GPs have “no choice” but to take industrial action after the latest contract imposition, a doctors’ group says.

On Monday night the NHS England announced arrangements for practices for the coming year after talks broke down with the British Medical Association. Contractual changes include a requirement that practices do not tell callers to “ring back later” but ensure they are signposted to services. The BMA has been angered that there has been no increase in funding to match inflation. In recent years it has proposed sanctions such as boycotting primary care networks in response to battles with the government.

The Doctors’ Association UK yesterday said it was “deeply troubled” by the imposition – and felt that GPs have no choice but to proceed to industrial action. It said: “Whilst some may feel uncomfortable with this given the risk to patients, the precedent of imposing contracts on GPs, with higher demands and no increased funding, means doctors more will leave the NHS entirely and this is the greatest current risk to patients.”

The association’s GP leader Dr Lizzie Toberty said: “This contract imposition seems to imply NHSE does not view GPs as equal partners in providing high quality patient care, but as a profession who need to be beaten into submission. If we as a profession do not collectively act to resist these changes, I fear we will see an acceleration of two-tier medical care, similar to that of dentistry. We need to work together to develop a well-resourced model of primary care deserving of the people of this country”.

Another GP Dr Steve Taylor said: “The new GP contract, imposed on a overwhelmed workforce, has again failed to address the issues affecting GP practices. Despite doing 20% more appointments and much more additional work since 2019; GPs are doing this with a smaller number of GPs. 473 fewer in this year alone. This is not the ‘2,000 more’ quoted by both Rishi Sunak & Steve Barclay, who are counting doctors yet to qualify and many of whom aren’t staying. This is why numbers are falling year on year, with retention of all age groups failing. The lack of funding provision, whilst adding layers of additional work makes this contract unworkable. It will increase the numbers leaving and make some practices financially unviable. We stand with the BMA in their stance and response to this imposed contract”.

The Royal College of GPs said it was concerned that NHS England is asking practices to do more without more resources.

Chair Professor Kamila Hawthorne said: “Our warnings about the intense pressures GPs and our teams are working under and the impact this is having on patients need to be acted upon. We know thousands of GPs are considering leaving the profession in the coming years, many citing workload and workforce pressures as the reasons why, and that would make it even harder for patients to get the care and services they need when they need it. We are concerned that imposing this contract could worsen this situation, particularly if significant additional resources do not follow.”