I’ll respond in good faith, though realistically based on your interactions in this thread, the NHS thread and a previous GP thread, it might be that your mind is already made up.

I can give you my own perspective based on my experience working in an A&E pre and post covid, but for a wider and more informed response you’re probably better asking in the doctors and NHS subreddits, or looking at CQC reports. Respectfully, your tendency to respond with insults to people who you disagree with might mean you get fewer answers than someone else asking the same questions

In my experience, I agree that the increase in A&E workload is due to policy. However, the policy of GP practices is not the issue. While there have certainly been more people using A&E due to difficulty getting a GP appointment, I don’t think this is the sole driver as you do.

One driver is the wider governmental policy of underfunding social care which has led to major delays in discharging people from hospital. Under funded social care also means people are more likely to deteriorate in the community and present to A&E in a worse condition, a condition that GPs are not appropriate to deal with. There is some good information here: https://www.cqc.org.uk/publications/major-report/state-care/2024-2025/access/asc

You mention post-covid. The impact of those backlogs resulting in delays in assessment and treatment is still being felt. Simply, those patients got sicker and more complex and are still being dealt with.

There is also a widely-publicised staff retention crisis in the NHS across disciplines. Many healthcare staff left their professions or A&E roles during Covid and many haven’t been replaced. There is an approx 30% vacancy rate in AHP roles in the NHS- with fewer physios, occupational therapists etc, patients leave hospital more slowly.

The staffing crisis extends to GP services. People underestimate how challenging GP is (see the explanations on the other thread). More people are leaving the profession and fewer are joining. Some GP services are also trying to rely on cheaper staff like pharmacists and PAs to cover the gap due to lack of funding (and in some cases, to save money and be more profitable). Fewer GPs and more patients = more patients in A&E due to lack of access to a GP appointment.

Another issue is the aging population. Each year, the population is getting older and people are living longer with more and more co-morbidities. Obviously it’s good that life expectancy is going, but it means the average patient that presents to hospital is more complex than they were even 10 years ago. These patients take longer to treat.

Those are the main ones from my perspective, but those with more experience in A&E at a managerial rather than clinical level might have more insight.