New research has placed Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust at the foot of national tables for waiting-time performance for routine care, even as its senior leadership received substantial remuneration in 2024–25.
Trust performance and pay under scrutiny
The findings, published by the TaxPayers’ Alliance as part of its annual review of NHS executive pay and outcomes, show the trust ranked 149th out of 149 for referral-to-treatment (RTT) performance in January 2026 — the second year running it has occupied the lowest position. The report also records that the trust’s chief medical director, Catherine Walsh, received total pay and benefits of £322,500 in 2024–25.
Those figures sit against a backdrop of rising NHS spending nationally. Departmental budgets and overall health spending have grown significantly over recent decades, but the report highlights continuing shortfalls in key performance standards such as A&E waiting times and planned care targets.
National context and local impact
Nationally, the TaxPayers’ Alliance notes that many parts of the service are not meeting waiting-time standards. In late 2025, only around sixty per cent of attendees at major A&E units were seen within four hours, considerably below statutory and interim government ambitions. For planned operations and other non-urgent care, just over three fifths of patients began treatment within 18 weeks in October 2025.
Locally, the trust’s placing emphasises the pressure facing patients in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough who are waiting for elective care. Long waits can affect quality of life, employment and the management of chronic conditions, while public concern over access to routine treatments remains high.
- Trust RTT rank: 149/149 (January 2026)
- Chief medical director pay: £322,500 (2024–25)
- Managers earning over £100,000 across NHS: 1,758 in 2024–25, up from the previous report
| Measure | Recent figure |
|---|---|
| Trust RTT national position (Jan 2026) | 149/149 |
| Chief medical director total remuneration (2024–25) | £322,500 |
| Patients starting treatment within 18 weeks (Oct 2025) | 62% |
Questions for commissioners and the public
The TaxPayers’ Alliance report frames these numbers as part of a wider debate about how the NHS balances executive pay and operational performance. It points to an increase in the number of senior staff receiving six-figure packages while many targets remain unmet.
Local health commissioners and trust leaders will face pressure to explain how resources are being directed to reduce waiting times and improve patient access. For patients in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, the immediate concerns are likely to centre on the speed of referrals, the availability of diagnostics and the scheduling of operations.
Readers seeking help with long waits should contact their GP practice in the first instance. Patients with urgent or worsening symptoms are advised to use local urgent care services or A&E as appropriate. The trust publishes performance data and updates on its website for those wishing to follow progress.
Further coverage will follow as local health bodies respond to the report’s findings and outline plans to tackle backlogs and waiting lists.
