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Hunt says GPs do a ‘brilliant job’ though their role is tougher than ever

Health secretary Jeremy Hunt has said GPs’ jobs ‘are tougher than ever’ and thanked them on behalf of the whole country for doing a brilliant job in his speech yesterday at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham.

Mr Hunt extended his thanks to other clinicians, managers and NHS support staff and said ‘nothing will stand in our way’ when it comes to making the NHS safer, more responsive and open seven days week. 

He also set out what steps the Government would be taking to make the NHS more transparent about clinical mistakes, and to enable it to learn from these, trailing the idea of a ‘safe space’ for doctors to discuss medical errors.

In the same speech he confirmed his pre-announced commitment to create 1,500 more places at medical schools, and to make the UK ‘self-sufficient’ in doctors in part by conscripting them to work in the NHS for four years.

The health secretary said: ‘A safer NHS doing more emergency care than ever for you and your family… In short, despite the pressures of an ageing population, giving better care to more people than ever.

‘So on behalf of the whole country let’s thank all the hospital doctors, GPs, nurses, paramedics, counsellors, managers, porters, cleaners, caterers and volunteers for their work on the NHS frontline. Their jobs are tougher than ever and they do a brilliant job.’