GPs in Wales have voted overwhelmingly to reject the 24/25 General Medical Services (GMS) contract offered by the Welsh Government last month. The unequivocal result was delivered just weeks after the BMA’s committee of GP representatives in Wales voted to reject the contract.
GPs and GP registrars from across the country took part in BMA Cymru Wales’ online referendum which ran from November 25 to December 16, with 99% voting ‘reject’ to the question: Do you accept the 2024/25 GMS Contract offer for General Practice from the Welsh Government?
The referendum saw more GPs in Wales join the BMA than ever before, reflecting the strength of feeling amongst the profession. BMA Cymru Wales deemed the offer “derisory” and said it failed to offer a sustainable future for GP services, which see up to 90% of NHS patient contact.
The BMA’s Welsh GP committee, which represents the profession will now take this mandate to the Welsh Government and ask that they urgently improve the terms on offer. If they choose to ignore the unified voice of Welsh GPs, the BMA will continue with preparations for collective action by GPs.
Dr Gareth Oelmann, chair of the BMA’s Welsh GP committee said: “The profession has delivered a clear message with this result. We simply cannot keep services going and meet the needs of our patients with less money and fewer resources.
“If we accept the offer as it is, more practices will undoubtedly close, leaving patients in greater peril; that’s why GPs from across Wales have taken a stand.
“For years, the service has been starved of adequate funding which has led to the closure of 100 surgeries since 2012.
“This is having a devastating impact on general practice. A recent survey of our members showed that 91% of GPs are routinely unable to meet patient demand due to unsustainably high workloads.
“With fewer surgeries available, GPs are now seeing up to 35% more patients each, leading GPs to burnout, reduce their hours or leave. This is neither safe nor sustainable.
“That is why we launched our Save Our Surgeries campaign last year, which called on the Welsh Government to provide an urgent rescue package.
“Despite this, the Welsh Government has once again chosen to disregard our major, evidence-based concerns with this derisory offer.
“We know that if general practice had a fairer portion of NHS funding for the wide-ranging portfolio of services we provide, the NHS in Wales would have a far greater chance of success, and most importantly, benefit patients overall.”
James Evans MS, Welsh Conservative Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care said: “The Welsh Labour Government has lost the confidence of GPs the length and breadth of Wales.
“We have sadly lost one hundred practices in just over a decade as a result of Labour’s mismanagement. To prevent strike action and to improve primary care for people across Wales, Labour ministers need to get back around the table and agree to far greater support for our GPs.
“The Welsh Conservatives support the BMA’s Save Our Surgeries campaign. We forced a vote on its implementation in the Senedd, but sadly it was rejected by Labour. They must reconsider now.”
Plaid Cymru’s spokesperson for Health and Social Care, Mabon ap Gwynfor MS, said: “It’s no surprise that GPs in Wales have rejected the Labour Welsh Government’s latest offer – they’re being asked to do more for less, with patients paying the price.
“GP services are crucial to the NHS yet they face a recruitment and retention crisis; funding erosion; and increased employers’ National Insurance contributions – all of which Labour have presided over. Plaid Cymru would look to increase the GP services’ share of NHS funding and recruit 500 more doctors to tackle these issues and put them and the NHS on a sustainable footing.”
