Following the General Election on Thursday 4 July, we have written to all London MPs inviting them to meet with GPs in their areas, and we would like to gather some details from anyone working in practice interested in taking part.
Almost a third of the Capital’s 75 seats are now held by newly elected MPs, with London’s MPs now comprising 59 Labour, nine Conservative, six Liberal Democrats and one independent.
Liberal Democrats were strong across the south-west of the city, stacking up wins in Twickenham, Richmond Park, Wimbledon, Kingston and Surbiton, Sutton and Cheam and Carshalton and Wallington.
The Conservatives lost over half of their London seats and all their inner London seats, with every one of their current constituencies bordering the home counties. Of their previous 21 seats, they have retained Ruislip Northwood and Pinner, Harrow East, Chingford and Woodford Green, Romford, Hornchurch and Upminster, Old Bexley and Sidcup, Orpington, Bromley and Biggin Hill and Croydon South.
And former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn won his Islington North seat as an independent.
Over the coming weeks and months we will be engaging with our London MPs, both newly elected and re-elected, to continue to make the case for general practice in London, highlighting the important role and values of the profession and sharing concerns and challenges that we face. To do that effectively we need local practice and practitioners that are willing to host and meet with their local MPs.
In other key developments, Nigel Farage was elected in Clacton-on-Sea, George Galloway lost Rochdale to Labour’s Paul Waugh, and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt held on in Surrey. Whilst former prime minister Liz Truss lost her seat to Labour in one of the biggest shocks of election night, alongside former Labour Health Spokesman Jonathan Ashworth losing his Leicester South to independent Shockat Adam.
A record 242 women MPs have been elected, passing the previous record of 220 at the election in 2019. There are also record numbers of Labour, Reform, Independent, Green and Liberal Democrat MPs. With significantly fewer Conservative MPs.
We need you to help us tell these key opinion formers the story of general practice, and why it is so unique. We use data from our regular workforce surveys and elsewhere whenever we can, but human stories are far more impactful than data and we need people working in general practice to tell your story and show the people behind the jobs in general practice. These human stories help us to get media coverage, illustrate issues when meeting with local MPs and opinion formers, and create online campaigning resources. Anyone in the practice team can take part in these activities, as long as you can speak clearly about your work, what you do, and how that affects patient care.
You can find more information about your local MP here, by putting in your practice’s postcode.
Contact our communications team if you would like to know more about what we do in this area.
Read the latest from the GPDF supported “Rebuild GP” campaign here.