Nurses and Midwives: Numbers

Baroness Thornton Excerpts

Monday 4th December 2017 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Thornton]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the report of the Nursing and Midwifery Council published on 2 November which found that the number of nurses and midwives joining its register from the European Union had dropped by 89 per cent over the last year, how they plan to make good the anticipated shortfall.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord O'Shaughnessy) (Con)]

My Lords, the Government value immensely the contribution of EU staff working across the NHS and social care systems. We are committed to ensuring a clear pathway to permanent residency for these EU citizens. The figures in the NMC report represent a 0.2% decrease in those currently registered. Meanwhile, there are more nurses on our wards since last year. Numbers will increase because of a 25% increase in training places.

[Baroness Thornton (Lab)]

I thank the noble Lord for that response, although I think it borders on the complacent. I asked this Question because the statistics are very stark and concerning. Although we know that registration of UK-based nurses is falling—by 9% last year—the decrease from the European Union varies between 70% and 95%. That means that instead of there being 1,966 nurses from Spain, for example, the number has dropped to 104 in the last year. The numbers from Poland have dropped from 305 to 34. Even from Ireland the numbers have dropped, from 381 to 204. That looks, with winter looming, like a crisis might be looming. Given that it takes at least three years or so to train nurses and midwives, I return to my Question: how will the Government make up the immediate shortfall and replace those nurses and midwives that come to us from the European Union?

[Lord O'Shaughnessy]

I agree with the noble Baroness that there is a need for more nurses. That is why we are introducing more training places and new routes into nursing, such as the nursing apprenticeship. I know that she is particularly concerned about EU national nurses and health visitors. I think noble Lords will be reassured that between June 2016 and June 2017, there was an overall 5% increase in the total number of staff from the EU within the NHS, which is welcome. The one area, as I said, that has fallen marginally—by about 162 in practice—is in nursing and health visitors. That was significantly due to the new language test that was introduced. That is something that the NMC is looking at to make sure we are getting nurses capable of practising in this country to come here.