Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help ensure areas with high levels of housebuilding have adequate GP capacity.

The National Health Service has a statutory duty to ensure there are sufficient medical services, including general practice (GP), in each local area. It should take account of population growth and demographic changes. Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning, namely planning, securing, and monitoring, GP services within their health systems through delegated responsibility from NHS England.

Local planning authorities are responsible for negotiating and agreeing developer contributions to support necessary associated infrastructure when new housing developments are built, including GP practices. At a national level, we continue to work closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to ensure all new and existing developments have an adequate level of healthcare infrastructure for the community.