The Nuffield Trust: Why does England have unemployed GPs when patients can’t get GP appointments? (14 January 2026)

Summary

The irony is palpable and unpleasant: unemployed and underemployed GPs are struggling to find NHS work, while patients can’t get a GP appointment when they want one. With public satisfaction with general practice at record lows, this is not a tenable situation for a government committed to improving access to general practice. 

For over a decade, England struggled with a lack of GPs. Faced with high and rising workloads, many GPs cut their clinical hours. Others retired, or took jobs outside general practice. Practices struggled to recruit, and GP training places went unfilled. Challenges with high GP workload, burnout and falling job satisfaction remain, but in the past two years the labour market in general practice has changed significantly. From practices clamouring for recruits, GPs are now clamouring for practices to recruit them. 

This short paper from the Nuffield Trust explores the mix of reasons behind the underemployment of GPs in England.