§ Mr. Shersbyasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the average earnings of a general medical practitioner in each of the first five years in general practice; and what are the comparable figures for a doctor working in a National Health Service hospital.
§ Mr. NewtonA straight comparison is not possible. After graduation, all doctors spend a year in the hospital house officer grade. Future general practitioners spend a further two years as senior house officers and a year attached to a practice as a trainee. These are minimum requirements, and a doctor will not necessarily enter general practice immediately thereafter. The National Health Service incomes of individual general practitioners would depend on a variety of factors, such as list sizes, services provided and partnership agreements. From 1 July 1986 the average intended net income of all unrestricted principals in general practice has been set at £25,080 following the recommendation of the Doctors and Dentists Review Body. It is, however, unlikely that a doctor would achieve this average in the first few years of practice.
Future hospital consultants spend at least a year as senior house officers, two to three years as registrars, and three to four years as senior registrars. These periods may be longer, depending on the individual and the specialty. The average salaries for practitioners on the first two points of the registrar scale and the first three points of the senior registrar scale are as follows:
£16,206 exclusive of London weighting allowance £877 (Inner) or £677 (outer) £17,023 £17,622 £18,553 £19,484