The proposals would be funded through £280m capital investment to expand urgent A&E wards and an additional £400m per year to add an extra 1,000 staffed beds in hospitals.

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said: ‘The NHS was once the envy of the world's envy, but it has been in constant crisis under the Conservative Party. The Conservatives have left health services crumbling, with nurses and paramedics overstretched and vulnerable patients left with the indignity of waiting in corridors for life-saving treatment. 

‘The Liberal Democrats would end the crisis in our ambulance services, by increasing the number of beds and offering free personal care to ease the pressure on hospital wards.'

The Liberal Democrats have also pledged to increase the number of GPs by 8,000 and introduce a 10-year rolling programme of hospital repairs. 

The 2024 Liberal Democrat manifesto will be the first in the party's history to include a dedicated care chapter to ensure everyone is treated with dignity without having to sell their home.

The Liberal Democrats said their plan to offer free personal care to all was a central pillar to their package of ending ambulance waiting times and bed blocking in hospitals. 

Tim Gardner, assistant director of policy at The Health Foundation, said: 'It is … welcome that the Liberal Democrats have joined the dots and are seeking to take a whole system approach to tackling these problems including commitments to social care reform – something we have thus far not seen from the other major political parties.'

Welcoming the additional 1,000 beds and funding, Gardner said it was important not to underestimate ‘the enormous scale of the challenge ahead' with in April 2024 alone, more than 42,000 patients spent more than 12 hours on a trolley in A&E waiting for a hospital bed. 

The Health Foundation called for a ‘once in a generation capital settlement to improve productivity, modernise crumbling hospital buildings and replace outdated equipment, and invest in new technology'.