A new report has said that the number of patients waiting longer for treatment than the 18 weeks have increased in England since the new government was formed.

The report showed that 26,417 people in England had to wait for more than 18 weeks for treatment in February this year compared to 20,662 in May 2010, when the new government took power. The number of patients who were made longer than they should was at 25,823 in January this year.

The period of 18 weeks is the time specified by the NHS constitution for the maximum a patient must be made to wait for treatment. The latest figures show that out of the total 151 NHS primary care trusts in England, 35 were unable to provide care to the required 90% of patients within 18 weeks during February, compared to 32 trusts in January.

It was also found that the average waiting time for patients who completed their NHS referral to treatment (RTT) course in February was 8.7 weeks as against 8.4 weeks in May 2010. Shadow health secretary, Andy Burnham said that the figures are a huge embarrassment to the prime minister who promised to keep NHS waiting times low.

Simon Burns, the NHS minister at the Department of Health responded by saying that it should be noted that the number of patients waiting over 18 weeks for their treatment has been cut by over 100,000 patients over the last year. He said that it was right step in the right direction and pointed out that it proves that the country's health system is becoming stronger.