Up to 50,000 nurses could quit UK over immigration plans, survey suggests
Up to 50,000 nurses could quit the UK over the government’s immigration proposals, plunging the NHS into its biggest ever workforce crisis, research suggests.
Keir Starmer has vowed to curb net migration, with plans to force migrants to wait as long as 10 years to apply to settle in the UK instead of automatically gaining settled status after five years.
The measures, which also include plans to raise foreign workers’ skills requirements to degree level and raise the standards of English language required for all types of visa, including dependents, are seen as an attempt to combat the rise of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party. A public consultation on the plans is expected imminently, sources said.
A survey conducted by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), seen by the Guardian, found the plans have sparked profound distress among foreign NHS and social care staff.
There are more than 200,000 internationally educated nursing staff, about 25% of the UK’s total workforce of 794,000. The government’s proposed changes to indefinite leave to remain (ILR) have triggered alarm, with many now considering leaving the UK for good, the survey suggests.
Source: The Guardian (20 November 2025)