Over two million extra NHS appointments have been delivered including for chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endoscopy, and diagnostic tests.

New figures have been published by NHS England which reveal that between July and November last year, the NHS delivered almost 2.2 million more elective care appointments compared to the same period the previous year.

The data reveals that the target was reached seven months earlier than promised, with 100,000 more treatments, tests, and scans for patients each week, and more than half a million extra diagnostic tests delivered.

The extra appointments have been delivered in part by extra evening and weekend working.

Prime minister Keir Starmer said: “Two million extra NHS appointments and a waiting list on its way down – we’re delivering on our promise to fix the NHS and make sure people get the care they need, when they need it.

“This isn’t just about numbers. It’s about the cancer patients who for too long were left wondering when they’ll finally start getting their life-saving treatment. It’s about the millions of people who’ve put their lives and livelihoods on hold - waiting in pain and uncertainty as they wait for a diagnosis.

“We said we’d turn this around and that’s exactly what we’re doing - this milestone is a shot in the arm for our plan to get the NHS back on its feet and cut waiting times.

“But we’re not complacent and we know the job isn’t done. We’re determined to go further and faster to deliver more appointments, faster treatment, and a National Health Service that the British public deserve as part of our Plan for Change.” 

Health and social care secretary Wes Streeting said: “We have wasted no time in getting to work to cut NHS waiting times and end the agony of millions of patients suffering uncertainty and pain.

“Because we ended the strikes, invested in the NHS, and rolled out reformed ways of working, we are finally putting the NHS on the road to recovery.

“We promised change, and we’ve delivered, providing the two million extra appointments we pledged in just our first five months – a promise made, and a promise kept. The result is around 160,000 fewer patients on waiting lists today than in July.

“That was just the first step. Through our Plan for Change, we are opening new surgical hubs, Community Diagnostics Centres at evenings and weekends, and using private sector capacity to cut waiting times from 18 months to 18 weeks.”