Over 1,000 Patients Waited 12+ Hours in Stockport’s A&Es Last Month as local MP demand urgent action

Shocking new NHS data reveals that 1,175 patients faced waits of 12 hours or more in Stockport’s A&E department last month, prompting local Liberal Democrat MP Tom Morrison for Cheadle to accuse the government of being “asleep at the wheel” as local health services remain in crisis. Across Greater Manchester 12,110 patients waited 12 hours or more (13.2% of total admissions).

The figures show that 14.5% of people attending A&E in Stockport during December endured these dangerously long waits, a stark indicator of the immense strain on Stepping Hill Hospital and other local services.

Local MP Tom Morrison has called on the Health Secretary to urgently present an emergency plan to address the crisis and protect patients from the risks of these severe delays. This is on top of Tom's demands for the £134million of refurbishments that Stepping Hill needs to be immediately funded by the Department for Health & Social Care. The Royal College of Emergency Medicine has estimated that long A&E waits contributed to 14,000 deaths nationwide in 2023 alone. 

Commenting on the figures, Tom Morrison, MP for Cheadle, said:

“It’s unacceptable that these dangerous delays have become the norm here in Stockport. A&E departments like Stepping Hill’s are at breaking point, and patients are paying the price for years of Conservative mismanagement of our NHS.

“The government’s inaction shows they’re asleep at the wheel, leaving health services in crisis during the most critical winter months.

“We need a clear and immediate plan to rescue our NHS locally, including urgent investment to fix the maintenance backlog, increase hospital bed capacity and a pandemic-style recruitment drive to bring more staff back into the workforce.”

“These shocking figures are a wake-up call. People in Cheadle deserve better than alarmingly long waits in A&E when they need care the most. They also deserve a world-class healthcare facility rather than the dangerously aged and damaged buildings at Stepping Hill.

“The government must take responsibility and act now. Every delay risks lives, and our health services cannot keep papering over the cracks. Ministers must bring forward an emergency response to tackle this crisis head-on.”