Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle the shortage of clinicians in urology.

It is the responsibility of National Health Service trusts to have staffing arrangements in place that deliver safe and effective care. This includes recruiting the appropriate professionals needed to support these levels and meet local needs.

Nationally, the number of training posts for each specialty is determined by Health Education England in the context of competing priorities, with reference to the NHS Long Term Plan.

There are 942 full time equivalent (FTE) consultants in the urology group, up by 19% (307 FTE) since 2010.

The NHS Long Term Plan set out the need to ensure a sustainable overall balance between supply and demand across all staff groups. For doctors, it will focus on reducing geographical and specialty imbalances.