§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what monitoring is being undertaken by his Department to ensure that general practitioners continue to offer routine appointments beyond 48 hours if the patient chooses them, with particular reference to the GP access target. [174631]
§ Mr. HuttonPatients should be able to see a general practitioner within 48 hours if they want. Equally, patients should be able to pre-book appointments further ahead if this suits them. The former does not exclude the other and both options must be features of a modernised and responsive National Health Service.
Arrangements for monitoring progress towards the NHS Plan primary care access target require primary care trusts to check that practices are allowing patients to book ahead. Local centres of the national primary care development team continue to work with primary care trusts and practices to ensure that this is the case.