James Evans MS is disappointed in Welsh Labour’s decision to reject calls for improved GP access.
Access to GP surgeries is extremely important in supporting patients, but also alleviating pressures on Welsh hospitals. Yet under the Labour Government in Wales, in 2012 Wales had 473 practices, but as of December 2023, this had decreased to 374.
Yesterday (15/05) in the Senedd, the Welsh Conservatives brought forward a Senedd motion calling on the Welsh Government to adopt BMA Cymru Wales’ key campaign calls, and to ensure the full Barnet consequential arising from NHS spending by the UK Government is made available for the health service in Wales.
BMA Cymru Wales’ ‘Save our Surgeries’ campaign called on the Labour Government to ensure 11% of NHS Wales funding is spent on general practice and to ensure Wales trains, recruits, and retains enough GPs to move towards the OECD average number of GPs per 1000 people – but Labour MS’s rejected our calls to adopt these.
Commenting after the debate, James Evans MS, said:
“We must ensure the Welsh Labour Government adequately fund our GPs surgeries. They are under severe financial pressures and as a result we are seeing some GP practices reducing the services they offer, or closing satellite surgeries altogether.
“I support the Welsh Conservative calls on Welsh Labour Government to adopt the BMA Cymru Save Our Surgeries key campaign calls and to ensure the full Barnett consequential arising from NHS spending by the UK Government is made available for the health service in Wales.”
