A report backed by doctors, nurses, patient groups, the pharmaceutical industry and private healthcare providers has said the NHS may no longer be able to afford treatments for all who need them. The report claims that the public and the government need to accept that some treatments will be excluded from the NHS, raising the prospect of healthcare rationing.

The Healthcare Funding Review, initiated by the British Medical Association, also criticised the government's drive to reduce waiting lists, questioning whether resources were being used effectively.

Dr Ian Bogle, chairman of the BMA, said: "Unless the government and the public are prepared to face up to the inevitability of rationing, the debate addressed in this review will recur perpetually and, on the evidence we have received, the most vulnerable will continue to suffer."

NHS waiting lists rose by 13,200 in December, it was announced yesterday.