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Open Let the NHS Recruit Australian & NZ Specialists: Cross-Recognise Qualifications

Created by David Conrad Abelson
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The NHS is short 7,000+ medical staff and 52% of advertised vacancies go unfilled, mostly for lack of applicants. Many specialists want to come to the UK from Aust and NZ but they currently face a very difficult and costly 4+ year approval process.

This is because the General Medical Council (GMC) does not recognise Aust / NZ Medical Specialist qualifications. This, despite Parliament requiring the GMC recognise qualifications from anywhere in the EU. This includes many countries with medical systems, training, and language quite different to that in Aust, NZ and the UK.

This petition is for Parliament to require the GMC to recognise Aust and NZ Medical Specialist qualifications (as it does the EU) so that they can be recruited by the NHS

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  • Petition published

    This petition can now be signed.

    If this petition gets 10,000 signatures, government will respond to it.

    If this petition gets 100,000 signatures, it will be considered for debate in Parliament.

    This petition will stay open until 11 June 2026.