Health Secretary Wes Streeting has ordered an urgent review of vetting procedures for doctors trained overseas after an investigation revealed that 22 medics banned or disciplined abroad were able to work in the National Health Service (NHS).
The Times investigation found that the doctors had faced serious disciplinary action in other countries — including cases involving sexual misconduct, assault, harassment, and failures in patient care — yet there was no record of these sanctions on their General Medical Council (GMC) licences in the UK.
Streeting described the revelations as “horrific” and “a serious failure in our medical regulatory systems.” He said patient safety was his top priority and vowed that the government would act swiftly to close the gaps. “The public rightly expects that any doctor practising in this country meets the highest standards of professional conduct,” he said. “No doctor with serious misconduct findings should be able to slip through the cracks and practise in our NHS — no exceptions.”
Streeting has asked the GMC to urgently clarify its vetting processes and directed NHS England to review the employment status of the doctors involved. The regulator confirmed it is reviewing 26 cases, including one being handled as a matter of urgency.
A GMC spokesperson said the body “takes its role in protecting patients extremely seriously,” explaining that some overseas regulators had not shared disciplinary information, while in other instances the GMC had determined that sanctions abroad did not affect a doctor’s ability to practise safely in the UK.
The review will assess how regulators share information internationally and strengthen safeguards to ensure that any doctor disciplined overseas cannot practise undetected in the UK healthcare system.
