Brexit: What impact will it have on the NHS and universities?

Professor Azeem Majeed MD FRCP FRCGP FFPHProfessor of Primary Care & Head of DepartmentDepartment of Primary Care & Public Health

Outline of Brexit talk

How will Brexit impact on: The NHS Public Health The Wider Health Economy Universities

The NHS: Staff Recruitment

• The future employment of the 50,000 EU and EEA nationals who work in the NHS (including around 9,000 doctors)

• Further recruitment of health professionals following Brexit

• Agreements to recognise the qualifications of doctors and other health professionals from the EU

• More limited rights for UK health professionals to live and work in other EU countries

The NHS: Access to Healthcare

• Three million EU nationals in the UK • Two million UK nationals living in other EU

countries• Access to healthcare for tourists and the

future of EHIC card

Public Health

• UK participation in pan-EU initiatives to protect public health

• These cover many areas including food regulations, road safety, air pollution, tobacco control, and chemical hazards.

• Important when dealing with cross-national issues (e.g. air pollution) or with large multi-national corporations

Wider Health Economy

• Relocation out of London of the European Medicines Agency

• UK may become less favoured as a site for industry-funded clinical research

• Medical technology industry• Threats to the development of IT standards• Imported drugs and medical supplies may

become more expensive

Universities: Research

• Loss of European research funding• Impact on the leading role UK universities play

in many international research collaborations• Unable to contribute to defining EU research

priorities• Recruitment of research staff

Universities: Teaching

• Threats to the ERASMUS Student Mobility Programme

• Bologna Process: Agreements between EU countries to ensure comparability in the standards and quality of higher education qualifications

• Recruitment of students from the EU and elsewhere in the world

Conclusions

• Brexit will have important impacts on the NHS and the UK’s universities

• Most impacts appear to be negative• Important that the NHS and universities

engage with government to ameliorate the risks from Brexit

• Public support also needed (e.g. to reinforce that immigration has positive benefits)