WE know only too well in Camborne, Redruth and Hayle how difficult it has become to get a GP appointment.

Chronic underfunding of our NHS for over a decade, combined with a GP funding model that disadvantages areas of higher social deprivation, has pushed our GPs surgeries to the brink. This Labour government is putting billions back into the NHS, eliminating duplication, and is changing the GP funding formula to take greater account of areas with higher deprivation. But we need to do more to relieve pressure on our GP surgeries. And our pharmacy network has a key role to play here.

So, this Labour government has committed to significantly expanding the Pharmacy First Scheme. Now I also know that in Cornwall we do need to increase our 90+ Pharmacy First network. But the expansion of the Pharmacy First Scheme allows people to get care for certain common conditions from qualified pharmacists, meaning they can walk into a high street pharmacy at a time that fits with their everyday schedule, rather than having to book an appointment with a GP to get treatment. The move will help to ease pressure on GPs and A&E departments ahead of what could be another record-breaking winter for the NHS, ensuring emergency services can focus on those who need them most, while making sure people can easily and conveniently access care for common health conditions. People will soon be able to walk into their participating high street pharmacy and get on-the spot treatment for acne, migraines, scabies, ear infections and rhinitis from participating pharmacies, helping make everyday lives easier.

NHS figures show there were more than 77,000 hospital admissions for diseases of the ear, 47,500 linked to migraines, 5,000 for vasomotor and allergic rhinitis, and 681 for scabies in 2024/25 alone. Once fully rolled out, evidence suggests two to three-million consultations for the five conditions could take place each year in community pharmacies. The ramping up of winter preparations follow the health service experiencing its three busiest months ever recorded in A&Es between May and July. Thousands of pharmacies across the country already offer people support for seven common conditions through Pharmacy First. The service has delivered 14-million consultations since its launch in February 2024 including two-million appointments for acute sore throats, and more than 1.7-million for urinary tract infections. Around four in five people live within a 20-minute walk of a community pharmacy, making it easier for patients to access NHS care closer to home.

The NHS has rolled out the first phase of its flu programme to protect families ahead of winter, with millions of children and pregnant women able to get their flu vaccinations from September 1. But shifting care to the community through our community pharmacies is absolutely vital, making the most of their skills so patients can get on-the-spot treatment. It also helps ease pressures on other parts of the NHS with early intervention, so that conditions do not simply get worse, while sufferers wait to see a GP.