Lib Dems announce five-year plan to give patients in Hampshire, Southampton and Isle of Wight right to see a GP within a week

• A five-year plan to give patients in Hampshire, Southampton and Isle of Wight a right to see their GP within a week or 24-hours if in urgent need will be in the Liberal Democrat General Election manifesto the party has today announced
• Last year 1,845,132 appointments in Hampshire, Southampton and Isle of Wight took longer than two weeks to happen, under the Liberal Democrats plans every single patient will have the right to see their GP in seven days
• Havant’s Liberal Democrats have said that this Conservative government had “abandoned local health services” and called for a “fair deal for this community’s patients”

The Liberal Democrats have today (24th May) announced that their five-year plan to give patients in Havant a legal right to see a GP within a week or 24-hours if in urgent need will be in their General Election manifesto.

Last year there were 1,845,132 appointments that took over two weeks in Hampshire, Southampton and Isle of Wight, equating to 18.6% of appointments. This included a staggering 529,470 which took longer than a month, 5.3% of all appointments.

The number of disturbingly long waits in Hampshire, Southampton and Isle of Wight has been getting worse. In 2022, there were 1,546,000 over two weeks, or 16.6% of all appointments. Last year this shot up drastically to 1,845,132 or 18.6% of all appointments. 

The Liberal Democrats have said that under their plans, patients will no longer be left waiting for an appointment and risk their conditions getting worse.

The party will deliver the plan by:

- Increasing the number of full-time equivalent GPs by 8,000, half by boosting recruitment and half from retaining more experienced GPs.

- Freeing up GPs’ time by giving more prescribing rights and public health advisory services to qualified pharmacists, nurse practitioners and paramedics.

- Introducing a universal 24/7 GP booking system.

- Removing top-down bureaucracy to let practices hire the staff they need and invest in training.

- Havant’s Liberal Democrats said that this Conservative government had “abandoned local health services” and called for a “fair deal for this community's patients”. 

Parliamentary Candidate for Havant, Gayathri Sathyanath said:

“This Conservative government has driven our area’s local health services into the ground. Thousands of patients in the Havant Constituency are facing agonisingly long waits, often in terrible pain whilst waiting to see their GP.

“The Conservative party have proven themselves totally unfit to run our NHS. They have abandoned local health services and it is patients bearing the brunt of their neglect.

“It should not be too much to ask for patients to be able to see their GP when they need to. That is why the Liberal Democrats have committed to a fair deal for this community’s patients and legal right to see a GP within a week.”

Details on the Liberal Democrats plan for patients to have a legal right to see a GP within seven days or 24-hours if in urgent need:

• Enshrine a new right in the NHS constitution to see a GP or the most appropriate practice staff member within seven days, or within 24 hours.
• Increase the number of full-time equivalent GPs by 8,000, half by boosting recruitment and half from retaining more experienced GPs:
• Increasing training places for GPs.
• Making it more attractive for junior doctors to become GPs once they’ve been trained, including career development and training programmes.
• Retain experienced GPs and help them stay in the profession.
• Launching a scheme to encourage GPs and nurses who’ve left the NHS to return.
• Give everyone 70+ and everyone with long-term health conditions access to a named GP.
• Free up GPs’ time by giving more prescribing rights and public health advisory services to qualified pharmacists, nurse practitioners and paramedics.
• Introduce a universal 24/7 GP booking system.
• Remove top-down bureaucracy to let practices hire the staff they need and invest in training.

Read more about or plans in our Manifesto linked below: