No 10 says it will be ‘very difficult’ for some people to access NHS this winter

Rishi Sunak ‘confident’ there is funding to cope but admits service in England faces ‘unprecedented challenge’

It will be “very difficult” for some people to access the NHS this winter, Downing Street has acknowledged, while insisting ministers have a properly funded plan in place to support a health service that many staff and experts say is near collapse.

Asked if NHS England was in crisis, Rishi Sunak’s official spokesperson said: “This is certainly an unprecedented challenge for the NHS, brought about by a number of factors, most significantly the global pandemic.