The average income before tax of contractor GPs in the UK fell slightly for a third consecutive year in 2008/09 to £105,300, according to a report out today from The NHS Information Centre.

The report considers the earnings and expenses of full and part-time GPs, and covers both their NHS and private income.

An analysis of self-employed tax returns showed that since 2005/06 average income (before tax) for contractor GPs has been steadily falling from a peak of £110,000. It fell 0.7 per cent from 2007/08 when GPs earned an average of £106,100.

However, despite these falls, the report shows average income for contractor GPs remains higher in recent years than previously. For example, in 2008/09, average income before tax for GPs holding a general medical services (GMS) contract (the type held by the majority of contractor GPs) was £99,200 (for the UK) compared to £51,500 in 1998/99 (for GB). The latter is equivalent to £65,900 in real terms at 2008/09 levels. However, over the period, GP contracts and the nature of their work have changed.

The report presents provisional results for GP Earnings and Expenses in 2008/09 and has been agreed by the Technical Steering Committee which includes representatives from the four UK health departments, NHS Employers and the British Medical Association. Because it reflects earnings reported on tax returns, it includes private as well as NHS work and covers both full and part-time GPs.

The report shows that while average gross earnings for contractor GPs in the UK rose to £258,600 during 2008/09 (an increase of 2.6 per cent on 2007/08), the increase was more than offset by rising average expenses which were £153,300 - 5.1 per cent higher than the previous year.

It shows average income for contractor GPs also fell slightly in each country of the UK, with average income before tax at:

• £109,600 in England (a decrease of 0.5 per cent since 2007/08)
• £86,500 in Scotland (a decrease of 1.0 per cent since 2007/08)
• £90,700 in Wales (a decrease of 2.9 per cent since 2007/08)
• £89,700 in Northern Ireland (a decrease of 1.5 per cent since 2007/08).

The report showed that average income for contractor GPs during 2008/09 was higher if they offered dispensing services (£121,500) than if they did not (£102,500).

Average income during 2008/09 was £116,300 for those holding a personal medical services (PMS) contract compared to £99,200 for those holding a general medical services (GMS) contract.

The report also shows large variations in the average income of contractor GPs with an estimated 6.9 per cent of GPs earning less than £50,000 before tax during 2008/09 while an estimated 0.8 per cent of GPs earned £250,000 or more before tax during the year.

The average income before tax for salaried GPs in the UK in 2008/09 was £57,300, an increase of 2.7 per cent since 2007/08.

The report is at: www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/gpearnex0809

Also published today is “Investment in General Practice 2003/04 to 2009/10, England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland” which is at www.ic.nhs.ukpubs/investgpreport03-10 .

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Notes to editors

1. The NHS Information Centre is England's authoritative, independent source of health and social care information. It works with more than 300 health and social care providers nationwide to provide the facts and figures that help the NHS and social services run effectively. Its role is to collect data, analyse it and convert it into useful information which helps providers improve their services and supports academics, researchers, regulators and policymakers in their work.
2. The NHS Information Centre also produces a wide range of statistical publications each year across a number of areas including: primary care, health and lifestyles, screening, hospital care, population and geography, social care and workforce and pay statistics.
3. The data source for the survey is HM Revenue and Customers' (HMRC) tax self assessment database, which covers earnings and expenses from all self-employed professional earnings sources.
4. The results in the report are estimates based on samples, and therefore each figure has a small margin of error. Differences between groups and sub-groups of GPs, or between 2008/09 and the previous year may reflect sampling error as well as real changes.
5. The report contains information on contractor GPs – ie GP partners – who form the majority of the workforce. The results for contractor GPs have been adjusted to exclude employer's superannuation contributions. The report also contains results for salaried GPs, which have been adjusted to include employee's superannuation contributions, thereby putting results for contractor and salaried GPs on the same basis.
6. GP employment definitions: A contractor GP, previously referred to as a principal GP, is a practitioner who has entered into a contract with a Primary Care Organisation (PCO) to provide primary care services. This may be as a single-hander, or as part of a partnership. A contractor GP may employ salaried GPs. A salaried GP is employed by the contractor GP(s) of a practice; they may also be employed by the Primary Care Organisation (PCO). The cost of employing a salaried GP could form part of the employee expenses of contractor GPs. If the salaried GP is employed directly by a PCO then the ‘employer' GP's tax return will not have incurred the expense.
7. A GMS practice is one that has a standard, nationally negotiated contract. Within this, there is some local flexibility for GPs to ‘opt out' of certain services or ‘opt in' to the provision of other services. The PMS contract was introduced in 1998 in England and Scotland (as the section 17c agreement) as a local alternative to the national GMS contract. PMS contracts are voluntary, locally negotiated contracts between Primary Care Organisations (PCOs) and the PMS Provider, enabling, for example, flexible provision of services in accordance with specific local circumstances.
8. For media enquires please call 0845 257 6990 or contact

• Sarah Dahlgren on 0113 254 7272, sarah.dahlgren@ic.nhs.uk or
• Kristina Fox on 0113 254 7120, Kristina.fox@ic.nhs.uk