Wes Streeting on GPs

Wes Streeting, as Health Secretary, has positioned himself as a key reformer of General Practice, centred on delivering better patient access to primary care, particularly for urgent needs. His administration has backed a new GP contract for 2026 to 2027 with a significant funding uplift of £485 million, which is described as a real terms increase, building on prior investment. A central tenet of these reforms is the requirement for all patients with urgent needs to have access to a same-day GP appointment, aiming to fix what he terms the "front door of the NHS" and shift care out of hospitals and into the community.

This push for reform, however, has been marked by significant public tension with the BMA's GP Committee regarding contractual changes, notably around online access mandates. Streeting asserted that a breakdown in constructive engagement with the union representatives occurred due to a perceived lack of mutual respect and professionalism, leading the government to move the contract process from negotiation to broader consultation. He remains committed to the substantive reform of the GP contract within his parliamentary term, with the forthcoming ten-year workforce plan intended to place rewarding careers in general practice at its core.