Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with the General Medical Council on the difference in English language requirements necessary for doctors to access (a) the Foundation Programme and (b) GMC licensing.

The Department has regular contact with the General Medical Council (GMC) including on the English language requirements for practising medicine in the United Kingdom. The GMC is required by law to be assured that any doctor applying for registration as an international medical graduate has demonstrated, at the point of registration, that they possess the required level of English. The GMC has set its requirements at the level it believes best safeguards patient safety, whilst ensuring it does not inappropriately disrupt overseas recruitment.

Employers and training providers are entitled to set their own requirements as part of their selection processes which may reflect their specific needs in relation to their training and working environments. This means entry requirements to the UK Foundation Programme may differ from the minimum required for GMC registration.