Life expectancy has increased, which means that the working population has to support an increasing number of retirees. The numbers are shown here:

Age dependency ratio is the ratio of dependents (either children aged 0-14 years, or older populations aged over64 years) to the working age population (15-64 years). Data shows the relative composition of the dependent population between young and old.

UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data

We see that since the Conservative party came to power in 2010 there has been a significant increase in the number of retired people that the working population has to support. And they are expensive with extra health and care demands.

So perhaps it is not surprising that people are feeling the pinch and the health service is struggling!