Wes Streeting pledges to send billions to GPs to fix NHS ‘front door’

Ministers will shift billions of pounds from hospitals to GPs to “fix the front door of the NHS”, Wes Streeting has promised as he said millions of patients will be able to see the same GP at every appointment.

The health minister made his first major policy announcement as he prepared for key talks with junior doctors on Tuesday aimed at finally ending the strikes that have paralyzed the health care system since 2022.

Less than 10% of England’s £165bn NHS budget is spent on primary care, and that share has been falling despite record demand at GP surgeries. In a major policy shift, Streeting said on Monday he would reverse that trend – and increase the share of the budget for primary care, so patients can get help sooner.

In England, more than 5 million patients a month are having to wait more than two weeks for a GP appointment, despite the previous government promising that everyone would be seen within 14 days.

After visiting Abbey Medical Centre, a GP practice in St John’s Wood, London, Streeting said: “Patients are finding it harder than ever to see a GP. Patients can’t get through the NHS front door, so they’re not getting the timely care they need.

“That’s no surprise, given that GPs and primary care are receiving a smaller share of NHS resources. I’m determined to reverse that.”

Streeting said improving access to GPs was essential to easing the wider crisis within the NHS and reducing pressure on hospitals.

He added: “My first visit as Health Secretary was to a GP surgery because when we said we wanted to shift the focus of the NHS from hospitals to the community, we meant it.

“I am determined to make the NHS more of a neighbourhood health service, with more care closer to home. Because if patients can’t get an appointment with their GP, they end up in A&E, which is worse for them and more expensive for the taxpayer.”

The Abbey Medical Centre offers patients a personal service and emphasises continuity of care, both of which are key pillars of the government’s mission to reform primary care in the NHS, Streeting said.

He added: “We are determined to bring back the GP so patients can see the same doctor at every appointment, restoring the front door to the NHS.”

In 2023, almost 61 million appointments took place more than two weeks after they were requested, figures from an analysis of NHS data by the House of Commons Library show.

Amanda Pritchard, chief executive of NHS England, who visited the GP practice with Streeting, welcomed the policy change.

She said: “GP teams are the bedrock of the NHS, but across the country they are under enormous pressure and are working incredibly hard to deliver more appointments. We know there is still much work to do to support them and transform primary care.”

In an email to NHS leaders on Monday, seen by the Guardian, Pritchard revealed that “three major strategic shifts” have been identified by the new government that “we are all keen to see happen”.

These measures included: shifting more care from hospitals to primary care and social services; making better use of technology and data; and encouraging prevention by helping people stay healthy, reducing health inequalities and helping people stay at work.

However, taking billions of pounds away from hospitals is likely to anger some hospital chief executives keen to curb record turnover in the NHS.

While shifting money to primary care may ultimately ease the burden on hospitals, resolving the pay row will also be crucial to solving the NHS crisis. Streeting will meet junior doctors in person on Tuesday.

Health leaders have called on the government to resolve the long-running conflict as a “priority” after more than 60,000 appointments were postponed as a result of the latest strike.

Young doctors went on strike for five days from June 27 – their eleventh strike in twenty months.

Young doctors in England say their salaries have fallen by more than a quarter over the past 15 years and are calling for a 35% pay rise.

Streeting has previously said he would not meet the 35% target, saying if he were to give in to the demand, “any union worth its salt” would come back with the same request the following year.

He said there was “room for discussion” about pay, and that negotiations should take place on how to improve working conditions for doctors in training.

Strikes in the NHS since December 2022 by doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, paramedics and other staff have led to the postponement of almost 1.5 million appointments, procedures and operations, at an estimated cost to the NHS of over £3 billion.

A No 10 source said Keir Starmer “expects progress as soon as possible” on the strikes.

They said: “We said we had to get started straight away and the mandate shows the scale of the appetite for change. No one underestimates the responsibility to deliver. The whole Cabinet knows they have had really clear direction and confidence from Keir that they can go out and get started.

“Wes’ first call was to the BMA to take immediate action and you see it through the other ministers. They are all authorised and know they have to get on with it immediately.”

A source at the British Medical Association said the union was “pleased” that Streeting had already “set the ball rolling” to negotiate a solution.

However, the source also said that “only a credible offer” acceptable to members could end the dispute.