There’s no clear cure for European doctors leaving the NHS

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Most European doctors considering leaving UK due to Brexit, GMC reveals (Getty/iStock)

How will we cope with losing half of all our doctors (More than half of European doctors are thinking of leaving UK over Brexit, Adam Lusher, 1 March) or did you not mean to include all the UK born ones? No wonder there was a vote for Brexit when we – especially the media – have failed for so many decades to call ourselves European. It may make for snappier headlines but it has had long term consequences.

Tansy Hepton Huddersfield

But will they walk the walk?

Apart from the obvious retort that British doctors are European and that you mean “Doctors from Continental Europe” when you talk about half of European doctors wanting to leave, let’s see how many actually fulfil their promise. They earn more money in the UK than they would in their own country of origin. And the quality of life for a “European” doctor in the UK is not so bad.

People who voted for Brexit wanted more control so that more English speaking doctors and nurses from Britain can be trained in the future to reduce the reliance on overseas staff. It is simply scandalous that the NHS has to rely on foreign doctors and nurses from abroad, particularly where they have been trained at the expense of poorer countries like the Philippines and are poached to work here with higher salaries. That is morally repugnant.

Philip Pound London, SE26

More like an understatement

Adam Lusher’s article rightly points out dangers inherent in demotivating EU citizens currently working in the NHS. I also wonder whether his article actually understates the future problems. Many British health workers will be older than their EU colleagues and are now approaching retirement thus increasing the importance of “foreign” workers in the NHS. It can be suggested that we should train more of our own doctors rather than poaching them from other countries but this is a long term solution to the problem. Training medical staff takes time and money, both I fear are in short supply.

Robin White Hampshire

You couldn’t make it up

Day after day, organisation after organisation, are in effect saying, along with The Independent, that it will be to our tremendous disadvantage to leave the EU. Even Boris Johnson is now saying that we have had 70 years of peace in Europe because of our trade connections. All the organisations speaking out, be it the NHS, universities or security services, are the experts, the people who know. And then along comes the referendum and misinformed or at least uninformed voters. May and her government insist that a badly informed or misinformed minority of the population determine that we leave the EU. You really couldn't make such a ridiculous course of events up.

Paul Priestley-Leach Swanland

It’s a hard call

Regarding the new law re using mobiles while driving, if you are in a queue of traffic that is clearly not moving e.g. motorway closed by accident, can you still not use a mobile? Obviously many people would want to advise people that they’re going to be late.

Kathy Hall Derby