Liz Truss working on plan to stop GPs leaving NHS as appointment backlog grows

Liz Truss is seeking Tory member votes in announcing her NHS plans

(Picture: PA Wire)

Liz Truss is to announce a series of radical reforms in order to stop the exodus of doctors from the NHS.

As the health service struggles with a backlog of Covid-19 cases and appointments, The Daily Telegraph reports that the Conservative leadership election front runner will unveil a series of pledges to stop doctors retiring while bringing retirees back to the NHS.

Due to NHS pension conditions, one in 10 GPs or consultants is set to quit the profession in the next 18 months as they feel they would be effectively paying to work.

Social care chiefs have already raised concerns that a lack of GPs would affect the Covid booster roll-out planned this autumn for the over-50s.

In addition, the backlog is reported to be causing more than 1,000 excess deaths per week and currently 6.73 million people who are waiting for treatment.

In order to stop doctors retiring early and to entice them back to the NHS, Ms Truss will allow doctors to contineu working after they have reached their pension cap, and not pay extra tax.

This is part of a plan to “cut red tape and dealing with issues in the pension and tax system that currently act as barriers for people wanting to return,” a source close to Ms Truss said.

At present, once doctors reach their lifetime pension cap they will pay tax on their investment - meaning it can be financially disadvantageous to continue in work. Ms Truss has said she will stop the tax bills that have seen 70 per cent of doctors reduce their hours later in their careers.

Ms Truss is also looking at plans for a short-term programme to relax pensions rules which would allow retired doctors to return in place of current short-term prgrammes.

The Foreign Secretary is also looking at restructuing the pensions plan in order to end the automatic obligation on paying 14.5 per cent of their earning into their pension.

According to the Royal College of Surgeong of England, 69 per cent of those who responded to a trecent poll, said thei will reduce the amount they work in the NHS due to pensiosn taxation rules.

A source close to her said: “The Covid pandemic put unprecedented strain on our NHS, and the resulting backlog is seeing people struggling to get appointments and treatments. We must act to tackle it, and we will.

“We will make it easier for doctors and nurses who have recently left or are planning to leave the NHS but want to return or stay to do so.”