London’s Accident & Emergency departments are in crisis. New figures reveal that February saw 22,000 people wait longer than 12 hours to be seen in the capital’s hospitals, representing more than one in 10 of those attending, according to the NHS. One London trust, Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals, saw nearly a third of patients waiting at least 12 hours, the highest of any in the country.
It is difficult to be definitive with this data set, given it is the first time that waits of more than 12 hours from the point of arrival at A&E have been collated. But it is clear the NHS is in a grave condition. The organisation’s operational standard states that at least 95 per cent of patients be admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours. This target has not been met nationally since 2015.
This comes as strike action rumbles on. The Royal College of Nursing on Friday rejected the Government’s five per cent pay offer for 2023-24 and is set to walk out again. Meanwhile, junior doctors have only just completed the most disruptive strike in the NHS’s history.
We cannot afford more industrial action or the Government gambling that setting one union against the other will end the dispute when public support for the nurses in particular remains high. We urge all sides to return to negotiations and secure a fair and lasting deal.
True harm of pollution
New research from Imperial College London demonstrates the many ways toxic air harms us all, from old age to before we are even born.
Researchers found that particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide — both of which are spewed out of petrol and diesel car exhausts — are particularly harmful, and can damage foetal growth as well as reduce sperm counts.
It is further evidence of the harm wrought by the pollution that still blankets our city, and why we must expand the capital’s ultra-low emission zone. The policy is far from universally popular and is now facing a High Court challenge brought by five Conservative councils. But the benefits of clean air will be widely felt.
In young people, air pollution can inhibit lung growth and affect cognitive abilities. In adulthood, it is linked to cancer, strokes and ultimately reduced life expectancy. Something protesters stealing Ulez enforcement cameras in outer London seem to disregard.
More water fountains
Summers are growing hotter, plastic is piling higher and the cost of a bottle of water often shatters the £1 barrier. Public water fountains are the answer.
Yet in some parts of the capital they are few and far between. Data via Freedom of Information requests find Barking and Dagenham has just one fountain while Havering has none. This compares with 51 in Southwark.
As summer approaches, we ought to splash out on more.
