Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jeremy Hunt and William Wragg

Tuesday 4th July 2017 Commons Chamber

[Justin Tomlinson (North Swindon) (Con)]

2. What steps are being taken to increase the supply of doctors and nurses in the NHS.

[Mr William Wragg (Hazel Grove) (Con)]

12. What steps his Department is taking to increase the number of doctors and nurses working in the NHS.

[The Secretary of State for Health (Mr Jeremy Hunt)]

Last year this Government announced one of the biggest expansions of medical training places in the history of the NHS, involving funding 1,500 additional medical school places every year—of which 500 start this September—and reforms that will enable universities to offer up to 10,000 additional nurse training places every year.

[Mr Hunt]

My hon. Friend makes a really important point. In parts of the country, GP shortages have been successfully addressed as the CCG has done in Swindon. An important part of this is persuading people who go into medicine that general practice is one of the most exciting and rapidly changing parts of medicine today. We have seen a 9% increase in the number of medical students choosing to go into general practice since 2015.

[Mr Wragg]

Further to my hon. Friend’s question, may I ask the Secretary of State what he is doing to ensure that enough doctors are recruited, developed and retained at my local hospital, Stepping Hill?

[Mr Hunt]

I heard a lot about Stepping Hill when I went to visit my hon. Friend; I think it was last year. I had the privilege of visiting the hospital more recently after the horrific terrorist attacks, and I commend the hospital for the brilliant work that it did in the wake of the bomb. The hospital has done a good job of recruiting; I think it has recruited 93 more doctors and nearly 300 more nurses since 2010. A national programme to help all trusts to retain their nursing staff has been launched by NHS Improvement in the last week.