A HOSPITAL boss has again urged a health regulator to reconsider 'tough' English language tests for overseas nurses before winter.

Jackie Daniel, chief executive of the trust in charge of Furness General Hospital, in Barrow, claims 40 qualified nurses could be working on the wards of her trust by Christmas if the Nursing and Midwifery Council relax the pass score by half a point.

But in papers released this week, NMC boss Jackie Smith has indicated that she sees no evidence the pass point is set too high.

Controversy around the International English Language Test has now become a national issue, with hospital leaders around the country claiming it is worsening an NHS recruitment crisis.

The University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust, which runs FGH, has struggled to secure enough nurses to fill its wards for several years due to a national shortage of nurses.

The situation deepened last year when the government axed bursaries for UK student nurses.

Senior staff travelled to India where qualified nurses were interviewed and offered positions across the trust.

But so far just two of the 104 people offered jobs have begun work - with others being prevented from doing so because they have narrowly missed the average score of seven in the IELTS test.

Instead, many achieve an average pass rate of 6.5 in reading, writing, speaking and listening exams, the score required to work in hospitals in the United States, Canada and Australia.

Mrs Daniel, who called upon the NMC to review the IELTS test in March, has claimed the score is too high.

She added an 'urgent resolution' is now required.

Tweeting directly to NMC chief executive Jackie Smith, she wrote: "Can we urgently review IELTS threshold for admission of overseas nurses to UK?

"If we lower IELTS from 7seven to 6.5 it would allow 1,000 nurses nationally to be with us before winter.

"Lowering the threshold from seven to 6.5 would bring 40 more registered nurses (to UHMBT)."

The NMC committed to carry out a review of the required IELTS pass rate in May.

But new NMC Council papers published this week state: "Our stocktake, so far, has provided no compelling evidence that the IELTS is not fit for purpose or that the level is set too high.

"However, this is an initial stocktake and we suggest more work would be helpful."