Nearly 45,000 patients in Oxfordshire were forced to wait more than two weeks in February to see a GP, NHS Digital figures revealed.

The most recent NHS England data from February has shown that 43,867 patients in Oxfordshire waited for more than two weeks to see their GP, which accounted for 12 per cent of all GP appointments.

The most shocking news is that 8,865 patients waited for over a month to see their GP.

READ MORE: Cancelled NHS appointment woes for 'upset' Oxford teacher

After learning about these figures, Oxford West and Abingdon’s MP Layla Moran told the Oxford Mail she met with local healthcare professionals to discuss the issues which they are facing and recruitment was highlighted as a cause of the delays.

Ms Moran has called on the government to recruit 8,000 more GPs and for GPs' salaries to be weighted in areas outside London with high living costs.

Ms Moran has blamed “years of neglect under the Conservatives” for driving “local health services into the ground”.

She explained: “The government’s failure to recruit more GPs has meant the backlogs and appointment delays have only become worse.

READ MORE: 'Common sense prevails' as Abingdon 20mph limits go ahead

“Behind these statistics are patients anxiously waiting for an appointment, worrying about their symptoms."

Ms Moran said patients and doctors “deserve better than this” and argued that only the Liberal Democrats have a plan which would boost GP numbers so people receive the “care they deserve”.

A government spokesman highlighted that recent data shows 440 more doctors are working in general practice and face to face appointments are on the rise.

He also pointed out that as of March 2023, 440 more full time equivalent doctors were working in general practice compared to a year ago and they continue to deliver more face to face appointments.

Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said: 

"Today’s figures demonstrate the clear progress being made to train and recruit record numbers of staff across the NHS and in primary care.

"Cutting waiting lists is a key priority for this government and we are committed to ensuring we have the workforce in place to achieve that.

"We will soon be publishing a long term workforce plan focused on recruiting and retraining more staff – to help tackle the backlogs and improve patient care.

"We will also be publishing a plan outlining further support for primary care."

Mr Barclay highlighted the government was on track to deliver on commitments for 50,000 more nurses and 26,000 more primary care staff by 2024.

He also highlighted that over 1.27 million full-time equivalent staff are working in NHS trusts and commissioning bodies in England which is over 51,500 more people compared to a year ago.