GP Locum Services

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:34 pm on 1 May 2018.

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Photo of Rhun ap Iorwerth Rhun ap Iorwerth Plaid Cymru 1:34, 1 May 2018

Another sign of the pressure on primary care was when those figures last week showed the number of GPs working full-time in our primary care surgeries in Wales hitting a low of more than 10 years. And, I'm sorry, but I'm not as relaxed as you are about that. You said again today, as we've heard from Government in the past, 'Don't worry about the number of full-time GPs; we've got plenty of locums.' Well, I'm afraid that's not acceptable, because what you have in a locum is somebody who will more likely work fewer hours, for more money, and it undermines the sustainability of the NHS. Isn't it about time that we saw concrete steps from Welsh Government to stop the drift towards agency and locum working, and to put primary care on a more sustainable footing for the future?