Responding to the Home Secretary’s announcement on reforms to the immigration system and Indefinite Leave to Remain, RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive Professor Nicola Ranger, said: 

“Nursing staff fought hard to see the worst of these reforms pared back and it’s right that the 5-year route to settlement will remain open for most care workers already here. As we called for, it's also incredibly significant that registered nurses from overseas will be recognised for their extraordinary contribution as public servants and remain on a 5-year route to settlement. That's good for migrant nursing staff, patients and our services.

“While the changes make the home secretary’s proposals fairer, they’re still not fair. We already have the most hostile immigration system for migrant nursing staff, with longer waits to permanent settlement than comparable countries and staff having no access to public funds. At a time when demand on both our NHS and social care sector is only continuing to grow, this looks like putting politics before patients.

“The contribution of migrant nursing staff cannot be overstated, but it is so disappointing to see a debate between politicians so often devoid of the facts. Migrants working in our NHS and social care are key to the delivery of services, working hard and paying tax. They’re not drains on society, but part of our communities and carers for older people and the vulnerable. They deserve respect.

“The fundamental truth is that the prime minister’s ambitions for a national care service need a thriving nursing workforce. We need to value the contribution of our migrant colleagues and to grow our domestic nursing staff with a fully funded plan.”

Ends 

Notes to editors 

In September, the RCN published their report ‘Pathways to settlement for internationally educated nurses’, which showed that the UK is already an international outlier amongst similar nations in how long it takes to apply for permanent residency, how much applying costs and being amongst the most restrictive conditions to accessing public funds.