A letter from Dean Marshall, Chairman of the SGPC,
regarding the New GMS Contract Negotiations
17 January 2008
Dear Colleague
Further to the letters sent to the profession by the GPC Chairman, Dr Laurence Buckman, on 20 December and 8 January, which set out details of the position reached on nGMS contract negotiations, I am writing to provide you with additional information on the current Scottish position.
I had hoped to update you earlier on specific Scottish developments and I appreciate that there has been significant unrest and speculation amongst the profession about what the consequences would be for Scottish general practice should the UK governments’ final offer not be accepted by the profession. The Scottish Government Health Department has, however, only just written to us setting out the amendments they propose to make on 1 April 2008 to GMS contracts and the Scottish Statement of Financial Entitlements should the profession reject the UK governments’ final offer.
Unfortunately the consultation process being adopted by the Scottish Government raises a number of issues that need clarification before I can provide you with a detailed explanation of the implications for Practices.
The SGPC negotiators need to clarify the statutory basis for the consultation process and the detail and implications of the changes SGHD intend making to GMS contracts should the profession not accept the final offer. The SGPC negotiating team will be meeting SGHD very soon to get clarification on these issues and we would intend sharing the details of the Scottish proposals with you as soon as possible after that meeting.
I very much regret that I am unable at this stage to provide as much detail on the Scottish imposition proposals as I had hoped, but the issues are complex and I would not wish to share incomplete or ambiguous information which could lead to further unnecessary unrest and confusion.
The GPC will shortly be conducting a UK-wide opinion poll to seek the views of all GPs about whether they wish to accept or reject the UK governments’ final offer. I can confirm that comprehensive information on the details of any Scottish imposition proposals will be included in that communication to allow you to consider the implications for you and your Practice.
This is an extremely difficult time for general practice and I know that you will be concerned about what the future holds for you and your practice. The SGPC negotiating team will be visiting as many LMCs as possible over the coming weeks to provide updates and information progress with negotiations and to receive feedback from you through your LMC representatives.
Dean Marshall
Chairman
Scottish General Practitioners Committee