WES STREETING: 'Tide is finally starting to turn on 8am scramble for GP appointments'

When I became Health and Social Care Secretary last year, I promised on the front page of this very newspaper to bring back the family doctor to end the 8am scramble that too many patients have had to put up with.

Thanks to this government’s Plan for Change, the tide is finally starting to turn and we are delivering on that promise.

I pledged that we would cut red tape to rapidly hire 1,000 new GPs – many of whom were young doctors in the ludicrous position of being unemployed while patients were struggling to see a doctor.

In just 10 months, we’ve smashed through that target and hired more than 2,000 new GPs across England – and many of those are working in working-class communities hit hardest by years of underinvestment and mismanagement.

Mirror readers are among the many thousands already feeling the benefits. It means millions more appointments. More patients being seen. More peace of mind.

The latest figures tell a powerful story. Just a year ago, nearly one in five patients said they struggled to contact their GP.

Today, nearly 73% of patients who got in touch their practice rates their experience as good or very good, according to an independent survey by the Office for National Statistics.

That’s progress and it’s happening because this government is doing things differently.

We tore up the red tape that prevented newly qualified GPs from being hired. We invested £82 million to help local practices take on new staff.

We’re not stopping there. Our 10 Year Health Plan is shifting power and services out of London and into communities where they belong, building neighbourhood health services rooted in prevention, not simply cure.

That means health centres under one roof, on your doorstep, with GPs, nurses, physiotherapy and mental health support all working as one team to keep you and your loved ones well.

The truth is, for too long working people, especially in places like the North, the Midlands, and coastal towns, have been treated like second-class citizens when it comes to healthcare. Illness doesn’t discriminate, so why should our health services?

That’s why this government is rebuilding the NHS so it works for everyone. Boosting appointments, widening access, calling time on the postcode lottery for health.

We’ve still got a mountain to climb, but better access to the family GP is already making a difference to people’s lives. This is our Plan for Change in action. A government committed to delivering an NHS fit for the future, where no one gets left behind.

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