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General Practitioners: Early Retirement

Asked by Helen MaguireLiberal DemocratDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled Answered 8 July 2026UIN 15158

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the number of General Practitioners leaving the NHS before retirement age in each year since 2015, by numbers leaving more than 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45 years before retirement age.

Answered by Stephen Kinnock

Retirement age is not a fixed date and can vary depending on pension arrangements, the state pension age, and individual choices. Data held by the Department cannot therefore show how many years a general practitioner (GP) has left until retirement.

NHS England does publish data on the age of GPs employed by practices leaving the workforce. The attached table presents this data by five-year age bands.

A GP counted as a “leaver” may have left active service for a range of reasons, including retirement, moving to a National Health Service organisation outside of GPs or to another non-NHS healthcare employer, taking a career break, going on maternity leave, or leaving the workforce temporarily.

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