BMA: GPs will feel let down by zero pay reward

The British Medical Association has said that GPs will feel let down by the zero pay award they are getting this year.

The Doctors and Dentists' Review Body recommended that GPs pay should remain unchanged. Taking inflation into consideration, some GPs are seeing this as a pay cut.

Dr Hamish Meldrum Chairman of the BMA's GP's Committee said: "This is a grievous insult to GPs. A zero increase equates to a pay cut."

He added: "For the second year running, not only will GPs get nothing to keep up with the cost of living, they will still have to meet all the annual increases of running their surgeries including paying their staff."

Dr Andrew Thomson, chairman of the GPC's Registrars sub committee called the pay decision "a significant retrograde step" given that there a shortage of GPs is predicted.

He said: "At a pivotal point for recruitment into general practice the pay of new GPs in training is being cut in real terms."

"We are extremely disappointed" he added.

Top and bottom of the salary range for salaried GPs employed by PCOs will be increased by £1,000.

By contrast, the armed forces will get an inflation-busting rise of 3.3 per cent.

Source material: A BMA press release

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