Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with professional bodies representing General practitioners to encourage the resumption of face to face consultations in General practice as covid-19 lockdown restrictions are eased.

Ministers and officials regularly meet with stakeholders on issues related to general practice.

On 25 March 2021, NHS England and NHS Improvement published its 2021/22 priorities and operational planning guidance which sets the priorities for the year ahead. This included, as part of restoring and increasing access to primary care services, that all practices should offer face to face consultations, alongside continuing to increase the use of online consultations as part of embedding total triage.