The Government must make it easier for people to see their family doctor this winter, Labour will say today.

In a debate in Parliament, Labour will call on the Government to reverse the scrapping of the guarantee that patients can see a GP within 48 hours this winter. MPs will be asked to vote in support of the measure to keep pressure off struggling casualty departments over the next three months.

In 2005, a patient survey reported that almost nine out of 10 patients were able to see a GP within 48 hours. Yet research by the Patients Association this year found that six in 10 people could not see a GP for at least two days, with one in five taking time off work to attend an appointment.

Days after the last election, David Cameron axed Labour’s guarantee to patients of a GP appointment within 48 hours while removing the incentives that kept surgeries open into the evening and at weekends. The right to a GP appointment within 48 hours was removed from the NHS Constitution, with the Department of Health dismissing it as “no longer a priority.”

A Commons Library analysis of the recent survey of patients by GPs reveals a growing dissatisfaction at surgery opening hours and difficulties in booking appointments.

NHS figures reveal that 850 fewer practices – one in 10 in England – now offer appointments in the evening or at weekends compared to 2010.

As a result, growing numbers are turning to A&E for medical support - joining the million patients who waited over four hours to be seen in the last year.

Studies show that improving GP access will save the NHS money by reducing A&E attendances and hospital admissions. For example, studies have shown that patients who are able to see their GP within two days make fewer visits to A&E than those who have less access. Other studies have suggested that patients’ satisfaction with primary care correlated with lower rates of emergency hospital admission.

In preparation for the debate, Shadow Health Secretary Andy Burnham visited the A&E at the Whittington Hospital in North London and spent time with GPs who see patients not requiring emergency treatment.

Andy Burnham MP said ahead of the Commons debate:

“Within days of taking office, David Cameron scrapped Labour’s guarantee that all patients should be able to get a GP appointment within two working days. This was a major mistake and is one of the reasons why A&E departments are today under such pressure.

“On Cameron’s watch, it has got harder for people to get GP appointments. We hear all the time of people calling the GP surgery early in the morning only to be told that there are no appointments available for days. This is leading to people attending A&E instead or deteriorating whilst they are waiting and attending as an emergency.

“David Cameron’s response to date to the growing pressure on A&E has been to deny the problem. But the truth is his fingerprints are all over this A&E crisis. Last week, two-thirds of hospital A&Es missed the Government’s A&E target but the only response from Ministers is ‘crisis, what crisis?’ ”

“This complacency is a danger to patients. Practical steps are urgently needed to help A&Es get safely through the winter. That is why, in today’s emergency debate, Labour will call on David Cameron to reverse his scrapping of the 48-hour guarantee this winter and help patients avoid unnecessary trips to A&E.”