Danny Beales

I thank the Secretary of State and the Minister for the Bill, which delivers on the promises made previously in this place in response to the proposed industrial action a couple of months ago. It is welcome to see the pace with which the Government have moved in progressing these important changes. It shows their commitment to backing doctors and medical professionals in this country. There is a lot to welcome in the Bill’s provisions. Members have talked at length and with a lot of personal and professional expertise about the challenges of the medical training system. As a member of the Health Committee—alongside the Chair, the hon. Member for Oxford West and Abingdon (Layla Moran), and others who have spoken—we often hear about the need for a proper workforce plan to address the NHS’s long-term issues with training and development, which frankly have failed staff and patients. It is important to reflect on, as others have, the important and vital contribution that doctors and nurses from around the world have made. That is the case in my constituency at Hillingdon hospital, and in GP and community-based health services. My mum recently had a stroke and, fortunately, recovered from it at University College London hospital in central London. As ever, it was doctors, nurses, speech therapists and allied healthcare professionals from almost every country around the world who helped and supported her to recover. I am sure that they will continue to serve our national health service with dedication and commitment, and I am sure that the whole of this House is thankful for their service. As we have heard, however, it is absurd that thousands of British doctors trained by our NHS at great expense, funded by the British taxpayer, are currently unable to find jobs in the NHS after graduation. In a time of crisis for the NHS, we do not have a penny to spare, and every pound needs to go even further. It is a great waste of talent and capacity, and it is not fair to young doctors in the system, who are being beaten to entry-level NHS positions by doctors from overseas with decades of experience.