NHS trusts paying agency doctors up to £5,200 a shift, Labour research shows

Party criticises significant rise in use of temporary staff while places at medical school have been cut

NHS trusts are paying as much as 5,200 a shift for agency doctors, figures uncovered by Labour have shown, with the party saying that low staffing levels resulted in a significant rise in the use of temporary workers last year.

In what Labour called an indication of a desperate" staffing crisis in the health service, freedom of information requests to every English NHS trust showed they paid 3bn to agencies for staff during 2021-22, 20% more than in the previous year.