NHS England has rebutted calls for GPs to be given a pay rise above 1%, stating that there are ‘no compelling issues’ with recruiting salaried GPs in its supplementary evidence to the pay review body.
The Doctors and Dentists Review Body (DDRB) had noted that ‘salaried GP recruitment and retention is a problem for some areas of England’ in its original response to NHS England’s calls for a pay increase of no more than 1%. However, NHS England responded that while it was aware of the the problem in some areas of England, it should not be remedied with a further pay increase.
The DDRB will make recommendations to NHS England on how much GPs’ pay should be uplifted in the new year. However, NHS England is under no obligation to take on board the review body’s recommendations, as was the case last year, when health secretary Jeremy Hunt ignored its recommended 2.29% increase, and awarded a 1.32% uplift instead.