We need to train nurses in this country before shunning migrant workers - Yorkshire Post Letters

Rishi Sunak’s relentless “stop the boats” mantra has had its inevitable effect: a recent Yougov poll showed that 45 per cent of Britons think most migrants come illegally. In fact 96 per cent come entirely legally and the record net migration figure of 745,000 per year is directly related to government policy.

Take NHS nurses as an example. During my 35 years as a hospital doctor, in various parts of the country, nurses from overseas formed a small minority of staff. By contrast, when I recently had an endoscopy, all the staff I met were from overseas.

Tory policies have decimated the UK nursing profession. In 2011, Cameron made cuts to nurse training numbers, despite universities warning of the consequences for the NHS. In 2015, the nursing bursary was abolished with an immediate drop in student applications; a subsequent reintroduction was at a much reduced rate.

Nurses were absolutely in the front line in the Covid pandemic and, even post-pandemic, they’re under huge pressure from an ever-growing workload. Their ‘reward’ has been a real-terms cut in pay, with a typical nurse now 20 per cent worse off than in 2010.

Not only is it difficult to fill nurse training places, but huge numbers of experienced staff are leaving the profession. Shockingly, two thirds of recent leavers are under 45.

How are the gaps being filled? In 2021 a government initiative was introduced to recruit nurses from abroad. Trusts are ruthlessly advertising for staff elsewhere, even in so-called “red list” countries with health services that are so vulnerable it’s immoral to filch their qualified staff. Astonishingly, in the last two years nearly half of new nurse registrations were from abroad.

Tory damage must be reversed so we can train and retain UK nurses. However in the meantime we must appreciate overseas staff, not denigrate them as this hypocritical government does.