Bury North MP James Daly has heaped praised on the government after new data shows progress has been made on hiring more nurses and offering more GP appointments.

NHS England figures at the end of November showed that the government had a target of hiring 50,000 additional nurses.

This was achieved after 51,000 nurses were recruited from September 2019 to September 2023.

The North West has also seen an increase of 8,546 more nurses working in the NHS across hospitals, GP surgeries and community healthcare settings, a rise of 18.6 per cent.

And the NHS Greater Manchester integrated care board saw a 13 per cent increase in GP appointments.

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Mr Daly, who has been appointed a deputy chair of the Conservatives this week, said: “This is great news for local people in Bury.

“Being able to increase the number of nurses and GP appointments in my constituency, Greater Manchester and the country as a whole, will have a resounding effect on many people’s lives.

“There are still many issues to tackle, but we are making progress.”

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Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Victoria Atkins, said: “I am immensely proud of these developments, and the real difference they will make for our citizens.

“I give my thanks to the NHS and systems colleagues for everything they do to make such things possible.”