MP blasts GP waiting times as 1,900 patients in East Hull ‘wait a month’ for appointment
‘Twelve years of Conservative failure’: Karl Turner MP
By Simon Bristow
East Hull MP Karl Turner has criticised GP waiting times after new figures showed more than 1,900 people in his constituency waited 28 days or more to see a doctor in October.
Mr Turner said his constituents were finding it “impossible” to see a doctor when they needed to, raising concerns that conditions will be “going undiagnosed until it is too late”.
The MP said NHS data showed that more people are waiting a month for a GP appointment than at any time since when records began in 2017. In East Hull, 1,907 people faced a wait of 28 days or more to see a GP in October, with a further 4,043 people waiting more than two weeks.
Almost two million people in England had to wait more than 28 days in October, Mr Turner said, while a further 4.3 million had to wait more than two weeks. At the same time, the number of GPs has fallen to a record low, leaving patients in a “desperate scramble to be seen”, the Labour MP said.
The findings come as MPs prepare to vote on a motion proposed by the Labour Party to abolish the non-dom tax status - which allows some wealthy people who live in Britain to pay their taxes overseas - which it says would pay for the training of a new generation of NHS staff.
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“Patients in East Hull are finding it impossible to see a GP when they need to,” Mr Turner said. “Among those thousands waiting more than a month or not getting an appointment at all, there will be conditions going undiagnosed until it is too late.
“Twelve years of Conservative failure to train the staff our NHS needs has left it with thousands fewer GPs, and patients are paying the price. Meanwhile the Conservatives are protecting the non-dom tax status, allowing people who live in Britain to pay their taxes overseas. We need doctors and nurses, not non-doms.
“Labour will train a new generation of doctors and nurses, paid for by abolishing non-doms. Patients need doctors’ appointments more than the wealthiest need a tax break.”
He added: “Patients should be able to see the doctor they want, in the manner they choose, when they need to. Labour will put patients first and get them seen on time again.”
Mr Turner said Labour’s plan would see patients “guaranteed” a face-to-face appointment with a GP if they want one. Labour is also pledging to bring back the family doctor, so patients can see the same GP each appointment if they choose to.