The BMA’s GP Committee has rejected an ‘insulting’ contract offer from NHS England, warning that it would risk the safety of patients and cause more GPs to leave.
It is unclear what was including in the contract offer, but the BMA did say that it included no additional investment to counter the effects of the cost-of-living crisis.
It warned that if NHS England and the Government were to impose a contact, the GPC would consider ‘all options’ including industrial or collective action.
The current contract runs out in 2024, and there have been radical suggestions from both sides, including moving to payment by activity, scrapping QOF and introducing contractual workload limits.
However, Pulse understands that there may be resistance from the Treasury to inject more funding to cover inflationary rises for 2023/24.
If there is no agreement, then the current contract will roll over or the Government could theoretically impose the contract – however this would likely lead to industrial action.
Dr Kieran Sharrock, acting chair of the GPC, said: ‘This year’s offer is a slap in the face of hardworking GPs and patients across the country.
‘To offer nothing to meet the spiralling costs of running practices as inflation runs rife, and teams continue to do more with less, is insulting to staff and unsafe for patients.
‘With inflation remaining stubbornly high, burdening practices with rising expenses for bills, staff and services, this offer will lead partners to question the very viability of practices and their ability to continue trying to provide safe care to their patients. When we’ve lost more than 400 practices in England since 2019, impacting millions of patients, we cannot afford to lose any more..’
He added: ‘For many undecided GPs, this insulting offer will likely be the final straw in pushing them out the surgery door.
‘In rejecting this offer we are standing up for both the future of the profession and the safe care of patients. General practice can no longer be expected to take whatever is thrown at it. If there is no change in approach from this Government, it will preside over the death of general practice as we know it.’
READERS' COMMENTS [10]
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Seems the only jobs that this government values is executive of polluting fossil fuel giant or party chair. I guess the best way to curb inflation is to ensure that nobody buys anything ever again 🤔
Just ballot the profession now Kieran on resigning the PCN DES !
Should have happened at the start of this scheme ( and last year) and they are keeping a load of the money you cannot spend on the staff who are reimbursed ,( who don’t exist) who are not necessarily the ones to deliver the DES specifications
BMA ballot the profession now to opt out in April .
Sure you lose some funding but you lose a shed load of work ( and all those extended hours )
Of course , resigning ( or refusing to re-engage with ) the PCN DES does not even need a ballot !
It is unclear what was included in the offer…
Then why the f**k are you commenting on it???!?!
Good one Jaimie – sounds like ‘resistance from the treasury’ means Jeremy ‘I love GPs’ Hunt saying no!
It would be easier maybe having someone more statesmanlike with better diplomatic skills (like Dominic Raab for instance) holding the purse strings…
They might be standing up for us this time. I’d be interested to know how many GPs are actually members of the BMA.
Do they really have the mandate in numbers from primary care to represent us?
Rogue 1 : BMA represents all LMCs under GPC-UK and GPC-England.
Each LMC represents all GP surgeries, GP Partners, salaried, sessoinal, and locum GPs in it’s area.
If you are not a Partner or member of BMA, please ask your local LMC to tell you who is your local sessional representative?
I strongly recommend to anybody over 50 the retirement option. The index-linked annual pension increases are vastly more than the offer to GPs, interest rates are up too which is great for lump sum savings.
A lot of us will be doing that whatever this shower do HF.Ther will be no 2004 moment this time.
While PCN Clinical Director pockets are being lined with yearly £25,000 to £75,000 yearly bonuses for simple admin work , the travesty of PCNs will not stop