Jim Daly (Cork South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this issue. I assure the House that the Government is committed to engaging with GP representatives on the development of modernised GP contractual arrangements. Discussions with representatives were progressed on a wide range of items throughout 2017 without reaching a conclusion. A new phase of discussions commenced in May 2018 based on the mandate set by Government in March. Officials from the Department and the HSE met IMO officials, as the established GP representative body, at the beginning of May to set out the State’s position in regard to the GMS contract and to progress this important issue.

The State side set out the mandate agreed by Government under which the consultations were being conducted and the package of measures to be agreed. The Department subsequently wrote to the IMO, at the organisation’s request, setting out these proposals formally. The IMO responded to the Department by letter on 20 July. Talks resumed in October 2018 and there was intensive engagement, particularly in the weeks leading up to Christmas. While some progress was made, a number of outstanding issues need to be progressed before any agreement can be secured.

The State’s negotiating team is keen to bring a renewed focus to the engagement with the IMO and talks are continuing in an effort to bring matters to a conclusion. I look forward to positive and productive engagement with all parties concerned. Agreement on the delivery of service improvements and contractual reform would facilitate a substantial increase in the resourcing of general practice on a multi-annual basis. In line with the long-established approach to such processes, and by agreement of the parties concerned, I am not in a position to give further details while engagement between the parties is under way.

The Government is aware of workforce issues facing general practice, including the influence of demographic factors, and has implemented a number of measures to improve recruitment and retention in general practice. GP training places have been increased from 120 in 2009 to 202 places in 2019. The objective is to continue to achieve annual increases in the number of training places available while ensuring all places are filled.

The entry provisions to the GMS scheme have been changed to accommodate more flexible GMS contracts and the retirement age for GPs has been extended to 72. An enhanced support package for rural practices has been introduced, with improved qualifying criteria and an increased financial allowance of €20,000 per annum. Some 257 GP practice units, encompassing 347 individual GPs, are now in receipt of financial supports under this framework, a significant increase on the 167 GPs who received a rural practice allowance prior to the introduction of the 2016 measures.

The Government remains committed to the continued development of GP capacity to ensure that patients across the country continue to have access to GP services and that general practice remains an attractive career option.