Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the proposed Nursing and Midwifery Council registration fee increase on recruitment, retention and workforce morale within the NHS.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is independent of the Government, is directly accountable to Parliament, and is responsible for operational matters concerning the discharge of its statutory duties.

As the NMC set out in its consultation, registrant fees, which account for 97% of organisational income, have remained at the same level for over 10 years. The NMC has deemed it necessary to propose a fee increase to ensure that the organisation can carry out its statutory functions. We understand that the proposed increase would equate to an annual increase of £23 per registrant, the equivalent of an additional £1.92 a month.

The NMC’s registrant fee remains one of the lowest across all of the health and care professional regulators. United Kingdom taxpayers can claim tax relief on their registration fees, helping to reduce the overall cost. Professionals can also apply to spread the cost of registration by paying in four instalments each year.

We are working closely with employers and leaders across the National Health Service to improve staff retention. There are many issues that can influence staff retention, so this requires a multi-faceted approach.

The 10 Year Workforce Plan due to be published in the spring will have a big focus on making the NHS a better employer. This includes the development of a new set of staff standards which will focus on improving staff experience and health and wellbeing.

NHS England is already leading work nationally through its retention programme to drive a consistent, system-wide approach to staff retention across NHS trusts. This ensures trusts have access to proven retention strategies, data-driven monitoring, and can foster a more stable, engaged, productive, and supported workforce.