Yahoo UK’s poll of the week lets you vote and indicate your strength of feeling on one of the week’s hot topics. After the poll closes, we’ll publish and analyse the results each Friday, giving readers the chance to see how polarising a topic has become and if their view chimes with other Yahoo UK readers.
Reports that the government could be planning to introduce fines for people who miss NHS appointments have sparked debate around the issue.
As part of plans to overhaul the NHS, which kicked off at the start of this week with an invitation from the public to submit ideas, Labour is reportedly considering charging people if they don’t show up to scheduled appointments.
Health secretary Wes Streeting told Times Radio on Sunday he is “open-minded” about the idea of financial penalties for no-shows, but said there are no current plans to make the move, and on Monday care minister Stephen Kinnocktold LBC Radio: “We do not have plans to do that.”
He said the vast majority of GPs’ time is already taken up by filling in forms and ticking boxes, adding: “Imagine if after that we loaded them with the responsibility for administering and enforcing a fine system.”
According to the NHS, of the 124 million outpatient appointments in England in 2023, eight million were not attended, at an estimated cost to the health service of £1.2bn.
Yahoo News UK asked our readers for their thoughts on the issue, here are the results:
Our poll asked: ‘Should people be fined for missing NHS appointments?’
It received 3,893 votes and showed nearly eight in 10 Yahoo readers think people should be charged.
Some 78.3% of voters said they thought people should absolutely be charged, with just 15.8% saying people shouldn’t, and 5.9% did not lean either way.
Nearly eight in 10 Yahoo readers think people should be charged
Yahoo News UK readers were also asked: ‘How concerned are you about the current funding of the NHS?’
This poll received 2,166 votes with the most common vote being 10, indicating many readers are very concerned for the health service’s funding.
The average strength-of-feeling score on all the votes was 7.89.
Many readers are very concerned for the health service’s funding
Yahoo also asked readers how much they think people should be charged if they miss an NHS GP appointment.
This poll received 2,251 votes with the most common vote being 2, indicating many readers favour a smaller fine for missed appointments.
The average strength-of-feeling score on all the votes was 4.52.
What Yahoo readers said:
‘Safeguards to cover situations’: If a fixed penalty format is introduced it must also contain some safeguards to cover situations where the patient has a good reason for failing to attend the appointment. (K Jones, Ashbourne, Derbyshire)
‘NHS is overloaded’: I’ve been for blood tests when at least 4 people before me had not turned up. These appointments could be used for those who need them but have to wait because fully booked. A fine would be a deterrent to taking NHS for granted. NHS is overloaded. (Romy B, Sussex)
‘Not all appointments missed are deliberate’: They can only fine people if public transport is improved first. Not all appointments missed are deliberate. (Em S, Kent)
‘Few reasons for missing an appointment’: Yes. There are very few reasons for missing an appointment without letting the surgery or hospital know the reason. A big problem is getting a call or email to the appropriate centre. (Iain M, Westbury, Wiltshire)
‘It seems unfair’: Many appointments missed by old people simply because of losing the ability to remember and not having anyone to remind or assist them. It seems unfair to penalize them. simply because they suffer from age related difficulties (Pete C, Gloucestershire)
A similar YouGov poll in 2023 asked members of the public whether they would support or oppose introducing a £10 fine for those who missed or cancelled hospital or GP appointments without giving enough notice to the surgery to rebook it and found that two thirds of people were in favour of a charge, while a quarter (26%) opposed it in some way.
Read more of Yahoo UK’s Poll of the Week articles
