Terry Jermy MP has welcomed the Government’s plans to bring back the family doctor as part of a wider package of improvements announced for the NHS so far this year.
GPs in South West Norfolk and around the UK will be able to spend more time treating patients under the Government’s proposed reforms to general practice which will bring back the family doctor and slash red tape.
Speaking after a visit to School Lane Surgery in his constituency as part of a fact-finding mission, Terry Jermy, Labour MP for South West Norfolk, has “welcomed plans to end the 8am scramble for GP appointments” – a key manifesto commitment, with action being taken to deliver on those promises and get the NHS back on its feet.
Under the proposals, patients in South West Norfolk, including those with complex needs, long-term conditions, or the elderly would experience greater continuity of care.
The proposals are backed by the biggest boost to GP funding in years – an extra £889m on top of the existing budget for general practice. The proposed measures would also reduce the number of outdated performance targets that GPs must meet, in a further step to reduce bureaucracy and ensure doctors can spend more time with their patients.
Terry Jermy MP said, “When I speak to people in my constituency, I hear time and time again the difficulty that residents have in making a GP appointment and how important the front door to our NHS is to them and their families. I promised residents in South West Norfolk that we would help bring back the family doctor and I’m delighted to see proposals that would deliver on that promise.”
Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said, “General practice is buckling under the burden of bureaucracy, with GPs filling out forms instead of treating patients. It is clear the system is broken, which is why we are slashing red tape, binning outdated performance targets, and instead freeing doctors up to do their jobs. We promised to bring back the family doctor, but we want to be judged by results – not promises. That’s why we will incentivise GPs to ensure more and more patients see the same doctor at each appointment.”
Additional:
• The Government will now consult on its proposals for the GP Contract 2025/26 with the British Medical Association’s General Practice Committee over the coming weeks, before unveiling it in Spring 2025.
• Through the Budget, the Government is also investing an extra £100 million to upgrade GP estates across England, making facilities fit to deliver effective, quality care as well as starting to hire 1,000 extra GPs.
• There are already hundreds more full-time GPs than when the government took control, and proposed changes to the contract would provide further staffing
support by making the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme more flexible, helping to tackle GP unemployment.
• The government has also already committed to producing a refreshed workforce plan in the summer with a focus on shifting care from hospitals and into the community.
