LMCs back collective action if no ‘meaningful’ contract changes agreed

Exclusive LMC leaders have voted in favour of the BMA balloting GP members on industrial or collective action if no ‘meaningful’ contract changes are agreed in 2023/24 or 2024 onwards, Pulse has learned.

At a behind-closed-doors session of the England LMCs conference last month, LMCs were polled on whether they would support industrial or collective action if the Government fails to agree to a ‘meaningful’ contract in both 2023/24 and from 2024 onwards – with most voting strongly in favour, Pulse understands.

But Pulse also understands that there was some confusion around the polling and there was no clear agreement between GP representatives about what type of action should be taken going forward.

Some LMC leaders told Pulse there was ‘very little appetite for a full-scale walkout’ and that LMCs were concerned about the risks associated with industrial action, but there was more support for taking collective action, such as implementing workload limits.

One delegate commented that there was ‘a lot of discussion’ about what industrial or collective action might be, but there was ‘no resounding definitive direction’.

In his opening speech at the conference in November the deputy chair of the BMA GP committee Dr Kieran Sharrock said that GPs must be prepared to back industrial action if needed and LMCs should ‘go out and ask what action our colleagues are prepared to take’.

He added that GPs should go back to seeing only 25-35 patients per day to protect their wellbeing and if this can’t be delivered, standing ‘united as a profession’ in industrial action will be necessary.

He also said: ‘If we cannot agree with the Government a contract that delivers, then we must be prepared to take collective action to protect the bedrock of the NHS, which is general practice.’

Pulse understands that LMC leaders are concerned that there is a high likelihood of the Government saying it is too busy to negotiate and the existing contract rolling over from 2024.

This can happen in any year – the default position has always been that the Government can maintain the current contract without necessarily making any changes.

Earlier this year the executive team of the BMA’s GP Committee for England was given a mandate to ‘immediately escalate discussions with BMA Council’ on industrial action, in response to the GP pay announcement.

But the BMA has since told Pulse that it remains in the early stages of preparations for any GP industrial action and the specific form of GP industrial action will be ‘decided at a later date’.

The differing views of LMC representatives on industrial and collective action were highlighted in the motions put forward ahead of the November conference.

Hillingdon LMC stated that there is ‘not enough appetite amongst the profession for an all-out strike industrial action due to risk of patient harm’, while Berkshire LMC proposed that the conference ‘demands that GPC England look at all available options for industrial action in the case that an agreement cannot be reached on the new contract’.

Meanwhile, a ballot of the BMA’s junior doctor members on industrial action over pay is due to go ahead on Monday 9 January 2023.

Dr Sharrock, now acting chair of GPC England at the BMA, said: ‘There were a wide range of views expressed during this year’s conference, and we will use discussions and feedback from both days to help inform our work going forward.’

The BMA told Pulse that the polls held in the closed session of the LMCs conference were used to gauge sentiment on a number of issues, but do not form GPC England policy.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: ‘We are grateful for the phenomenal work general practice staff do on a daily basis to support patients. There has been no ballot of GP members by the British Medical Association.’