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NI health minister says new GP contract will ease appointment access
BBC News NI reports Northern Ireland's health minister said a new GP contract, with £40m extra over two years, will make appointments easier and that the GPs' committee will end collective action.
Northern Ireland's health minister said a new contract with general practitioners will make it easier for patients to get appointments, BBC News NI reported1.
The Department of Health, according to that report, will add £40 million over two years for patient access and primary care activity1. The department also said the 2026/27 General Medical Services contract is worth a further £17.384 million in-year, including £13.3 million of recurrent funding for core GP services1.
Minister Robbie Butler, as quoted by BBC News NI, said difficulty getting a GP appointment is among the issues raised with him most often, and that the financial package must deliver more appointments and services1. The report said he welcomed the NI General Practitioners Committee's commitment to rebuild a working relationship with the department and to end current collective action, and that the committee will take part in a neighbourhood model of health and wellbeing1.
BBC News NI said GP partners voted last year for collective action over funding, and that in May 2025 then-minister Mike Nesbitt imposed a disputed package after GPs rejected it, prompting a work-to-rule that included a 25-appointment daily cap and withdrawal of some non-contractual work1. Correspondent Marie-Louise Connolly wrote that the new sums appear to fall short of what general practice has said is required, and that GPs recently told Stormont's Health Committee they receive less than 6 percent of the health budget1. This desk did not read a department circular. Not medical advice1.