£240m to make GP access 'easier'

THE AIM IS TO END THE '8AM SCRAMBLE'

- SOPHIE WINGATE

PATIENTS will be able to contact their GPs for an appointment more easily under Government proposals to improve access to primary care.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said practices will be handed £240 million this year to introduce online booking tools and upgrade telephone systems, as ministers aim to end the “8am scramble” of patients ringing surgeries for a slot.

More receptionists will be trained, with their role expanded so they can assess patients’ needs and speed up the booking process.

The announcement comes as Rishi Sunak hopes to bounce back from a difficult set of local election results, which saw the Tories shed some 960 seats.

The Prime Minister will be keen to show he is working to cut NHS waiting lists, one of his five priorities.