Zimbabwe's nurses in exodus to Britain

Last updated at 01:25 22 September 2007


One fifth of Zimbabwe's trained nurses were recruited to work in Britain last year - despite rules supposedly banning hospitals from poaching staff from the world's poorest countries.

More than 5,200 doctors and nurses were hired from African nations which appear on the Government's list of states "that should not be recruited from".

The World Health Organisation estimates Zimbabwe to have fewer than 9,000 nurses left - just one for every 1,400 people, compared with one for every 156 in the UK.

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The country's health service is close to collapse, faced with high levels of HIV and infant mortality and an exodus of trained medics.

Yet last year the Home Office granted work permits to 1,610 Zimbabwean nurses - far more than the numbers being trained there each year.

Ministers acknowledged the problem by issuing new guidelines three years ago and NHS trusts are no longer allowed to "target" developing countries such as Zimbabwe when recruiting.

But they are not actually banned from hiring staff from those countries Tory MP James Clappison, who uncovered the latest figures, said: "The Labour Government is clearly failing to meet its own commitment.

"We have to consider the long-term effect."

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