Andy Burnham MP, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, commenting on photographic reports that people are queuing from early morning to get a GP appointment at Sunbury Health Centre said: 

“This striking image tells a simple story - David Cameron’s NHS simply isn’t working.

“From queues of patients outside GP surgeries to queues of ambulances outside A&E, the signs of failure can be seen wherever you look. And the decline can all be traced to a reorganisation that threw the NHS off course.

"Under Cameron, it has got harder and harder to get a GP appointment and this graphic picture shows the extremes some people are now going to see a doctor. It explains why people are increasingly turning to A&E for simple treatment and why hospitals are struggling to cope.

“Now, one in four patients is waiting a week or more for an appointment and  even the Health Secretary himself has admitted going straight to A&E because he wasn’t prepared to wait. With leadership like this, no wonder our hospitals are in chaos.

“The next Labour government will guarantee a GP appointment within 48 hours, or on the same day if you need it, and also give people the right to book further ahead with the GP of their choice. We will invest £2.5 billion a year above the Tories to hire 8,000 new GPs as well as 20,000 more nurses.

"This is an unacceptable state of affairs and shows you can’t trust the Tories with the NHS. David Cameron must take immediate action to restore confidence in GP services and match Labour’s appointment guarantee.”