Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Access to GPs: Rural Communities

Tuesday 17 October 2023 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Funding for general practice has increased by about a fifth since 2018.
  • Workforce in general practice has grown by 30% since 2018.
  • The Secretary of State will examine a specific case of an innovative model from Long Crendon Parish Council.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Greg Smith Con Mid Buckinghamshire
NHS Agriculture & Rural Affairs
Context

No specific event is mentioned, but the question relates to the adequacy of GP services in rural areas.

Question

What recent assessment has been made of the level of access to GPs in rural communities?

Answer from Neil O'Brien

Funding for general practice has increased by about a fifth since 2018, and workforce has grown by 30% with 2,000 extra doctors and 31,000 clinicians. This has enabled around 15% more appointments than before the pandemic. Specific measures include targeted recruitment schemes and funding formula elements that favour rural areas.

Answered
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Q2 Greg Smith Con Mid Buckinghamshire
NHS Parliamentary Procedure
Context

The MP has raised the case of Long Crendon Parish Council proposing to use land from planning gain to build a new surgery. Despite an agreement with Unity Health, funding is lacking and the integrated care board has said there is no money available.

Question

I have repeatedly raised the specific case of an innovative model from Long Crendon Parish Council using land secured through planning gain to replace the closed Long Crendon Surgery. An agreement exists for Unity Health to provide services but no funding to build it. The Secretary of State has advised seeking funds from the integrated care board, which said there is none available. Will the Minister look at this innovative model again?

Answer from Neil O'Brien

I will definitely examine that specific case. We are changing the national planning policy framework to facilitate developer contributions towards such projects. While there are more GP practices than in 2010, we continue to explore further improvements.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The Minister did not commit to reviewing or funding the specific model for Long Crendon Surgery.

How: We Continue To Look At Ways To Go Further

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