Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support GP placements for medical students.

There are more people training to be general practitioners than ever before with a record 3,157 graduates entering general practice training in 2017-18.

In October 2016 my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced a historic expansion of undergraduate medical education in England, by funding up to 1,500 additional medical school places in each year from 2019. The criteria for the award of these additional training places includes as a focus the need to include priority specialties such as general practice.

Medical schools are responsible for setting education curricula at undergraduate level. Clinical placements are arranged locally to align with the requirements of medical schools and of local healthcare providers.