Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will set out whether returnship support announced in the Spring Budget 2017 will include measures to encourage women to return to medical practice as GPs.

In the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced £5 million of new funding to support women to return to work following taking time out to have children. In order to identify how best to increase the number of returnships with this funding, the Government will be working with both business groups and public sector organisations.

In addition, NHS England has completed a review of the GP Induction and Refresher Scheme, and is part way through implementing a range of improvements to it to make it easier and quicker for doctors to return to practice, while maintaining necessary safeguards of quality and safety. There are currently over 200 doctors on the scheme; this compares to only 20 doctors completing the scheme in the first year following its launch in 2015.

During March 2017, NHS England will also be launching a “Return to General Practice” marketing campaign, including print and social media adverts aiming to promote the package of financial and practical support now available to returning GPs.