GP surgeries 'bursting at seams'

Three-quarters of GP practices are "bursting at the seams" and will soon be unsuitable for care, a survey says - according to the BBC.

Doctors said they did not have enough space to add any more services, with one surgery reporting it had used the staff room to administer vaccinations.

GPs said the snapshot poll of 251 surgeries by the British Medical Association cast doubt on plans to move care from hospitals to the community.

But ministers said the findings did not present the full picture. At the beginning of the year, the government unveiled plans to invest more in community NHS services in England.

They said GPs in the future would provide a whole range of extra services such as diabetes clinics and minor surgeries.

But doctors from across the UK told the BMA that the NHS's 11,000 practices risked not filling their potential because of a lack of funding.