Oxfordshire’s Lib Dem MPs urge government to exempt GPs and care providers from tax hike

GPs and care providers in Oxfordshire will be “pushed to the brink” without an exemption from the Budget’s Employer National Insurance tax hike, local Lib Dem MPs have said.

Oxfordshire’s GPs and care providers are already under significant pressure. The increase in Employer NI contributions, announced in the budget last week, will add to the immense challenges they are already facing.

The Chancellor announced extra funding for the NHS and other public sector organisations to cover the cost of the tax rise. However, GPs and the vast majority of care providers are separate businesses and won't benefit from this support.

Oxfordshire’s Lib Dem MPs have called for crucial health and care services to be exempted from the Employer’s NI hike - or risk them shutting up shop. 

Speaking afterwards, Oxfordshire’s Liberal Democrat MPs Layla Moran, Freddie van Mierlo, Calum Miller, Charlie Maynard and Olly Glover said:

“When we speak to GPs and care providers in Oxfordshire, they tell us about the immense pressure they're under after years of Conservative mismanagement.

“The Chancellor’s decisions in the Budget risk pushing these crucial services to the brink—some could even be forced to shut up shop.

“People must be able to access decent health and care services. To deliver this, the government must change course and exempt GPs and care providers here in Oxfordshire from the tax hike.”

Chair of the Health and Social Care Select Committee Layla Moran said:

“GP surgeries and care providers are the frontline of the NHS, delivering vital care to millions of people every day.

“These services are already overstretched, patients are frustrated, and morale across the system is dangerously low. Piling yet more pressure with increased employer NI contributions will exacerbate problems across the whole of the NHS, making it even harder to deliver high quality care. 

“The Health and Social Care Select Committee will take a great interest in this issue. We will be looking to the government to provide reassurance that the money announced in the budget will flow through to mitigate any impact on patients.”