Labour promises more GPs to end postcode lottery for GP appointments

Patients in England face a postcode lottery for getting GP appointments, with as many as three in four unable to see the doctor of their choice. Patients in some parts of England have only a 50/50 chance of getting a face-to-face appointment, while up to one in nine have to wait a month to see a GP.

Labour will this week focus it local election campaign on its plans to cut GP waiting times. The party is promising to:

• Train 7,500 more doctors a year, paid for by abolishing the non-dom tax status
• Guarantee patients face-to-face appointments if they want them
• Bring back the family doctor so patients can see the same GP each appointment.

A review published by the NHS last year found that seeing the same doctor at each appointment is better for patients and helps doctors spot serious illness earlier. Yet three in every four patients in places like Solihull, Gosport, and Fenland rarely or almost never see the doctor of their choice.

In some parts of the country, only half of GP appointments are held face to face, with the rest mainly held over the telephone. Patients in Slough, Hastings, and Eden have just half a chance of seeing their GP in person, compared with four in five of those in Fareham and the Forest of Dean who get a face-to-face appointment. The highest figure is the City of London where almost every single appointment is done face-to-face. Almost 40% of patients across England say they were only offered a telephone consultation when they last tried to book a face-to-face GP appointment.

Before the pandemic, 84% of GP appointments were held face-to-face, but many practices have been reluctant to go back. Just 72% of appointments across England were face-to-face in February, compared to 85% in same month in 2020.

How quickly you can see your GP is also decided by where you live. One in nine patients in Chesterfield wait a month for an appointment, almost ten times as many as in Coventry.

Keir Starmer will be on a visit talking about falling numbers of GPs under the Conservatives on Monday, and Shadow Health Secretary, Wes Streeting will be setting out Labour’s plans to fundamentally reform the NHS, bringing healthcare much closer to communities and neighbourhoods, in a speech later in the week.

Wes Streeting MP, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, said:

“It’s much better for patients to see the GP who knows their medical history, face-to-face if they wish.

“But patients are finding it impossible to get an appointment at all, let alone with the doctor they want, in the manner they choose. It’s no surprise given the Conservatives have cut 2,000 GPs since 2015.

“Labour will train 15,000 doctors a year, paid for by abolishing the non-dom tax status, so patients are seen on time again. We will bring back the family doctor and give patients choice over their care.”

Ends

Notes

1. Analysis of NHS data on face-to-face appointments, continuity of care, and waiting times for GP appointments is attached. Data is available below:
   Appointments in General Practice, February 2023 - NDRS (digital.nhs.uk)

Survey and Reports (gp-patient.co.uk)

2. Almost 40% of patients say they were only offered a telephone consultation when they last tried to book a face-to-face GP appointment.
   The impact of winter pressures on different population groups in Great Britain - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk)

Longest waits for a GP appointment:

Ten places patients are least likely to see the doctor of their choice:

Ten worst places for face to face appointments: