Political opinion: Lib Dems announce 5-year plan to give patients in Chichester right to see GP quickly

This is a contributed party political press release. This website and its associated newspapers support no political party and it does not necessarily reflect our views. We consider contributed releases from all lawful parties as part of the vibrant debate in the run-up to the General Election and would encourage all candidates to use this platform to positively explain their vision and policies for their local communities.

The Liberal Democrats say that under their plans, patients will no longer be left waiting for an appointment and risk their conditions getting worse. They will partly deliver the plan by increasing the number of full-time equivalent GPs by 8,000, half by boosting recruitment and half from retaining more experienced GPs.

Freeing up GPs’ time by giving more prescribing rights and public health advisory services to qualified pharmacists, nurse practitioners and paramedics, will also be part of the plan. In addition, the plan includes introducing a universal 24/7 GP booking system and removing top-down bureaucracy to let practices hire the staff they need and invest in training.

“This Conservative government has failed to invest in, or deliver the change needed, to help our local health services cope. Thousands of patients in the Chichester area are facing long waits, often in terrible pain whilst waiting to see their GP or find it hard to navigate the booking system in their surgery,” said Jess Brown-Fuller, the Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate for Chichester.

“I believe in our NHS and want to make it fit for purpose so that it can help make our country fit for purpose again. It should not be too much to ask for patients to be able to see their GP when they need to,’’ she said, adding that the “Liberal Democrats have committed to a fair deal for this community’s patients and legal right to see a GP within a week, or 24 hours if urgent.”