IN response to Mr Bullock’s letter on Labour’s alleged failures (September 30), I am writing to set the record straight. I am very, very proud of the achievements of the last Labour Government and I believe that many people are either unaware or have forgotten them.

1. Waiting lists down by nearly 600,000, the average waiting time for inpatient treatment was brought down to just four weeks and nobody had to wait more than 18 weeks for treatment.

2. More than 99 per cent of suspected cancer patients were seen by a specialist within two weeks of being referred by their GP, and also started their treatment within a month of diagnosis.

3. More than 97 per cent were seen in A&E in four hours or less.

4. More than 40,000 doctors and more than 83,000 nurses were recruited.

5. Investment in the NHS nearly trebled between 1997 and 2010.

6. Labour opened more than 100 new hospital schemes to replace ageing and unsuitable infrastructure.

7. In 1997, 50 per cent of NHS buildings dated from before 1948. That figure was down to 20 per cent by 2010.

8. Labour built more than 90 NHS walk-in centres and more than 650 one-stop primary care centres, and invested £750 million in a new generation of modern, convenient community hospitals.

9. Cancer mortality rates in under-75s had decreased by 18.2 per cent since 1996, saving nearly 9,000 lives alone compared to 1996. The NHS saved nearly 33,000 lives from cardiovascular diseases when compared to 1996.

10. Patients were able to choose from any hospital provider in England that met NHS standards and costs, giving patients more control and helped drive up standards.

11. Five thousand matrons were recruited; one of their duties was to ensure that hospitals were kept clean and enforced hospital cleanliness. From March, 2009, every non-emergency patient was screened for MRSA. The NHS cut the number of incidents (MRSA by 62 per cent and C. difficile by 35 per cent).

12. Prescriptions were made free for those being treated for cancer, benefiting up to 150,000 people who might otherwise have paid £100 a year in prescription charges.

13. Labour published the first ever NHS Constitution to form the basis of a new relationship between staff and patients.

This was a relationship based on partnership, feedback, respect and shared commitment where everyone knew what they could expect from the NHS and what was expected from them. These achievements are in stark contrast to the Tory-led Government’s NHS increase spending of just 0.01 per cent which is a cut in real terms.

The NHS has a deficit with Clinical Commissioning Groups, with NHS providers being forced to go into debt to cover costs and meet their commitments.

They have also scrapped altogether the vital targets which have helped reduce waiting lists. Cllr David Chadwick Westhoughton