Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment the Government has made of the effect on the ability of the NHS to hire sufficient nursing staff of the (a) 23 per cent decrease in applications to study nursing following the ending of bursaries and (b) 96 per cent decrease in nurses from the EU registering to work in the UK.

The Government remains committed to reforming nursing, midwifery and allied health pre-registration education and increasing the number of places available for students so that two in three nursing applicants are no longer turned down for a place; at the same time ensuring these students have more cash available to them while they study.

Data published by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service on the number of applicants that applied for courses up to March 2017, showed that nursing and midwifery applications had fallen by approximately 22% in England compared to the same point in 2016.

However, the data also show that up to March 2017 there had been around two applicants per available training place. Health Education England is confident that the required 22,500 student training places the National Health Service needs will be filled; assuming students meet the entry requirements of their offer from their course provider.

It should also be noted that students will continue to apply for courses up to September and through clearing.

We are aware of a reduction in the number of nurses who trained in the European Economic Area applying to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council following July 2016. We are monitoring the impact of this on the NHS. Between June 2016 and March 2017, the number of nurses with a European nationality working in the NHS increased by more than 400.