The UK government is facing calls to close temporary visa programs for foreign health and care workers, after statistics showed migration from countries like Nigeria reaching unprecedented levels.

Figures from the Home Office on Thursday revealed over 143,000 visas were issued to medical professionals in the year ending September 2023 – more than double the previous year. Nigerians accounted for the highest percentage increase at 169%.

The rise is attributed to Britain’s open visa routes for healthcare workers, as it grapples with severe NHS staffing shortages worsened by the pandemic. Total dependents moving with Nigerian health workers also spiked by 329% year-on-year.

But the influx has stirred fears over strained public services, with net migration reportedly hitting a record 745,000 in 2022 based on Office for National Statistics data. This has triggered demands to reduce numbers, including from the influential New Conservatives group backed by former PM Boris Johnson.

NHS Trusts also lamented the over-reliance on overseas viscosity staff, saying it was unsustainable to “prop up the social care system with workers on visas”.

Amidst the pressure, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak conceded that current migration levels were “too high”, despite the Conservative manifesto pledge to cut numbers after Brexit.

The growing anti-immigration rhetoric has raised uncertainties for Nigerian and other foreign health workers providing vital services in understaffed British hospitals and care homes. But migrant advocates argue curtailing visa routes will only worsen the NHS crisis.

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