Tories in 'save our GPs' campaign

The Tory leader is to insist that Government proposals for a new generation of so-called polyclinics will result in the closure of about 1,700 surgeries.

Ministers have hailed the plans as the future of healthcare, with each site housing up to 25 GPs, opening from 8am to 8pm, dispensing drugs, and having facilities for minor operations.

But, speaking at an event in central London, Mr Cameron will condemn the Government for imposing the super-surgeries on communities without consultation.

"Communities which have lost their Post Office, their local shops and their local police station, are now going to lose their doctor," he will say.

"Of course there are circumstances where GPs coming together in larger practices or larger premises, and offering new services, are entirely welcome.

"What I object to is the Government's policy of imposing polyclinics on local communities without public support and in the face of opposition from doctors."

There are 8,261 GP practices in England, including 1,546 in the capital.

Tory research, based on Department of Health estimates, shows that 1,701 surgeries in England face closure. Some 1,091 in London may go - nearly three-quarters of the total. In the rest of the country, 609 - almost one in 10 - could close in the next few years.

The figures are based on the average number of GPs per practice in each primary care trust, and assumes each polyclinic will be staffed by 25 GPs.