Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of consultants in hospitals.
In England, there are 49,068 full time equivalent (FTE) consultants employed in NHS trusts and clinical commissioning groups, up by 34.1% (12,475 FTE) since 2010.
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.
The number of post-registration specialty training places that are available each year is set by Health Education England, based on its assessment of service gaps and predicted workforce needs.
Decisions about the NHS workforce in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are a matter for the devolved administrations of those countries.