NHS Providers responds to Migration Advisory Committee report on changes for visa applications from outside Europe
19 January 2016
- NHS providers must be fully supported to recruit nurses and clinical staff from abroad
- Current shortage of nurses likely to continue
- Nurses must be on the Government’s Shortage Occupation List (SoL)
The Migration Advisory Committee has published its final report on its review of balancing migrant selectivity, investment in skills and impacts of UK productivity and competitiveness for Tier 2.
The current resident labour market test (RLMT) route rules for prioritising applications for certificates of sponsorship are disadvantaging NHS providers. At present the rules mean that pay is the most important factor in deciding which applications will be granted certificates of sponsorship through the RLMT route. Whereas in many sectors of the economy pay will rise substantially in response to a shortage of workers, this is not the case in the NHS. In the NHS pay for non-medical staff, such as nurses, is governed by the Agenda for Change pay framework and pay for doctors by national contracts for doctors. Any system where pay is the single biggest determining factor will disadvantage NHS providers.
In considering the recommendations, the Government needs to take into account the impact not only on immigration targets but also on patient care in the NHS
Saffron Cordery, director of policy and strategy, NHS Providers, said:
“The current shortage of nurses that is likely to continue, given the time it takes to train a nurse. Following the Migration Advisory Committee report today, we strongly urge that when considering applications for work visas pay is not the determining factor and an individual’s broader contribution to the UK is taken into account. We know that many NHS organisations are facing recruitment challenges and that overseas recruitment can provide a solution whilst other plans, such as training more nurses are developed. Employers will have tried other options before embarking on overseas recruitment and it’s important that overseas recruitment is not closed off. Nurses must also remain on the Government’s Shortage Occupation List (SoL) with a realistic minimum appropriate salary rate if we are to plug the vacancy gaps and maintain the standard of care that all patients and service users deserve.