Record numbers of overseas-trained doctors are leaving the UK, with a 26% rise in departures in 2024 compared to the previous year, according to figures from the General Medical Council (GMC). A total of 4,880 doctors who qualified abroad left the UK last year, up from 3,869 in 2023.
Medical bodies warn that hostility towards migrants is a significant factor driving the exodus. NHS leaders, senior doctors, and the GMC have highlighted increased denigration and abuse directed at migrants as a key reason for the departure of foreign medics. Daniel Elkeles, chief executive of NHS Providers, said: 'It's really worrying that so many highly skilled and highly valued international doctors the NHS just can't afford to lose are leaving in their droves.'
The rise in departures coincides with a levelling-off in the number of overseas doctors coming to work in Britain. The 20,060 who joined the UK medical register last year was only a slight increase from 19,629 in 2023, marking the smallest rise since 2020. The NHS relies heavily on internationally qualified doctors, who make up 42% of its medical workforce.
Dr Amit Kochhar, chair of the British Medical Association's representative body, said: 'A sustained campaign of anti-migrant rhetoric is leaving many doctors with a migrant background considering if it is worth staying.' Health Secretary Wes Streeting has voiced alarm that NHS staff are bearing the brunt of a return to 1970s and 1980s-style racism.
The GMC's report also notes that overseas doctors are finding it harder to secure jobs in the NHS. Only one in eight who registered in the UK last year obtained a post within six months, down from one in five in 2023 and one in four in 2022. The GMC warns that workforce policies must not inadvertently discourage overseas talent from relocating to the UK.
