More than two-fifths of England GP practices limit appointments, a survey suggests.

A survey by The Pulse magazine found that 41% of 660 practices limit patient contacts to 25 per GP per day, which comes after GPs voted overwhelmingly for industrial action in the summer.

The British Medical Association (BMA) has issued a list of 10 actions that surgeries must consider, including limiting the number of patients seen each day or refusing to carry out work that GPs are not formally contracted for.

The Pulse survey suggests that around 70% of practices are taking some form of action, with 59% reporting that they have reduced services since the August 1st vote.

About 11% said they had made cuts before the result was announced on August 1. Another 7% told the survey they would not take part in class action.

The survey was told by 42% of respondents that they had stopped streamlining referrals, investigations and admissions, while 13% were still considering the actions recommended by the BMA.

GPs have warned that the class action could take months.

An NHS England spokesman said: “We are monitoring the impact of the collective action to ensure patients continue to receive the care they need.

“GPs continuing with collective action will be open to see patients and anyone with an appointment should attend as usual unless otherwise told.”

The Pulse survey comes amid a row over the new GP contract, which will give services a 1.9% increase in funding for 2024/25 – a move the BMA claims will leave many practices financially strapped.

GPs launched a formal dispute over the issue in April after a union referendum found 99% of 19,000 GPs rejected the contract.

They also raised concerns about the impact of the increase in employers’ National Insurance contributions introduced in the Autumn Budget.

Following chancellor Rachel Reeves’ announcement last week, the Royal College of GPs (RCGP) said it had contacted health secretary Wes Streeting, seeking assurances that the practices would be protected like “the rest of the NHS and the public sector”.

Dr Steve Taylor, GP spokesperson for the British Medical Association, told Pulse: “As the current contract does not cover costs and increases the costs brought by the current government in the form of national insurance and staffing costs, it is vital that the Government is making funds available now to ensure that GPs can continue to provide patients with the services they need.”

Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of the RCGP, said: “The mainstream is the front door to the NHS, but it has faced years of underfunding and neglect and is now seriously struggling. We have raised significant concerns that the current GP contract is failing to give GPs and their patients the support they need.

“It is not for the RCGP to get involved in contract negotiations between the BMA and NHS England, nor to influence how practices participate in collective action.

“No GP will want to restrict the services they provide to their patients, so we hope the Government can step in to help reach a fair resolution as soon as possible so that GPs have the funding and support to provide the care our patients need. .”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman added: “The NHS is broken and the Secretary of State has been clear that he wants to work with doctors to get it back on its feet so it works for patients and staff.

“We have taken tough decisions to fix the foundations so that a £22bn boost to the NHS and social care can be announced at the Budget.

“This Government is committed to recruiting more than 1,000 newly qualified GPs, cutting red tape so patients can get the care they need, and NHS England is working to tackle training delays to ensure the health service has personal enough for the future.”