Jeremy Hunt reveals Cabinet split on immigration by flashing note warning ‘Hard Brexit means people fleeing UK’
Health Secretary was snapped on the way into Downing Street – and then on the way out after this morning’s Cabinet meeting
JEREMY Hunt has lifted the lid on another Cabinet row after he flashed a briefing note this morning warning a “Hard Brexit means people fleeing UK”.
The Health Secretary was photographed carrying the document on the way into Downing Street this morning.
He is the latest politician to make the blunder of allowing his papers to be snapped by the waiting media as he arrived at Number 10.
But he was also clearly seen holding it on the way out of this morning’s Cabinet meeting too, prompting speculation his “gaffe” may have in fact been deliberate.
And it is the latest sign of division in Theresa May’s top team, with the row about immigration after we quit the EU coming off the back of the ongoing feud over the public sector pay cap.
Mr Hunt revealed his secret papers showing he is desperate to keep all 150,000 EU nationals currently working in the NHS as doctors and nurses after our EU exit in 2019.
The note starts with a question, tabled in advance, from Lib Dem MP Alistair Carmichael on the NHS.
It reads: "What recent discussions has he had with Home Secretary on ensuring the NHS has the workforce it needs after UK leaves the EU.”
Underneath is what appears to be the Health Secretary’s potential answer: “The 150,000 EU nationals working in our health and care services do a brilliant job and we want them to continue doing it.
“I am in regular talks with Cabinet colleagues to inform both domestic workforce plans and the government negotiations with the EU.”
It goes on: “Hard Brexit means people fleeing UK.”
When he later appeared at Health Questions in the House of Commons he repeated the first half, but not the part about people fleeing.
And Mr Hunt was forced to later deny he had received warnings of EU nationals "fleeing the UK".
He responded on Twitter: “For avoidance of doubt I have never been advised or believed Brexit means people ‘fleeing UK’.
“I was anticipating a question along those lines from MPs at health orals - which is why the phrase appears in my briefing note.
“The below is evidence people are COMING to UK post Brexit vote - 2,200 doctors and 4,000 nurses arriving from EU in year to March 17.”
On the other side of the letter, which was also picked up by photographers, was a list of statistics about the number of NHS workers from the EU.
It reads:
- Around 10,700 doctors (9%) are EU nationals [as at Mar 17]
- Around 2,200 EU docs joined the NHS in year to March 17
- Around 62,000 nurses (19%) are EU nationals [as at Mar 17]
- Around 4,000 EU nurses joined the NHS in year to March 17
He repeated those as he responded to MPs in Parliament, before insisting there is a need for every party to "reassure" them about their "bright and vital future" in the health service.
He attempted to paint a rosier picture in response to a later question by giving the figures for the number of EU doctors and nurses who joined the NHS after the EU referendum.
Mr Carmichael thanked Mr Hunt for the answer and added: "You will be aware that actually represents something in excess of 5% of the total workforce within the NHS.
"This is something that is going to have to be addressed, engaging with the recruitment sector, the employment sector and indeed the devolved administrations.
"Is that the way the minister will handle this?"
Mr Hunt replied: "We absolutely will be taking a UK-wide approach.
"The actual numbers are slightly higher than the numbers you talk about for England, where about 9% of doctors are EU nationals and about 19% of nurses are EU nationals.
"But we are still seeing doctors and nurses coming to the UK and we need to do everything on all sides of this House to reassure them that we see them as having a bright and vital future in the NHS."
Labour MP Heidi Alexander, a former shadow health secretary, said: "The truth is EU staff no longer want to come here.
"Doctors and nurses are leaving in their droves and thanks to the abolition of the NHS bursary, our nurses of tomorrow are going to have to pay to train."
She said Mr Hunt needs to understand the "staffing crisis hasn't materialised out of thin air", but is directly attributable to his actions and those of Conservative-led governments since 2010.
Mr Hunt replied: "You may have noticed a little thing called Brexit that happened last year, which is actually the cause of understandable concern.
"But if you look at the facts, how many doctors came from the EU to the NHS in the year ending this March, in other words post-Brexit - 2,200 - and how many nurses... 4,000 nurses joined the NHS from the EU in the year ending March."
Mr Hunt also reiterated the need for more British doctors and nurses, telling MPs: "There is no intention to restrict access for vital professions, such as the clinical professions in the NHS, post-Brexit.
"We've said many times we'll have a pragmatic immigration policy.
"But the long-term solution is not to depend on being able to import doctors and nurses from anywhere because the World Health Organisation says there is a worldwide shortage of about two million clinical professionals - because we're not the only people facing the challenge of an ageing population."