New analysis published today (Saturday) by the TUC shows the hotspots in England where there are too few GPs.
There is a shortfall in every single one of the 44 STP planning areas into which NHS England is divided. And half of these areas are estimated to be working with at least 20% fewer GPs than they need for the size of their local population.
Milton Keynes, Bedfordshire and Luton STP has the largest shortfall, with 43% fewer GPs than needed. And no area has all the GPs need – even the best provided area Dorset STP has 4% too few GPs.
The TUC says that the widespread – and in many cases severe – GP shortfalls are the result of under-investment in the NHS, which is apparent across many of its services.
Health economists at the IFS and Health Foundation estimate that in the next five years the Department of Health will need 4% extra per year to keep the NHS running at current service levels. But to modernise the NHS, they estimate annual funding increases of 5% will be needed.
The government has committed to giving the NHS around £20bn more a year extra by 2023/24 – an increase to the Department of Health budget of around 3%. This leaves a funding gap of at least £8bn by 2023/24 to maintain current levels of service, and a gap of £16bn by 2023/24 to modernise the NHS.
TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said:
“Underfunding has left the NHS on the critical list. There are too few doctors, too few beds and too few healthcare staff.
“The best medicine for the NHS is the extra funding it needs. But the government is giving it too small a dose to bring it up to full health.
“We’re sending a message to the government today that our NHS needs a better deal. And it must be publicly owned and provided so that every penny goes to patient care and not to private profits.”
Frances O’Grady will speak today (Saturday) at Our NHS is 70, a national rally to celebrate the 70th birthday of the NHS and to call on government to keep the NHS publicly owned and properly funded. To arrange an interview, call the TUC media team on 020 7467 1248.
- League table for shortfall in GP provision by STP area
NHS STP areas* |
number of GPs |
number of GPs needed |
% shortfall |
Milton Keynes, Bedfordshire and Luton |
441 |
630 |
43 |
Lincolnshire |
359 |
495 |
38 |
Kent and Medway |
864 |
1,179 |
36 |
Mid and South Essex |
566 |
763 |
35 |
Suffolk and North East Essex |
482 |
632 |
31 |
Northamptonshire |
372 |
478 |
29 |
North West London |
1,178 |
1,522 |
29 |
North East London |
1,057 |
1,361 |
29 |
South East London |
952 |
1,226 |
29 |
Greater Manchester |
1,494 |
1,905 |
28 |
Hertfordshire and West Essex |
771 |
974 |
26 |
Surrey Heartlands |
451 |
567 |
26 |
North Central London |
810 |
1,012 |
25 |
Sussex and East Surrey |
976 |
1,217 |
25 |
Frimley Health |
394 |
490 |
24 |
Humber, Coast and Vale |
723 |
892 |
23 |
South West London |
845 |
1,041 |
23 |
Staffordshire |
592 |
720 |
22 |
Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland |
581 |
707 |
22 |
Lancashire and South Cumbria |
907 |
1,101 |
21 |
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough |
501 |
605 |
21 |
West Yorkshire |
1,417 |
1,697 |
20 |
Durham, Darlington, Teesside, northern Yorkshire |
597 |
712 |
19 |
The Black Country |
765 |
911 |
19 |
Norfolk and Waveney |
556 |
659 |
19 |
Birmingham and Solihull |
704 |
820 |
17 |
Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire |
540 |
631 |
17 |
Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West |
992 |
1155 |
17 |
South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw |
840 |
977 |
16 |
Bath, Swindon and Wiltshire |
506 |
585 |
16 |
Northumberland, Tyne and Wear and North Durham |
967 |
1,108 |
15 |
Nottinghamshire |
588 |
677 |
15 |
Coventry and Warwickshire |
540 |
621 |
15 |
Hampshire and the Isle of Wight |
1,017 |
1,171 |
15 |
Derbyshire |
581 |
657 |
13 |
Cheshire and Merseyside |
1,468 |
1,643 |
12 |
Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin |
276 |
310 |
12 |
Gloucestershire |
368 |
404 |
10 |
Herefordshire and Worcestershire |
456 |
496 |
9 |
Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly |
329 |
360 |
9 |
West, North and East Cumbria |
187 |
203 |
8 |
Devon |
711 |
766 |
8 |
Somerset |
331 |
359 |
8 |
Dorset |
484 |
501 |
4 |
* STP stands for sustainability and transformation partnership. These are 44 areas covering all of England, where local NHS organisations and councils have drawn up proposals to improve health and care in the areas they serve.
- Methodology:
- Health check app: The TUC and NHS Support Federation NHS Health Check online app for checking local NHS shortages is here: https://healthcheck.nhsfunding.info/funding/
- IFS and Health Foundation future funding report: On 24 May the IFS and Health Foundation published Securing the future: funding health and social care to the 2030s. They concluded that, for the period 2018/19 to 2023/24, NHS funding must increase by an annual average of 4% to maintain the ‘status quo’, and 5% to ‘modernise’ the NHS. See table 3.5 on page 86: https://www.ifs.org.uk/uploads/publications/comms/R143.pdf
- Prime Minister’s ‘world class NHS’ speech: The Prime Minister Theresa May spoke about the future of the NHS at the Royal Free Hospital on 18 June. She committed to a long-term plan for the NHS that “enjoys the support of NHS staff across the country” and delivers “the world-class healthcare that we all want and expect”. The TUC has criticised the Prime Minister for claiming she is committed to a ‘world class’ service, but not providing sufficient funding in the government’s recent announcement to modernise the NHS.
- About the TUC: The Trades Union Congress (TUC) exists to make the working world a better place for everyone. We bring together more than 5.5 million working people who make up our 49 member unions. We support unions to grow and thrive, and we stand up for everyone who works for a living.
TUC media contacts:
Alex Rossiter
arossiter@tuc.org.uk
020 7467 1285
078 8757 2130
TUC press office
media@tuc.org.uk
020 7467 1248
Media contact for Our NHS is 70:
Ramona McCartney
ramona@thepeoplesassembley.org.uk
07933 594080
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