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24. Dr Louise Irvine

24 dr louise irvine power50 2017 24

24 dr louise irvine power50 2017 24

Although this south London GP ultimately failed in her bid to unseat health secretary Jeremy Hunt at the last election, she took second place with more than 12,000 votes.

Dr Irvine has a history of bold moves, but representing the National Health Action party and gaining 20% of the votes in a safe Tory seat was a career highlight.

She tells Pulse: ‘I am preparing for the possibility of an early general election and maybe standing again, I hope as part of a “progressive alliance” with other parties standing down in favour of a single candidate to take on Jeremy Hunt.’

The GP partner – who sits on the BMA Council, is a GP trainer and secretary of Doctors in Unite – also helped organise March’s 200,000-strong national demonstration in defence of the NHS.

Expect more from this influuential GP, who adds: ‘We expect to be campaigning in support of a re-tabled NHS Reinstatement Bill, which would end privatisation and reinstate the NHS as a proper public service.

‘I will be supporting the GP campaign in defence of general practice because I fear that unless we take concerted action general practice could collapse and we would lose something that is incredibly precious. We’ve got to act together to have any hope of success.’

Why influential

GP campaigner on a mission to unseat the health secretary

What she says

‘I am preparing for the possibility of an early election’

Random fact

Spent two years as a volunteer doctor in Nicaragua

Three GPs elected MPs as Dr Louise Irvine steals chunk of Hunt majority

What practices need to know about collective list closures