Robin Swann

As I said earlier, I will be supporting the Bill. I thank the Secretary of State and the Minister for their engagement with the devolved institutions on the Bill’s intentions, and on expediting its progress. Its implications for Northern Ireland, and for the medical workforce spanning the islands, are crucial. As has been discussed, the Bill introduces a UK-wide duty on providers of medical training to prioritise applicants who have graduated from medical schools in the UK or the Republic of Ireland. While health is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland, I entirely recognise that this legislation is essential to preserving a joined-up and UK-wide approach to medical training and recruitment. For too long, we have seen increasing pressures on training pathways, with locally trained graduates facing uncertainties and bottlenecks when moving from undergraduate education into foundation and specialty training. I hope very much that the Bill will ensure that those who trained in UK and Republic of Ireland systems have a clear and reliable route into employment in those same systems. I welcome clause 4, which refers to the terms “UK medical graduate” and “the priority group”, but am concerned about the drafting of amendment 9, which was tabled by members of His Majesty’s official Opposition. If Northern Ireland were excluded from these arrangements in any way, by default, it would face an invidious choice between accepting increased competition for limited training places and withdrawing from national recruitment altogether. The latter would place a significant administrative and financial burden on local bodies, particularly the Northern Ireland Medical and Dental Training Agency, and could risk undermining long-established recruitment structures. I welcome the fact that the Bill does not impose additional costs on health services in Northern Ireland, given that the system is under unprecedented financial strain. Instead, it simply changes the order in which applications are considered for existing programmes, and by doing so, it helps to protect the investment made in medical education. However, I seek an assurance from the Minister in connection with a graduate-entry medical school that was created at Magee College back in 2021. The first cohort of graduates came through in June 2025—69 second-degree doctors and surgeons. I hope that nothing in the Bill will hinder their progression into the workforce. I am sure that the Minister has engaged with the Northern Ireland Health Minister on ensuring that there are no impediments to that progression. Ultimately, the Bill supports locally trained doctors and maintains the integrity of national recruitment systems. I therefore fully support it, along with its extension to Northern Ireland through the legislative consent motion process. I genuinely wish the Minister well, and commend her on the constructive approach taken to recognising Northern Ireland’s devolved competences while ensuring alignment across the entirety of the United Kingdom. However, I will support the Opposition amendment regarding the timing. In my view, this legislation is not just the right thing to do. It is the timely thing to do in order to tackle the issue of workforce recruitment, and it should not be used in any negotiations with the British Medical Association to resolve another issue out there. I seek an assurance from the Secretary of State, as other speakers have done, that the Bill will be introduced in the right manner, because it is the right thing to do.