Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the challenges in (a) recruiting and (b) retaining GPs in coastal towns.

Thanks to actions taken by the Government, we have the highest number of fully qualified general practices (GPs) since 2015, and steps are being taken to grow the GP workforce further.

Since October 2024 we have funded primary care networks (PCNs) with an additional £160 million to recruit recently qualified GPs through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS). Over 2,000 individual GPs are in post as a result of the scheme, preventing them graduating into unemployment and increasing clinical capacity. This was a measure to respond to feedback from the profession and to help solve an immediate issue of GP unemployment.

We are investing £601 million in GPs in 2026/27, bringing the total spend on the GP Contract to over £14 billion. This builds on the £1.1 billion boost in investment in 2025/26. As part of the 26/27 GP Contract, we are increasing the flexibility of the ARRS by removing the restriction that ARRS funding can only be used for recently qualified GPs, increasing the maximum reimbursement amount for GP roles to reflect experience, and enabling PCNs to recruit a broader range of ARRS roles, where agreed with the commissioner.

Our commitment to growing the GP workforce includes addressing the reasons why doctors leave the profession and encouraging them to return to practice. Retention efforts in GPs focus on addressing workload pressures, offering career development opportunities, providing flexible working opportunities, and implementing supportive policies.

The Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan to set out action to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan. The 10 Year Workforce Plan will ensure the NHS has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it.

We know that the way GP funding is allocated across England is considered outdated and we recognise the importance of ensuring funding for core services is distributed equitably between practices across the country. This is why we are currently reviewing the Carr-Hill formula to ensure that resources are targeted where they are most needed.