Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, is visiting the Royal Cornwall Hospital today, and will argue that the Conservatives’ "failure to train enough doctors and nurses" over the past 13 years has led to the biggest crisis in the history of the NHS.

Their figures show that across Cornwall in December, 15,000 patients were waiting more than 28 days for a GP appointment, as shortages continue to bite.

A further 7,000 patients in Cornwall have been waiting for six weeks or longer for key diagnostics tests and scans, while 3,700 have been waiting longer than 13 weeks.

Approximately 46,000 people are on NHS waiting lists, 3,300 of whom have been waiting for over a year.

Labour says it is proposing to tackle the crisis in the NHS with the biggest expansion of the NHS workforce in history, including to:

  • Double the number of medical school places, training 15,000 new doctors a year
  • Train 10,000 additional nurses and midwives every year
  • Double the number of district nurses qualifying each year
  • Train 5,000 new health visitors

Labour says the plan will be paid for by abolishing the non-domicile tax status, which allows people who live and work in Britain to pay their taxes overseas.

The plan will reportedly see patients guaranteed a face-to-face appointment with a GP if they want one.

Labour said: "While some patients prefer to hold appointments over the phone, many are frustrated at not being able to see their doctor in person, and just 22% of patients are given a choice in the type of appointment they have.

"One in seven people who try to speak to a nurse or GP were unable to get an appointment at all last year."

Labour also claims it will bring back the family doctor, so patients can see the same GP each appointment if they choose to. Patients are increasingly unable to see the doctor of their choice, with two in every three patients rarely or never speaking to their preferred doctor, up from just half in 2018.

Under its plans, Labour says GP practices will be provided with incentives to offer patients continuity of care, so doctors must take into account patients’ preferences.

Wes Streeting MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, said: "Anyone using the NHS recently will have seen the blindingly obvious - there simply aren't enough doctors and nurses to provide patients with timely care.

"Astonishingly, the Conservatives are threatening to fine universities if they take on more students for medical school, when we need them more than ever before.

“Labour will tackle this problem at its root. We will train an extra 7,500 doctors and 10,000 nurses a year, paid for by abolishing the non-dom tax status. Patients need doctors and nurses more than the wealthiest need a tax break.”

Jayne Kirkham, Labour’s candidate for Truro and Falmouth, said: "Cornwall had ambulance waits for people suffering strokes and heart attacks of over three and a half hours in December.

"People who need orthopaedic treatment are facing longer and longer waits, both for planned operations and in emergencies.

"This is leading to avoidable deaths and our coroner recently had to formally ask the Health Secretary what he was doing to prevent it."

Perran Moon, Labour’s candidate for Camborne, Redruth and Hayle, said: "My dad was a family doctor in Camborne and Redruth for over 40 years.

"Day in, day out, I saw the value of such as service. So it’s great news that the Labour Party will bring back family doctors."

He added that Labour would prioritise thousands of new nurses, doctors, midwives and health visitors, and called for a General Election "as soon as possible."