Government refuses to fund UK students at new medical school despite ‘chronic’ doctor shortage

David Green, of the University of Worcester, says the surrounding area desperately needs doctors but the school has not been allocated a single funded place. Photograph: University of Worcester/John Coleman/University of Worcester

A new school set up to boost the number of doctors in England has been told it will not receive any funding for domestic students – meaning that in future it may only be able to give places to those coming in from overseas.

The government is refusing to fund a single place at Three Counties Medical School, University of Worcester, despite health bosses in the area saying they are spending £70m a year on agency staff to plug a chronic shortage of doctors.