'Crisis' of missing GPs

The shortage of GPs has reached crisis level, the Government has been told.

The warning came after latest Department of Health figures showed that there were 3,435 unfilled GPs' jobs in England and Wales at the end of March.

This figure is up by a third from 2,630 last year.

Liberal Democrat health spokesman Paul Burstow said: 'Patients are facing enormous difficulties finding a GP.

'Quite simply, the crisis is heading towards meltdown.'

The NHS survey found that 3.4 per cent of posts had been vacant for at least three months at the end of March, compared to 2.7 per cent last year.

Practices in deprived urban communities have the most trouble recruiting. Doctors' leaders have warned of increasing workloads for the GPs that remain.

But health minister John Hutton said there were more GPs in the NHS than ever before.

He said: 'Between September 2002 and June 2003, the number of GPs increased by 800. This is a total increase of 1,535 since 1999.'

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