This extract from a ˿ news article in March 2012 reveals the NHS is one of the world’s biggest employers. It is hardly surprising that it costs so much to run.
Sizing up the world's biggest employers and compiling a list of the top 10, the NHS is revealed to be the fifth largest, with 1.7 million workers across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. McDonald's makes it into fourth position, with 1.9 million employees. Third is the US supermarket chain Walmart, which employs 2.1 million staff…. Second place goes to the Chinese military - the People's Liberation Army (PLA) - with forces numbering 2.3 million. And the top spot is taken by the US Department of Defense with a cool 3.2 million-strong workforce.
— ˿ News Online
Increasing demand on services
Over the last 30 years or so, various initiatives have been tried – hospital trusts, GP fund holders, NHS Direct etc – with the aim of reducing costs and making the NHS more efficient.