Central planning won’t solve the problem of GP shortages

Under plans being considered by ministers, GPs in affluent parts of England could be barred from taking jobs in wealthy areas to force them to work in deprived areas, in a bid to address health inequalities. The solution to doctor shortages, apparently, is to make the job less attractive.

This would be the healthcare equivalent of the government taking charge of the hospitality industry and informing the owners of the Ivy that all new restaurants should be located in towns north of the Watford Gap, to ensure the pleasures of fine dining are evenly enjoyed across the country. And yet the Social Market Foundation (SMF) who put forward this proposal is suggesting that where GPs work should no longer be a matter for GPs and the practices that employ them.

The trouble is that our system of national pay bargaining and centralised control over healthcare inevitably leads to crises and shortages in some areas – just as it did in the Soviet Union.