Fact Check: Government's GP Recruitment Claims and Sunbed Danger Misinformation
This roundup of claims has been compiled by Full Fact, the UK's largest fact-checking charity dedicated to exposing and countering the harms of bad information. In recent weeks, two significant issues have emerged: the Government's assertions about GP recruitment numbers and misleading statements regarding the dangers of sunbeds.
How Many More GPs Has the Government Actually Recruited?
In recent months, the Government has made numerous claims about the number of extra GPs recruited to the health service in England. Between October and December last year, the Prime Minister, Health Secretary, and Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) all stated that the Government had put more than 2,500 additional GPs into general practice. Since then, the figure has risen, with Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy claiming in Parliament last month that the Government had "recruited 3,000 more GPs."
However, the reality is more nuanced. The Government's figures refer to GPs hired through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS), which allows primary care networks to hire more staff by covering salaries and other costs. From October 2024 onwards, the scheme was expanded to include recently qualified GPs. Data up to the end of September 2025 shows 2,533 GPs were hired under the scheme since its expansion, rising to 3,073 by the end of December 2025.
But these numbers are headcounts, including part-time GPs, and the actual number of full-time equivalent (FTE) GPs is lower. Additionally, the headcount figure represents the total recruited over the entire period, counting some who are no longer employed under the scheme. Crucially, these figures only account for GPs hired through ARRS, not other recruitment methods, and do not consider GPs leaving their jobs, meaning the net increase in working GPs is smaller.
Quarterly data from NHS England reveals that the number of fully qualified FTE GPs rose by 1,347 in the year to September 2025. When asked why it quotes headcount figures rather than net changes, a DHSC spokesperson said, "We currently have the highest number of fully qualified GPs since at least 2015 thanks to actions taken by this Government. We are making progress to reverse more than a decade of neglect of primary care, with patient satisfaction with GP services rising and 3,000 GPs recruited into work in the past year."
Government Publishes Misleading Information About Sunbed Dangers
Announcing proposals for stricter rules on sunbed use last month, the DHSC claimed that sunbeds are "as dangerous as smoking." This statement is not supported by the evidence used and is misleading, according to experts consulted by Full Fact. The claim was made in social media posts by the DHSC, NHS England, and the Health Secretary, and in an official announcement citing the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The DHSC cited a 2009 statement from the WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), which classified sunbeds as a Group 1 carcinogen, meaning they are known to cause cancer. However, this classification does not imply equal danger to smoking; it simply indicates both are carcinogens. Group 1 includes various agents, from smoking and asbestos to processed meat and alcoholic drinks, which raise cancer risk to different extents.
Comparing the dangers of sunbeds and smoking is complex, but evidence suggests smoking is far more hazardous. Research cited by IARC found that using sunbeds before age 30 raises skin cancer risk by 75%. In contrast, the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention states that smokers are 15 to 30 times more likely to get or die from lung cancer, equating to a 1,400-2,900% increase in risk. Smoking also causes numerous other cancers and health issues like heart disease.
Professor Sir David Spiegelhalter, an expert on risk, told Full Fact, "Smoking and sunbeds are both hazards, as they both have the potential to cause cancer, but that does not mean they present equal risks, since smoking is far more likely to harm you." Cancer Research UK added that the IARC classification "doesn't mean they cause the same number of cases of cancer," noting tobacco has a much bigger impact. Kevin McConway, professor emeritus at the Open University, said it's wrong to conclude they are equally dangerous, with smoking being "way, way more dangerous."
The DHSC has acknowledged the issue, stating that the wording could have been clearer to avoid false equivalence and that it would use clearer wording in future. However, at the time of writing, it has not corrected or deleted the misleading claims.
