Less than a fifth of nurses in London believe the capital's health services can cope with demand, a survey has claimed.

The Royal College of Nursing said that a third of nurses wanted more time to care for patients and 71 per cent blamed an ageing population for increased pressure on the NHS.

The figures, based on a survey of 1,000 nurses, were released ahead of the union's annual congress in Glasgow.

RCN London regional director Bernell Bussue said: “The NHS financial pressures are very real and cannot be ignored.

“A concerted effort to put nursing at the heart of new models of care, as well as providing adequate social care, will go a long way towards helping to meet demand.

“Nursing staff are already feeling the impact of an ageing population and it is simply not sustainable to have the same number of staff caring for increasing numbers of patients.

“The nursing workforce needs to be given the tools and opportunity to adapt to London’s changing care needs. 

“It’s not just about having more nurses, but having the right specialist nurses in the right settings.”

Read more: 'Cuts and pay freezes' to blame for nursing vacancies, union says - but how does your hospital stack up?

But a Department of Health spokesman said: “NHS staff are our greatest asset — that’s why there are already 10,800 more nurses on our wards since 2010, as well as 50,000 nurses in training for the future.

“The NHS is busy, but performing well – with 1.6 million more operations taking place each year compared to 2010.”

“We are committed to delivering a safer seven-day NHS and have funded the NHS' own plan for the future with an extra £10bn per year by 2020 to transform services.”