NEWS: GP Practices Warn Tax Rise Threatens Viability

As reported by BBC News, doctors fear National Insurance hike could force cuts or closures for already strained GP surgeries

GP practices could be pushed “over the edge” by a planned rise in the National Insurance (NI) rate for employers, a doctor has said.

The government has said the NHS and the rest of the public sector would be shielded from the rise but that does not cover GP practices, many of which are run as small businesses.

Dr Andrew Purbrick, who represents 300 GP practices across the south of England, said many would be forced to cut back on staffing or close.

Changes announced in the Budget mean that, from next April, employers would have to pay NI at 15% on salaries above £5,000, instead of the current 13.8% on salaries above £9,100.

GP practices receive their funding through contracts with the NHS.

Dr Purbrick is joint chief executive of the Wessex Local Medical Committees (WLMC), which covers Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Dorset, Wiltshire and Somerset.

He said the current core funding amounted to £112.50 per patient annually and did not cover costs.

The tax rises were a “hammer blow to already fragile practice finances”, said the GP, adding: “It feels like a kick in the teeth when you are already really down.”

The Institute of General Practice Management, which represents GP practice managers, has estimated the rise will put up the tax bill of the average sized surgery by around £20,000 a year, with planned increases to the minimum wage adding another £10,000 on average to wage costs.

A government spokesperson said it had taken “tough decisions to fix the foundations” so that a £22bn boost for the NHS and social care could be announced in October’s Budget.