Oral Answers to Questions Debate
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Robin Walker
Main Page: Robin Walker (Conservative - Worcester)Department Debates - View all Robin Walker's debates with the Department of Health and Social Care
(10 years, 7 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Mr Robin Walker (Worcester) (Con)
1. What recent assessment he has made of the role of the Prime Minister’s challenge fund in improving access to GP services.
The Secretary of State for Health (Mr Jeremy Hunt)
Mr Speaker, it is a pleasure to see you again so soon.
The Prime Minister’s challenge fund will be rolled out over 1,100 of the 8,300 GP surgeries in the country. It will improve access out of hours, at weekends and electronically, and it will benefit up to 7.5 million people.
Mr Walker
I am glad that this Government, unlike the previous one, whose disastrous contract negotiations led to a decline in GP access, is making sure that out-of-hours care is as widely available as possible. Will the Secretary of State assure me that he will do whatever he can to ensure that places, such as Worcester, that have not yet been reached by the challenge fund will also see the benefits of this approach?