More or Less The Stats of the Nation: Health
18 snips
Jan 6, 2026 
Stuart McDonald, Head of Longevity at LCP, discusses the stall in UK life expectancy post-COVID and the concerning rise in mortality among younger adults. Ben Zaranko from the Institute for Fiscal Studies highlights productivity issues in the NHS and the disappointing lack of new GPs, while Nathan Gower sheds light on rising GP appointment numbers amid a funding shift. Additionally, Jon Shelton from Cancer Research UK examines escalating cancer rates linked to an aging population and the UK's lag in survival rates compared to other nations.
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Life Expectancy Has Only Just Recovered
- UK life expectancy stalled after COVID and only recovered to about 2019 levels by 2024.
- Provisional 2025 deaths were lower, suggesting mortality may reach new lows pending full-year data.
Working-Age Mortality Is Worrying
- Mortality improvements vary by age: over-65s recovered but working-age groups have not.
- Death rates rose for 20–45 year-olds since ~2012 due to accidents, overdoses, suicides and early chronic disease.
Scotland's Mortality Is Particularly High
- Scotland has substantially higher death rates than England and Wales, worse than the pandemic effect.
- At worst pandemic moments England and Wales still had lower mortality than Scotland's best historical levels.