Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to improve general practitioner facilities and training and the provision of primary healthcare services.

NHS England have advised that they are working with clinical commissioning groups, Health and Wellbeing Boards and other local partners to ensure that joint strategic plans identify where premises developments are needed and how the capital and revenue for these premises developments will be met.

Additionally, the Department has recently set out its ambitions for primary care in publishing Transforming Primary Care. A copy has already been placed in the Library. The changes to the general practitioner (GP) contract for this year will help ensure that patients aged over 75 and those with the most complex needs receive more personalised and proactive care.

The Government has also invested £50 million, through the Prime Minister’s Challenge Fund, to develop new ways of improving access to GP services.

The Department has recognised the need to increase the GP workforce and between September 2010 and September 2013, the number of full time equivalent GPs has risen by 1,051. Additionally, the Department has included in its mandate to Health Education England (HEE), a requirement that “HEE will ensure that 50% of trainees completing foundation level training enter GP training programmes by 2016”.

A new Chief Inspector of General Practice has also been appointed and the Care Quality Commission is inspecting standards in GP practices and taking action where it finds poor care.