Minister insists pay rises for general practice nurses should follow funding uplift

Care minister Stephen Kinnock has emphasised that GP practices are expected to pass on government funding increases to general practice nurses (GPN), but acknowledged there is no contractual obligation for them to do so.

In response to a parliamentary question from Labour MP Samantha Niblett on GPN pay, Mr Kinnock pointed to the 8.9% uplift in the 2025/26 GP contract as the ‘biggest cash increase in over a decade’.

He said this increase in core funding, intended to deliver a 4% pay rise for salaried and contractor GPs, also allows for pay uplifts for other salaried general practice staff, including nurses.

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He added: ‘We expect GP contractors to implement pay rises to other practice staff in line with the uplift in funding they have received.’

However, he reiterated that as GPNs are employed by independent GP contractors, the government cannot mandate pay parity with NHS nurses on Agenda for Change contracts.

‘General practice contractual arrangements do not place any specific obligations on practices regarding general practice nurse terms and conditions,’ he emphasised.

Mr Kinnock also echoed a previous statement in which he expressed a commitment to ensuring that the general practice nursing workforce is ‘sustainable, supported and valued’.

The care minister has also previously promised that the government will ensure that nurses are ‘better treated, have better training, more fulfilling roles, and hope for the future’.

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However, Edward Morello, Liberal Democrat MP for West Dorset, has raised concerns regarding pay and conditions, pointing out that a 2024 Royal College of Nursing (RCN) survey found that less than half of general practice nurses received the uplift intended by the government.

He has also highlighted a report by Nursing in Practice from last year that found the average salary of a full-time (or full-time equivalent) general practice nurse in the UK is £35,057, which he said was ‘significantly below NHS colleagues’.

Mr Morello warned that improving pay and conditions ‘will continue to be an uphill struggle’ without stronger advocacy for nurses in general practice.

He observed that there is ‘no one for the government to sit down and negotiate with’ regarding GPN pay.

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In response, Patricia Marquis, Royal College of Nursing director for England, expressed disappointment with some of the MP’s comments, particularly around there not being a strong voice or ‘one organisation’ for GPN advocacy.

She said: ‘We are very clear that we are the organisation that should be doing this. We have got a whole team of people that work on general practice – both on professional and pay issues – and for us it is one of our major pieces of work.’