The health secretary has blamed high numbers of flu cases, Covid-19 and Strep A fears for the particular pressures the NHS faced over Christmas. Steve Barclay’s comments come as senior doctors say the NHS is on a knife edge, with many A&E units struggling to keep up with demand and trusts and ambulance services declaring critical incidents. "There have been particular pressures over Christmas because we've had a surge in flu cases, Covid cases and a lot of concern around Strep A," he said.