General practitioners (GP) have raised the alarm over patient safety after the government confirmed that every practice in England must keep online booking systems open throughout working hours from 1 October.
Doctors’ leaders say the change has been imposed without the extra staff or safeguards needed to manage the influx of digital requests.
Earlier, New Daily Prime reported that the doctor’s union issued 48hrs strike ultimatum if nothing is done about the development.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England introduced the requirement under the 2025-2026 GP contract, promising that online systems would reduce the daily scramble for appointments.
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According to the Independent report, patients will be able to submit non-urgent appointment requests, medication enquiries and administrative queries digitally, rather than relying solely on phone calls at 8am.
But the British Medical Association (BMA) has warned that practices could be overwhelmed by a surge in online submissions, with staff struggling to identify urgent cases quickly enough.
The union says ministers pledged to provide protections against serious conditions being missed online but have failed to deliver.
Dr Katie Bramall, chair of the BMA’s GP committee, said the government had ignored repeated warnings.
“General practice online systems now risk being inundated with both non-urgent and urgent patient queries, leaving practices – regardless of size and the volume of queries they handle – to manage the fallout,” she said. “We can only hope that no life-threatening issues are missed or delayed, but it’s a very real.”
The BMA has suggested that practices could face “hospital-style waiting lists” if they are forced to sift through a flood of digital requests while still managing face-to-face consultations. It has not ruled out industrial action.
Health Minister Stephen Kinnock defended the move, saying it would “end the 8am scramble” and modernise patient access. He argued the system has already worked well in some surgeries, improving choice and convenience.
The rollout of digital services comes as the government also unveils plans for an NHS “virtual hospital” from 2027, where patients will be able to consult specialists from home.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has insisted that traditional in-person appointments will remain available for those who prefer them, but he argued that digital care could save time and ease pressure on hospitals.
While ministers estimate the new approach could free up millions of appointments, GP leaders maintain that without additional staff, the reforms will not solve the workload crisis in primary care.
