Polling by the Nuffield Trust and The King's Fund shows satisfaction has plummeted by 39 percentage points since before the pandemic.

Report author Bea Taylor, fellow at The Nuffield Trust said: ‘Just five years after the British public were called on to "Protect the NHS" at the start of the pandemic, these findings reveal just how dismayed they are about the state of the NHS today. We found that every group in Britain is dissatisfied with access to vital services such as A&E and GP appointments.'

Six in 10 people said they were ‘very' or quite' dissatisfied' with the NHS in 2024, up from 52% in 2023. Just 12% of people were satisfied with A&E waiting times and 23% with GP waiting times.

Only 11% felt staffing levels were adequate with 69% saying the Government spends too little or too late on the NHS. Only 14% felt the NHS spent money efficiently.

Less than half (46%) favoured increasing taxes and raising NHS spending against 41% who preferred keeping them unchanged. Only 8% preferred tax reductions and lower NHS spending.

Nine in 10 believed the NHS should ‘definitely or probably' be free at the point of use (90%), however, the percentage of people who thought the service should ‘definitely' be available to everyone decreased from 67% in 2023 to 56% in 2024. 

Over seven in 10 (77%) said it should be available to everyone with eight in 10 agreeing the NHS should be funded by general taxation (80%).

A significantly higher proportion of people in Wales (72%) were dissatisfied with the NHS compared to 59% in England and 60% in Scotland

Reaction

Dr Layla McCay, policy director at the NHS Confederation, said: ‘There is no quick fix given the scale of demand for services, the need for local services to deliver eye-watering efficiency savings which will require some cuts to services and the latest developments that will require ICSs and trusts to reduce their running costs. Local services are facing major upheaval as they continue to try to improve performance.'

Liberal Democrat health and social care spokesperson Helen Morgan, said: ‘This needs to be a wake-up call for ministers who have kicked new hospitals into the long grass and are refusing to address the crisis in social care for another three years. This trend will only worsen unless the Government wakes up and actually starts to grip the issues. The Liberal Democrats will fight everyday to ensure this happens."

Interim chief executive of NHS Providers, Saffron Cordery, said: ‘While public support for the fundamental principles of the NHS is still rock solid, it's clear radical action is needed across the board to restore the public's faith in the NHS and turn the tide on falling patient satisfaction.

‘The 10-Year Health Plan, with its focus on preventing ill-health and shifting care into the community, could be a game-changer for patients, and for the whole health and care system. We can't afford to get it wrong.'

Secretary of state for health and social care Wes Streeting: ‘We inherited a broken NHS and this survey shows patients agree. Ever longer waiting lists, widespread corridor treatment and a regular struggle to see your GP have led to these record levels of dissatisfaction with the health service.

‘Since this survey was conducted, we have taken the NHS off life support. Thanks to the necessary decisions we took in the Budget, we've invested a record £26bn over two years, ended the crippling strikes, cut waiting lists for five months in a row and delivered two million extra appointments seven months early. There's a long way to go but we are fixing our NHS to make it fit for the future.

‘The British public's belief in the founding principles of the NHS remains unshaken and I am proud to be part of a Government that shares that commitment as we deliver our Plan for Change to make our NHS the envy of the world once again.'