For the last 10 years people have been literally frothing at the mouth anytime the NHS has mentioned. Whenever criticism of the NHS is mentioned anywhere the number 1, 2 and 3 take is the nasty evil Conservative Party have underfunded it for ten years. On this subreddit anytime the NHS was criticised, people were quick to start screaming about how it wasn't the NHS but the horrible tories who had destroyed it by underfunding.
Labour and every other party repeatedly screamed about how the conservatives had destroyed ARRR NHS. It was a central plank for Labour's attacks on why the tories needed to be kicked out. Go back on literally on any post on this subreddit from a couple years on broader health police and I promise the main talking points will be about how the tories have destroyed the NHS by underfunding it. This is pretty much the accepted reality by almost everyone.
Now what the conservatives actually did is increase the NHS spending in real terms by less than historical average (of merely 1-2% a year instead of 3-4%). This apparent was the vile evil underfunding by the tories which has destroyed the NHS.
Let's compare to what Labour are doing - the self-appointed NHS saviours with an NHS apparently on the road to recovery (has anyone been in my hospital corridor?). For the first time ever, trusts are being asked to actually cut their budgets in real terms. Not maintain but actively cut. There was apparently a workforce crisis under tories, and yet Labour are somehow allowed to essentially make doctors/nurses redundant in all but name (with hiring freezes).
This is not to praise the tory party - just the absolute hypocrisy on display. Can anyone imagine for a second if the conservatives had instrumented hiring freezes, or told trusts to cut their budgets by higher than austerity amounts. Again just to reinforce - the massive underfunding that everyone and their mother including labour pre-government whinges about over the last 10 years is that the tories did not increase the budget in real terms by historical standards. Under labour trusts are being told they have to actually reduce their budget in real terms - despite all the well-trodden problems in healthcare such as ageing population, higher demand etc.
The reaction would be hell from all NHS staff, Joe Public and pretty much everyone if the tories did this and yet no one is batting an eyelid.
These are just some thoughts on election week.
And there is the more difficult question for NHS diehard fanatics - you now have demonstrated failure to make the NHS work by both centre-right and centre-left parties. Do you really think this absolute shitshow of a healthcare system is sustainable long term?