RCGP response to analysis of GP appointment waiting times

RCGP responds to analysis by the Liberal Democrats on length of wait times for GP appointments

Professor Victoria Tzortziou Brown, Chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners, said:

“Every patient should be able to get a timely GP appointment when they need one and we share our patients' frustration when they struggle to access our care.

“GPs and our teams are working tirelessly to deliver safe, timely and appropriate care, but patient numbers are rising, and there aren't enough of us to meet demand, due to decades of poor workforce planning and lack of investment in general practice.

"In 2024, general practice teams delivered around 367 million appointments, providing increasingly complex care, yet doing so with fewer fully qualified, full time GPs than ten years ago. On average, each GP is now responsible for more than 2,300 patients, and in deprived communities this figure is significantly higher. This is not good for patients or sustainable for the hard-pressed GPs trying to care for them.

"We have been encouraged by commitments from the Government to redirect funding towards primary care and now want to see real solutions for recruiting and retaining thousands more GPs in the forthcoming NHS workforce plan so that we can give all our patients the safe and timely care they deserve."

Further information

RCGP press office: 0203 188 7659

press@rcgp.org.uk

Notes to editors

The Royal College of General Practitioners is a network of more than 54,000 family doctors working to improve care for patients. We work to encourage and maintain the highest standards of general medical practice and act as the voice of GPs on education, training, research and clinical standards.