New data from the NHS has shown that more people are waiting a month for a GP appointment than at any time since records began in 2017. 9,559 people in Calderdale faced a wait of 28 days or more to see a GP in October alone. A further 17,292 people had to wait more than two weeks.

Almost two million people in England had to wait more than 28 days in October, while a further 4.3 million had to wait more than two weeks. At the same time, the number of GPs has fallen to a record low, leaving patients in a desperate scramble to be seen. Since 2013, we’ve lost 4,600 GPs.

The Labour Party have announced plans to abolish the non-dom tax status, which allows some wealthy people who live in Britain to pay their taxes overseas, to pay for training a new generation of NHS staff.

Halifax MP Holly Lynch spoke in yesterday’s parliamentary debate on the NHS workforce. She said:

“A genuine sense of fear has set in across the country of being in a position of needing to use the NHS because almost every family has now got a story of a loved one who has needed to access care and it being a very difficult experience.

“Access to see a GP varies across Halifax but too many people are finding it impossible to see a doctor at some surgeries. Among those thousands waiting more than a month or not getting an appointment at all, there will be conditions going undiagnosed until they are much harder to treat.

“Labour will train a new generation of doctors and nurses, paid for by abolishing non-dom status. This won’t just transform the NHS for patients and for patient safety but will also massively improve the NHS for those stretched and exhausted staff who make it what it is.

Labour’s plan would:

· Double the number of medical school places, training 15,000 new doctors a year

· Train 10,000 additional nurses and midwives every year

· Double the number of district nurses qualifying each year

· Train 5,000 new health visitors

Labour’s plan will see patients guaranteed a face-to-face appointment with a GP if they want one. While some patients prefer to hold appointments over the phone, many are frustrated at not being able to see their doctor in person, and just 22% of patients are given a choice in the type of appointment they have. One in seven people who try to speak to a nurse or GP were unable to get an appointment at all last year.

Labour is also pledging to bring back the family doctor, so patients can see the same GP each appointment if they choose to. Patients are increasingly unable to see the doctor of their choice, with two in every three patients rarely or never speaking to their preferred doctor, up from just half in 2018. Under Labour’s plans, GP practices will be provided with incentives to offer patients continuity of care, so doctors must take into account patients’ preferences.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

· 1,911,538 people in England had to wait more than 28 days for an appointment in October, while a further 4,328,359 people had to wait more than two weeks. Table 3d
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/appointments-in-general-practice/october-2022

· Constituency level data has been compiled from the practice level data also provided by the NHS
Annex 1 – Appointments in General Practice – October 2022: Practice Level Summary