Practices will face a tripling of fees for inspections in the coming year, it has been announced.

GP leaders condemned the increases – although government sources claim they are covered by changes to the practice contract.

Some NHS Trusts will also face a near doubling of fees over the next two years.

The move has been triggered by big reduction in government funding of the Care Quality Commission over the next four years.

But GP leader Dr Chaand Nagpaul called for a reduction in the “bureaucratic and expensive” inspection system run by the CQC.

The charges mean that a practice with one location and fewer than 10,000 patients will see their fee increase from £725 to £2,574 in the coming year.

He said: “These increases will see a significant rise in fees for GP practices at a time when many are under intense, unsustainable pressure from rising patient demand, falling resources and staff shortages.”

He added: “GPs have long since lost confidence in a cumbersome, time consuming CQC process that has been beset by U-turns and mismanagement, including the withdrawal last year of part of the inspection programme which ludicrously allocated ratings to practices before inspectors had even arrived at the practice.”

Commission chief executive David Behan said: “We understand that the scheme that has been put forward is not the one the majority of those who took part in our consultation would have preferred.

“In order to achieve our requirement to the government and commitment to the taxpayer, we need to work towards reaching full cost recovery while reducing our overall budget by at least £32m.”

He added: “The fee paid by providers is the charge for entering and remaining in a regulated sector. The public deserves nothing less than safe, high-quality and compassionate health and adult social care, and we must continue to act in their best interests.”