§ Mr. Croninasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is his policy on the recruitment of medical students, having regard to their future prospects of employment.
§ Mr. MoyleIn so far as it has been Government policy for many years to use estimates of the country's future need for doctors as a basis for deciding the intake to medical schools, employment prospects have been, and continue to be a determining factor. Present plans call for an intake of just over 4,000 a year in the early 1980s. This would provide capacity for a gradual reduction in dependence on overseas doctors and for a small growth overall in the NHS.