Government does not get to choose negotiating partners, says BMA chair

The BMA’s council chair has waded into the GP contract row, arguing that the Government does not get to choose its negotiation partners.

As exclusively revealed by Pulse earlier this week, instead of negotiations with the BMA’s GP committee, the Government will ‘consult’ it alongside a wider group of stakeholders, including patient groups.

The RCGP – which was also on the list – said this afternoon that contract negotiation was outside its remit.

Health secretary Wes Streeting wrote to all GPs this morning to explain his side of the breakdown of the relationship with the BMA’s GP Committee, saying that his attempts at a ‘constructive relationship’ failed due to a lack of ‘mutual respect and professionalism’.

But BMA council chair Tom Dolphin said: ‘We would have much preferred the Health Secretary to contact the BMA privately and directly to seek de-escalation, rather than via the media. Governments do not get to decide their negotiating partners, and nor should they – we continue to call on Wes Streeting to get round the table and take a sound and solid approach to negotiating with the democratically elected representatives of England’s GP profession.

‘There are clearly difficult and uncomfortable conversations to be had, and we may often disagree, but both parties ultimately want the same goal: clinically safe environments to meet patient need, and a workforce that feels safe and supported.

‘We share so many of the Government’s ambitions for general practice: bringing back the family doctor, prioritising continuity of care, and securing best value for money. If the Government is struggling to achieve these, then that is even greater reason to work with us to secure positive change.’

The BMA previously said that its professionals have maintained honesty throughout the process, after Pulse reported yesterday that distrust was the Government’s reason for overhauling the GP contract process from a negotiation with the GPC to a consultation where it is just one stakeholder.

Mr Streeting’s letter mentioned Dr Bramall’s speech at the LMC conference earlier this month, in which she accused the Government of ‘disingenuousness’, ‘duplicity’ and ‘gaslighting’ – which the health secretary argued was ‘factually incorrect’.

In a video message to GPs today, GP committee chair Dr Katie Bramall said that GPs are ‘regulated medical professionals’ who ‘can’t lie’.

Dr Bramall said: ‘Our door remains open. We’re still waiting to hear on the back of the safety concerns we raised arising from the online consult survey from over 1,000 practices.

‘This year’s contract was agreed, in good faith, that we would continue to work together. More fool us, you might say, but we’re GPs, we’re regulated medical professionals like you. We can’t lie. We can’t spread mistruths. Remember that.’

In her message, Dr Bramall said that GPs should ‘get used’ to the BMA ‘being labelled as the bad guy’.

She added: ‘The NHS is unfixable in a system with no money. It’s much easier, especially if you have an eye towards leadership ambitions, to target the BMA – the trade union shining a light on those NHS failures. That’s much easier than a tricky interview.

‘And trade union bashing might chime with voters they’re keen to target. So, get used to us being labelled the bad guy, and watch attempts to discredit us.’

In response to the BMA’s role being diluted in the contract negotiations, she said that it was ‘important’ to recognise a departure ‘from the usual process’.

She said: ‘The Government does consult widely every year, but then they come to us. So it’s important to recognise this departure from the usual process – but it has happened before. We await with interest what their proposals are going to look like for 2026/27.

‘And, likewise, I think GPC England should be very open around our asks, our evidence base and our logic, so you as GPs can see exactly what we’re calling for and why.’

And she said the Government may have ‘galvanised’ the profession in a way it had not intended.

Further, in a press statement this afternoon, Dr Bramall said: ‘I want to thank the health secretary for recognising the hard work of GPs and practice staff. A near-record 40 million patients used NHS GP services in October. We warned this would happen – current pressures faced by practices are unsafe, unsustainable, and need to be addressed. We’re worried that the Government doesn’t understand that safe, meaningful patient care can be delivered only when practices are supported and resourced. 34p per patient per day – less than the price of an apple – was already inadequate resourcing, and the online access policy change further exacerbates this.

‘When GPs entered dispute with the Government on 1 October 2025, it was underpinned by the very real and present dangers of practices being overwhelmed by unlimited online queries. As the HSSIB (Health Services Safety Investigations Body) have said today in relation to electronic patient records, we must be wary of ‘systems which are poorly implemented, difficult to use, or do not meet the needs of staff and organisations can introduce avoidable patient safety risks, which can contribute to serious harm. Over 1,000 practices, caring for over 14 million patients, responded to our online access survey: 42% of practices told us they’ve had to cut face-to-face appointments to deal with the volume of online queries. Fewer appointments and practice meltdown isn’t a win for patients or the profession.

‘This is not about point scoring. It’s about the risk to patient safety. We have repeatedly sought to work with the Government all year to make their aspirations a safe success but, in recent weeks, attempts have been thwarted by incessant media briefings and nameless sources engaging in what I can only call relentless attacks on the integrity of the profession. However, we stand ready to put things right, as is our duty to the staff and patients we represent, to ensure care is safe for patients and practice staff to move forward constructively.’

Yesterday, GPCE deputy chair Dr David Wrigley – echoed by a number of other GP leaders – accused the Government of trying to ‘sideline’ the BMA as a trade union, against traditional Labour Party values.

Earlier this month, Pulse revealed that the GPC executive had been accused of ‘misleading’ the profession and keeping colleagues ‘in the dark’ during contract negotiations, which Dr Bramall subsequently denied.