Revealed: Waiting times for GP appointments soar in North Yorkshire to nearly 300,000 in 2024 say Lib Dems

The research by the House of Commons Library, commissioned by the Liberal Democrats, revealed there were 299,152 waits of a month or longer for a GP appointment in North Yorkshire last year

In 2023 that figure stood at 210,330, which equates to a rise of 9% last year.

It meant that last year, waits of a month or longer in North Yorkshire accounted for 5% of all GP appointments.

Harrogate and Knaresborough Lib Dem MP Tom Gordon, said the figures laid bare how badly the Conservatives had broken local health services and criticised the Labour government for a “lack of urgency” in tackling the situation.

And he is calling for patients to be given a legal right to see their GP within a week.

“Behind these figures are individuals in our community who have had to wait in pain just to get the care they deserve, with potentially devastating consequences,” said Mr Gordon.

“It lays bare just how badly the Conservative broke health services here in North Yorkshire through their unforgivable neglect.

"The Labour government is now showing an inexcusable lack of urgency in fixing this crisis, opting for review after review instead of delivering action.

"Liberal Democrats are calling on the Government to grant a legal right for patients to see a GP within seven days or 24-hours if in urgent need.”

The new figures also show that waits of two weeks or longer are also soaring, accounting for 24.1% of all waits in North Yorkshire in 2023, a rise of 36%.

In total, there were 910,013 waits of two weeks or longer in 2024, up from 671,292 the previous year.

The Institute for Public Policy Research claims that, nationally, one in eight of those who could not see a GP went to A&E instead.

It is estimated that lack of access to GP appointments in good time could have been responsible for 50,000 deaths last year.