NHS: Medical Staff

Lord Crisp Excerpts

Monday 15th December 2014 Lords Chamber

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, as the noble Lord is aware, we rely on Health Education England to determine the number of training places that the NHS needs going forward, looking at not just the short term but also the medium to long term, informed by the work of the local education and training boards. That is as good a system as we believe we can get. Health Education England is properly funded to do that and we must rely on its expertise.

[Lord Crisp (CB)]

My Lords, I understand that the NHS in recent years has made it harder to employ people coming from poorer countries in Africa and elsewhere to work here. However the NHS, as the Minister has already stated, has a large number of people working within it from those backgrounds. I have two questions. First, what are the Government doing to aid countries to train more people in their own countries? Secondly, what are the latest figures for the international medical graduate scheme for people coming from Africa training in this country?

[Earl Howe]

The international postgraduate medical training scheme is only just starting and we hope to launch it very soon with one particular Middle East country. As regards the noble Lord’s first question—he will have to remind me of it.

[Lord Crisp]

I hope I can remember it. It was very simply: what are we doing from the UK to support the training of people in their own countries, where they will often stay longer than if they come and train here?

[Earl Howe]

I beg your pardon, my Lords. DfID has a number of programmes designed to support the health economies of developing countries. They have been in place for many years. They can take the form of training, not just of doctors but of all healthcare professionals. I am aware that DfID is extremely supportive of those programmes.