Ed Davey makes 4th Mid Bedfordshire visit and calls for GP funding boost 

EMBARGO: 22:30 Monday 28th August 

Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey will today (Tuesday 29th September) become the first Party Leader to visit Mid Bedfordshire since Nadine Dorries officially resigned. On the visit, he will call for a boost to funding to expand capacity at local GP practices.

The call for more funding comes as figures reveal that one million patients in Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes have waited over two weeks for a GP appointment in the past year. A new analysis by the House of Commons Library also shows that Mid Bedfordshire has lost 6% of its GPs since 2016, increasing the number of patients per GP by 416, one of the highest rises in the country.

GPs in the local area are now responsible for 2,720 patients each, far higher than the average for England at 2,273.

Nadine Dorries finally handed in her official resignation on Saturday evening, Ed Davey will be making his 4th visit to the constituency since she signalled her intention to resign months ago. 

The Liberal Democrats are the clear challengers to the Conservatives in the rural blue wall seat and are bookmakers' favourites to win. They have selected local councillor Emma Holland Lindsay meanwhile the Labour Party have selected a London councillor who lives around 50 miles away from the seat. 

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey MP said: 

“The people of Mid Bedfordshire have been taken for granted for too long. 

“From not being able to see a GP to having an absent MP, it’s clear this part of the world has been completely ignored by the Conservatives. 

“People across Bedfordshire should be able to get an appointment with their doctor when they need it, instead we have a Government that just can’t get the basics right. 

“The Liberal Democrats are the clear challengers in this by-election, every vote for our local champion Emma Holland-Lindsay will be a vote to send a message to the Conservatives that enough is enough.” 

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

Ed Davey will be in Mid-Bedfordshire from 11:30 - 12:30pm, more details to follow. 

Full data available here. Compiled by the House of Commons Library using NHS data: GP Workforce & Patients Registered.

Lib Dems are already the bookies’ favourites to win, and way ahead of Labour in the odds (Ladbrokes, tweet here). Betfhashave said Lib Dems are “odds on” to overturn the 25,000 majority in Mid Bedfordshire and give the Conservatives a “bloody nose.”