‘Long-time Tory’ Rod Stewart joins Sky News phone-in calling for UK ‘government to stand down and give Labour a go’

Sir Rod Stewart has offered to pay for members of the public to have hospital scans amid an increase in NHS waiting lists. (Suzan Moore/PA)

Emily Atkinson

January 26 2023 09:21 PM

Self-professed ‘long time Tory’ Rod Stewart has called for the government to step down over the NHS crisis.

Stewart joined a phone in on Sky News to say “he has never seen it so bad”, adding the challenges for nurses were “heartbreaking”.

“I personally have been a Tory for a long time but I think this government should stand down now and give the Labour Party a go at it,” he told viewers during his surprise calll on Thursday.

He added that he would pay for 10 or 20 hospital scans after patients spoke about experiencing long waiting lists in the NHS.

The 78-year-old singer-songwriter phoned into the broadcaster’s “your say” segment, which covered people sharing their experience of health care, in an unscheduled appearance.

Stewart said he had attended a private clinic on Thursday that was basically “empty” and was prompted to call into the show after hearing about the “ridiculous” situation in the NHS.

“There are people dying because they cannot get scans,” Stewart said.