Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt was forced to deny he is trying to cover up a rise in A&E waiting times after the government said they would delay releasing figures over the Christmas break. Labour accused the government of a 'media blackout', but they insisted it was to allow NHS staff to have time off over the holidays.
Labour's shadow health secretary tabled an urgent question to the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt on how Accident and Emergency units in England were coping with winter pressures.
Hunt said A&E attendances are up 5% on last year, and those that do turn up are sicker - meaning emergency admissions are up 6% from last year. Weekly figures on A&E waiting times will not be released for the next few weeks, which Andy Burnham said amounted to a 'news blackout' as current trends show waiting times for patients will only increase during recess - putting vulnerable patients at risk at a critical time.
He added that the figures were not being published to save NHS workers from having to compile them, when they could be having their Christmas holidays, and said the NHS was performing well under an enormous deal of pressure.
Senior NHS emergency medical consultant admits there is "absolutely a winter crisis."
Around 80% of all nurses hired by NHS hospitals in the past year were recruited from overseas amid a "serious" shortage of UK-based workers.
The Chief Executive for the NHS in Wales is to outline how health boards planning for winter pressures.