From the Daily Mail today:
More than 134,000 written complaints about GPs were made to NHS England last year, with communication issues, staff attitudes and treatment errors driving the deluge. The data shows record numbers of patients are so unhappy with their experience of services that they have lodged their concerns – marking a 10 per cent rise since 2023-24.
It comes after a damning survey revealed that GP surgeries are forcing the elderly to book appointments online, against NHS rules – which say there must be a range of booking methods. The data, published by NHS Digital, shows 134,501 complaints were made against GPs in 2024-25 – accounting for just over half of all grievances shared with the NHS.
So, if as the media operating in Scotland dearly wish, things were at least as bad in Scotland, that’d be one tenth, 13 450?
From Annual report on NHS complaints 2024 to 2025, published 20 January 2026:
The number of complaints received by Independent Contractorsincreased by 3% to 9,689 (previously 9,397) in 2024/25. Of this total, the number received by Independent GP Practices increased by 8% to 7,513 (previously 6,949) but those received by Independent Pharmacy contractors decreased by 23% to 1,081 (previously 1,406).
How big a percentage difference is that, from 13 450 down to to, in effect, only 7 513?
45% lower.
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Talking-up Scotland 
Family member’s experience of a GP service in Edinburgh this morning has been recounted to me knowing my interest in NHS Scotland.
Call made to GP surgery at 8am to request an appointment. Phone answered after a moment or two, to be told firstly their position in phone-in queue and then offered option of a call back when they reached the head of the queue.
As they were second in queue, they held on and got through a few moments later. Appointment arranged for 0910 hrs, yes one hour later.
When told of this, I found it hard to believe it could ever be this good. But with this particular GP practice, on this particular day, it proved to be exceptional. I was told that the practice has upgraded its telephone answering service to include this ‘request a call back’ option.
My suspicion is that a good portion of the variability in the service patients experience may be down to differences in how individual GP practices, independent partnership businesses, are run rather than an overall, systemic malaise.
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Daily Mail reporters / editors clearly skipped maths classes at school.
Or they’re liars…
How about offering them some lessons Prof? In your spare time 🙂
John (not anonymous) Lawson.
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