England is set to miss key targets for reducing waiting times in A&E, cancer care, and planned hospital treatment by the end of the financial year on Tuesday, according to a Guardian analysis of the latest NHS data. The findings cast doubt on health secretary Wes Streeting's pledges to improve performance by 2029 and will concern Prime Minister Keir Starmer, given Labour's commitment to restore the NHS.
The analysis reveals that only 52 of 150 hospital trusts (one in three) met the 65% target for treating patients within 18 weeks for non-urgent care in January, with the national figure at 61.5%. Additionally, 117 trusts (78%) failed to improve their performance by at least five percentage points compared to a November 2024 baseline, while 46 trusts saw worsening delays. The NHS also fell short of the 78% target for treating A&E patients within four hours, achieving only 74.1% in February.
Ambulance response times for category two calls, including strokes and heart attacks, also missed the 30-minute target, averaging 30 minutes and 25 seconds in January. Five of England's 11 ambulance trusts failed to meet the goal. However, the NHS is on track to improve patient satisfaction with GP appointments, a joint public priority alongside A&E care.
The missed targets come despite an extra £120m provided to hospitals for an 'elective sprint' of additional appointments and operations. Tim Gardner of the Health Foundation said meeting the government's pledges would require a 'herculean effort', and projections suggest Labour will not achieve its 92% elective care target by 2029. Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Helen Morgan called the missed targets 'broken promises' with real human consequences.
