Long-term sickness forces record 2.6m people out of work as NHS waiting lists spiral

Long-term sickness has forced a record 2.6m people out of work, as NHS waiting lists continue to soar. 

New figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that more Britons than ever are inactive because of long-term ailments, according to data for the three months to June. 

They now account for 29.6pc of the population who are neither in employment nor looking for a job, up from 25.2pc before the pandemic.  

It comes just days after it emerged NHS waiting lists had grown despite Rishi Sunak’s pledge to cut them. 

Around 7.6m people were waiting to start routine hospital treatment at the end of June, the highest since records began in 2007. 

The Health Secretary has recently come under fire for considering scrapping some waiting time targets in England, such as suspected cancer patients who should currently see a specialist within two weeks. 

The Government is planning to replace it with a new measure that says diagnosis must be given within 28 days. 

The ONS said that the overall share of people who are economically inactive fell by 0.1 percentage points to 20.9pc during the three months ending in June, dropping by 41,000 from the previous quarter. 

The figures suggest the cost of living crisis may be forcing more people back into work. 

The share of inactive people remains 0.7 percentage points higher than before the pandemic, making Britain an outlier among advanced economies.

Many economists have warned that Britain’s labour force has shrunk from a rise in long-term sickness and early retirees, which has driven a shortage of workers. 

Kate Shoesmith, deputy chief executive of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, said the combination of stubborn key worker shortages and high inactivity was worrying. 

She said: “It’s particularly concerning to see the record high of economically inactive people because of long-term sickness, meanwhile, we continue to see significant problems recruiting and retaining staff in the health and care sectors.”

She added: “We need a fundamental rethink of the models of work in the NHS and beyond.”