Tories: Scottish Government has 'broken' promise to improve GP services

The Scottish Government has been accused of ‘breaking its promise’ to improve GP services by the Conservatives.

The government’s 2018 General Medical Service (GMS) contract aimed to address the financial pressures and growing workloads facing GPs, and to improve patients’ access to care.

But a report from Audit Scotland found that, despite the deal, the number of family doctors has fallen, the pressure on them has increased, and patients are finding it more difficult to access care.

Data has also shown that the number of direct dealings people have with their doctors have dropped by more than 100,000 over the space of a year.

It’s the lowest number of GP appointments carried out, either in person or over the phone, since records began in 2018, not including during the Covid pandemic.

Figures show there were 1,469,858 GP encounters in January this year, down from 1,583,148 in January 2024.

Scottish Tory health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane blamed “18 years of mismanagement” by the SNP.

“People want to see their doctor, and they’re not able to do that. There are 100,000 fewer appointments than there were last year. That is the stark reality of underfunding in general practice.”

The report from Audit Scotland showed it’s unlikely the Scottish Government will hit its target of hiring 800 new GPs by 2027.

It also says the government has failed on several of its commitments to tackle the growing workloads facing general practitioners.

Dr Gulhane added: “We’ve had a 2018 contract that has been broken. That’s left us with fewer full-time equivalent GPs, staff and GPs that are burnt out.

New data has shown that the number of direct dealings people have with their doctors have dropped by more than 100,000 over the space of a year. STV News

“Many people will be experiencing the 100, 200 phone calls at 8am to try to get an appointment. Yet there are GPs that are not working, and this is because the SNP are not funding general practice properly.

“We’re being left out of the loop when it comes to funding arrangements. The root cause of the problem is underfunding general practice.

“The solution is to significantly increase investment in general practice.”

Dr Gulhane accused the SNP of “false promises” and leaving the NHS in “a shocking state”.

“Neil Gray has broken his promise to the nurses and when it comes to general practice,” he added.

“The SNP is not to be trusted with our health service.”

BMA Scotland says the Scottish Government must invest directly in GP practices to safeguard the service.

The Scottish Government says it is committed to delivering more GPs and has set out a plan to improve patient access, with more than 2 billion pounds earmarked for primary care next year.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Scotland has the highest number of General Practitioners per head in the UK with 82 GPs per 100,000 population, compared with 64 in England. The Scottish Government recognises the pressures and challenges faced in general practice and wider primary care and is taking steps to address them.

“General Practice has received a record additional £73.2m funding increase in the 2024-25 Scottish Budget. Spending on Primary Care as a whole will be over 11% of the total 2025-26 Health & Social Care resource budget. The number of General Practitioners has increased by 307 since 2017, with a record number of over 1200 General Practitioners in training and plans for further recruitment and retention.

“As part of our plans for NHS renewal, a greater proportion of new NHS funding will go to primary and community care – making it easier for people to see their GP. This will also ensure GPs and services in the community have the resources they need to play a greater role in our health system. In January 2025 there were approximately 2.9 million direct General Practice appointments – a mix of face to face, telephone, video and eConsultations which reflects the invaluable work GPs undertake.”