Spot Audit Exposes GP Appointment Crisis: 1 in 7 Practices Leave Kiwis Waiting a Month to See a Doctor

The Taxpayers’ Union says Labour’s promise of three “free” (taxpayer-funded) GP visits won’t be worth much if New Zealanders can’t see a GP in the first place, with 1 in 7 GP practices unable to provide an appointment for more than a month. Instead, Labour's policy looks more like a cheap political gimmick to justify a new tax than a serious health solution.

This morning, researchers at the Taxpayers’ Union conducted a mystery spot audit of 14 randomly selected GP clinics across New Zealand, asking when an enrolled patient could get the next available appointment. The average wait time was more than a week (6.4 business days), and two clinics were unable to offer a single appointment for nearly a month.

“These results show the real barrier to primary healthcare isn’t the price of an appointment, it’s getting one, unlike what Labour would have you believe,” said Tory Relf, Head of Communications at the Taxpayers’ Union.

“Free GP visits are meaningless if the doctor can’t see you until Christmas. People aren’t asking for a new tax-funded bureaucracy, just to see a doctor before their condition gets worse.”

The Taxpayers' Union says New Zealand’s GP system is already stretched to breaking point.

“GPs are restricted in what they can charge and how they run their practices. There’s a de-facto price cap on services, so even wealthy suburbs with patients willing to pay more can’t attract enough GPs.”

“And these numbers understate the crisis. Thousands of Kiwis can’t even find a local GP clinic accepting new enrolments. No wonder A&Es are overflowing and our doctors are packing their bags for Australia.”

The Taxpayers' Union is urging political parties to focus on boosting GP workforce capacity, not marketing gimmicks.

“Ramping up demand by subsidising the wealthiest households at a time when there aren't enough appointments as it is, is simply lunacy. If anything, this policy is more likely to drive people into attending A&E unnecessarily when they can't get into a primary care provider.”

"Labour's policy reads like it was written for a campaign ad, not a health system in distress."