§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what the annual(a) salary and (b) support costs are of his Department's Director of International Recruitment for Health Services. [151791]
§ Mr. DenhamThe Director of International Recruitment is on detachment from her post as executive nurse director at Hammersmith Hospitals National Health Service Trust. The trust publishes salary details of its senior staff in its annual report. A budget of £37,000 has been secured this year to fund salary, travel and subsistence, support and conference costs.
§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what targets have been set for the Director of International Recruitment for Health Services for the number of foreign recruited nurses working in the NHS [151790]
§ Mr. DenhamThe level of international nurse recruitment required will be assessed in the light of the impact on staffing levels of the increased training places since 1997, and the success of the retention and returner initiatives already in place.
§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to ensure that nurses are not recruited by the NHS from developing countries where there are shortages of trained nursing staff. [151789]
§ Mr. DenhamThe Department issued guidance on the recruitment of nurses from developing countries in the international nurse recruitment guidance published in November 1999. A copy was placed in the Library. The guidance will be reinforced for all healthcare professions in the Code of Practice for International Recruitment which is due to be published shortly.
§ Mr. HammondTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the representations he has received from foreign Governments about recruitment for the NHS of(a) nurses and (b) doctors in their countries. [148276]
§ Mr. DenhamOver the last year we have received representations from the Spanish Government with regards to the possibility of recruiting both doctors and nurses from Spain to work in the National Health Service.
A Government to Government agreement was signed with Spain in November 2000 to promote closer working between the two countries. As part of this agreement, the first 63 nurses arrived in the north-west from Spain on 19 January 2000 to work in four NHS trusts. Following 762W this successful recruitment, the initiative is being extended to medical staff through a pilot project also being led by North West Region.
I am also aware that the Department has received representations over the last year from:
- Latvia
- Philippines
- Russia
- China
- Tunisia
- Caribbean
- South Africa
- Zimbabwe.
Representations made by South Africa and Zimbabwe stipulated that both health sectors need the services of nurses and stressed that their recruitment outside of the country could not be supported.
Guidance was issued by the Department on international recruitment stressing how essential it is that all NHS employers ensure that they do not actively recruit from developing countries who are experiencing nursing shortages of their own.