Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many individual applicants applied for specialty training places across all 65 medical specialties; and how many training places were available in 2025.

The Department holds data based on the application process for medical specialty training which allows the identification of unique applicants. This data is part of management information systems summarising information supplied in medical specialty training cycles. Applicants may have chosen to only apply to one specialty programme or may have made multiple applications within the year.

The following table shows the number of unique applicants in rounds one and two of medical specialty training for 2025 and the associated training places available across the United Kingdom:

Source: NHS England Medical Specialty Programme Applications Data.

Round one of the medical specialty application process includes applications to first year specialty training and core training programmes, often referred to as ST1 and CT1 respectively, and some ‘higher’ medical specialty training programmes, usually at year three, often referred to as ST3. Round two is for entry to most ‘higher’ medical specialty training programmes, ST3 or ST4. There will be a limited number of doctors who apply in a year to both rounds one and two.

Information on the number of applications and posts available for individual medical specialty training programmes is published annually by NHS England and can be found at the following link:

https://medical.hee.nhs.uk/medical-training-recruitment/medical-specialty-training/competition-ratios

The 10-Year Health Plan set out that 1,000 more specialty training places would be created over the next three years.

On 8 December, the Government put an offer in writing to the British Medical Association Resident Doctors Committee which would have put in place emergency legislation in the new year which would prioritise United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland medical graduates for foundation training, and prioritise UK and Republic of Ireland medical graduates and doctors who have worked in the National Health Service for a significant period of time for specialty training. This would have applied for current applicants for training posts starting in 2026, and every year after that.

The British Medical Association has rejected the Government's offer and the Government will consider its next steps.