After 14 years of Conservative Party governance in the UK, there has been a substantial increase in the waiting list for healthcare services, particularly in England. The NHS waiting list for treatment referrals spiked to 7.6 million cases in April, a stark threefold surge since 2010. The referral-to-treatment figures reveal a high number of patients awaiting elective care, although the actual count of individuals on the list is estimated at 6.3 million. Among the 7.6 million cases, over 302,500 patients faced waits exceeding 52 weeks, with approximately 50,400 cases waiting over 65 weeks and nearly 5,000 cases enduring waits past 78 weeks. The median waiting time has jumped to 13.9 weeks, a significant increase from 5.2 weeks in March 2010. Emergency room wait times have also seen an uptick, with the percentage of patients treated within the four-hour benchmark dropping from around 97 percent in late 2010 to 74 percent recently. Waiting lists in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, which have autonomous health systems, have experienced similar surges in waiting times. The data portrays a bleak outlook on public services in the UK, coinciding with the upcoming election on July 4, characterized by concerns about living standards and national well-being. Amidst dissatisfaction and a possible shift in political power towards the Labour Party, concerns persist about the deteriorating state of the NHS and other essential services. Why has the NHS deteriorated? The accumulation of waiting times within the NHS is primarily attributed to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which strained healthcare systems globally. However, the growing waiting list predates the pandemic, with figures as early as December 2019 revealing a list of 4.6 million cases – double the count during the preceding Labour government. The notable extension in wait times is linked to chronic underinvestment resulting from years of austerity measures post the 2007-08 financial crisis. Despite consecutive annual increases in NHS funding since 2010, the rate of growth has slowed considerably compared to the period under Labour governance. This stagnation in...