Responding to new NHS England figures on patient appointments that have been rescheduled due to industrial action in the NHS, the deputy chief executive of NHS Providers Saffron Cordery said:

"Trust leaders warned that this week's walkout by nurses and other healthcare workers this week would lead to further disruption to patient care and these fears have come to pass with more than 11,000 appointments rescheduled across hospital, community care and mental health services.

"We've now seen over 542,000 patient appointments delayed due to strike action over the past six months.

"Industrial action has piled even more pressure on overstretched services already grappling with a chronic capacity crunch, soaring demand and widespread staff shortages, slowing down hard-won progress in tackling record care backlogs.

"They're working incredibly hard to see patients as quickly as possible, having cut the longest waits for treatment including the number of people waiting more than 78 weeks for planned care. But the prospect of trying to catch up with the mountain of activity lost on strike days is understandably daunting.

"While leaders across the NHS hope yesterday’s acceptance of a new pay deal signals an end to the most disruptive period of industrial action in NHS history, they also know more strikes could be on the horizon if talks with junior doctors, nurses and others fail.

"The number of patients who face having their care disrupted will keep rising unless the government finds a way to sit down with unions resolve these ongoing disputes."