One in three UK GPs aren’t in the NHS, worsening patient loads due to underfunding and burnout.

One in three licensed GPs in England have never worked in or have left the NHS, with the number of NHS patients per GP rising 15% over the past decade. Experts cite funding issues, burnout, and poor working conditions as key reasons for the trend, which has led to a growing strain on remaining GPs. Despite an increase in the number of licensed GPs, NHS general practice has lost one full-time equivalent GP for every five newly licensed, contributing to a significant workload increase. The British Medical Association is urging the government to fund more GP roles and improve retention.