Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:32 pm on 1 May 2018.
Cabinet Secretary, isn't one of the issues with locums the fact that not only can they earn £800 plus a day without the responsibilities of running a practice, but that the tax system under which they operate means that they can effectively, by setting up as a co-operation, pay just 20 per cent tax and the rest as dividends? And what, effectively, the locum system is actually doing is undermining GP practices. Is it the case that the Government is making representations or having discussions with the UK Government about changing the tax system so that it cannot actually work in this particular way and we actually give support to those who take on the day-to-day, ongoing running of GP practice and the long-term medical provision that we require from our GPs, rather than what is, understandably, people who can see far better terms and conditions and earnings by coming in as locums?