| Family of a medic here. There are a number of problems with this statement. First, immigrants are overwhelmingly young and healthy. They are overwhelmingly in work (and therefore paying National insurance....) So, to answer your questions directly: 1) you can't get an appointment because GPs are either going bankrupt, or retiring faster than they can be replaced. 2) Baby boomers are all starting to succumb to chronic problems like diabetes, cancer, dementia etc. This costs a very large amount. 3) Diabetes costs 20% of the total NHS budget[1]. 3) Social care budgets have been slashed, which means that old people come in to hospital for X, go home too early and with no support and come back with either a compound fracture or pneumonia. 4) The increase in NHS demand is 4% annually. 5) the "funding increase" comes from the cut in community & social care. 6) the degradation is entirely down to the lack of funding since 2010 [1]http://www.nhs.uk/news/2012/04april/Pages/nhs-diabetes-costs... |