Dismore questions Mayor over impact of Brexit extension on the NHS
At today’s Mayor’s Question Time, Andrew Dismore AM, Labour London Assembly Member for Barnet and Camden, questioned the Mayor Sadiq Khan over the impact of Brexit extension on EU Londoners and the NHS.
Mr Dismore asked:
‘What do you consider the priorities now to be over Brexit, now that an extension has been granted until Oct 31st, especially for EU Londoners during this longer period of uncertainty?
‘What will be the impact of the continued uncertainty on public services like the NHS, when we hear that last week the Nursing and Midwifery Council reported that over the last 2 years, almost 5,000 fewer nurses and midwives from the EU are now working in the NHS, a drop of 13%. Last year, just 33 midwives from other EU countries came to work in the National Health Service?’
The Mayor said that he was worried about their perceptions of their future here. We’re all Londoners, and he wants to make it easier for people to stay. We have record numbers of vacancies in the NHS in London. Every sector is affected. Social care for the elderly is dependent on EU workers, as are teaching, construction, finance and hospitality. They are all affected by the uncertainty.
After MQT Mr Dismore added:
‘Whilst it is correct to say that there are more ‘home grown’ nurses and nurses from non- EU countries, we can little afford to lose 5,000 nurses and midwives from other EU countries because of Brexit, at a time when the NHS in England is short of more than 40,000 nurses.’
