Britain's health service, its pride and worry, dominates election

By Estelle Shirbon LONDON (Reuters) - Dearly-loved and overburdened, Britain's national health system has become the top issue for voters ahead of May's election, after winter brought headlines of ambulances queueing outside hospitals and patients languishing on trolleys for hours. The National Health Service (NHS) delivers care for free to the whole population from cradle to grave and accounts for a third of government spending on public services. Although it has been shielded from the brunt of a government austerity drive, alarm bells are now ringing about whether the NHS, fondly depicted by dancing doctors and nurses in the opening ceremony of London's 2012 Olympics, is adequately funded to maintain high standards. "Our country's most precious institution faces its most perilous moment in a generation," Ed Miliband, leader of the opposition Labour Party, said in a recent speech.



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