Mr. Val Moran:

According to the most recent OED study, which I have seen, I think we are third bottom of that list, but comparing GP numbers across different jurisdictions is sometimes like comparing apples and oranges. We are towards the bottom of the table. England, as a comparator, would be up around the one GP per 1,000 mark and Scotland would be slightly higher than that. We are behind. There is also an issue with the distribution of GPs. For example, within a county there may be a 1:1,000 ratio, but in another county the ratio may be 0.55:1,000. It is the number of GPs and where they are that are the issues that need to be addressed. We are significantly behind the European average. It is sometimes difficult to know in terms of part-time workers, whole-time equivalents and issues like that.

Comparing jurisdictions can be difficult but on most of the measures, we would be behind the average.