A survey by Pulse has revealed that 46 per cent of England's GP practices are taking collective action. One in five are putting a limit on the number of patients they see in a day.

The survey questioned 283 GP partners across different practices - representing 5 per cent of English practices.

Two-thirds said they were already or considering limiting patient contacts. 50 per cent said they would be willing to escalate collective action, potentially involving full strike action.

Strike action was launched by the BMA’s GP Committee England earlier this month and practices were given a choice of which collective actions they would take.

The action is being taken in protest at the last government increasing their budget by only 1.9% this year.

Dr Amanda Doyle, NHS national director for primary care and community services said: “As some practices continue collective action, it is vital that patients continue to come forward for care in the usual ways – practices remain open and services are still running.

“We will be monitoring the impacts of this action to ensure practices fulfil their contractual requirements and continue to meet the needs of patients.

“The NHS remains committed to tackling the issues within general practice, and while changes have been introduced to help staff and improve patient access, we know general practice remains under significant pressure and is experiencing record demand, so we will continue to work together with GPs and other stakeholders to support the profession”.