NHS Under Strain, ID Cards Won’t Stop Boats & UK Economy Stagnates
From hospital corridors to small boats to the high street — the numbers tell a story of failure.
Welcome back to Stat of the Nation. Each weekend I pull together the key stories I’ve covered — and the numbers behind them. This week revealed a common thread: government policies that don’t match reality.
A health system politicians call “the envy of the world” is buckling under record waits.
A digital ID scheme is being sold as a migration fix, but won’t stop the boats or illegal working.
And an economy weighed down by high taxes has stalled, leaving families and businesses squeezed.
Here’s the Stat of the Nation roundup.
1️⃣ NHS Waiting Lists and the Morality of Overseas Recruitment
Featured article: No Country Has Copied the NHS — And Britain’s Patients Are Paying the Price
Politicians call it “the envy of the world” — yet no country has copied it.
7.37 million delayed treatments in England.
190k+ waiting over a year.
~1,000 people a day spending more than 12 hours in A&E.
By 2040, there’ll be 9 million people aged 75+ (↑2.5m). Demand is rising faster than the system can handle.
Politicians talk about plugging the gap with overseas recruitment — but that raises serious moral questions. Taking doctors and nurses from countries with far fewer healthcare workers per head only shifts the crisis elsewhere, rather than building a sustainable workforce at home.
2️⃣ ID Cards Won’t Stop Boats or Illegal Working
Featured article: ID Cards Won’t Stop the Boats — Just Fool the Voters
Digital ID is being pitched as tough action on migration. In practice, it misses the people breaking the rules and burdens those who aren’t.
Channel crossings: People arriving illegally by small boats aren’t deterred by paperwork. They don’t present IDs at the border; smugglers already bypass checks. An ID card scheme doesn’t stop a dinghy.
Illegal working: Those working off-the-books or using fake documents will avoid checks just as they do now. Rogue employers who already ignore right-to-work rules won’t suddenly comply because a new card exists.
Mission creep & control: A national ID means a centralised database, routine ID checks to work/rent/access services, and inevitable function-creep (travel, banking, health, protest). With that comes data-breach risk, profiling, and more bureaucratic friction for everyone else — at huge cost.
If the goal is to cut illegal migration and exploitation, the levers are enforcement and incentives: faster asylum decisions and returns, real workplace enforcement against rogue employers, smashing smuggling gangs, and cooperation on border security — not another card in people’s wallets.
3️⃣ High Tax, Zero Growth — UK Economy Stalls in July
Featured article: UK Economy Shows No Growth in July
Fresh ONS figures showed 0.0% GDP growth in July — effectively stagnation.
Manufacturing fell; services barely grew; construction rose slightly but not enough to offset weakness.
Retail volumes are soft; households are squeezed.
Public spending props up GDP — funded by more borrowing.
The high-tax, high-spend model isn’t delivering growth. The reality is simple: get money back into people’s pockets and they will spend it, creating jobs and growth. Until then, businesses and families will continue to feel the squeeze.
Stat of the Nation exists to cut through the spin and show the numbers as they are.
If you value clear, fact-driven analysis — please share this roundup with others. And hit subscribe below to get the stats first, every week.
✍️ Jamie Jenkins