Responding to the publication of the 2025 specialty training application ratios, co-chairs of the BMA resident doctors committee Dr Melissa Ryan and Dr Ross Nieuwoudt said:

"These ratios are depressing but they come as absolutely no surprise. This has been a disaster long in the making as successive governments have failed to deliver enough training places to keep up with demand. The sheer numbers - more than 10,000 doctors applied this year to become psychiatrists and less than 500 could get a place - might be staggering, but they are on trend with what data from previous years showed.

"Perhaps most gallingly in a country where so many patients are unable to see a GP, there are five doctors applying for every GP training post. That leaves four out of every five doctors who applied to become GPs unable to do so.

"The result will be more of what we have already seen: an ever larger cohort of doctors unemployed, stuck, or looking for the exits. The moment could not be more urgent for Government to bring forward plans to alleviate the situation for UK graduates.

"Meanwhile, first year doctors are being balloted for strike action in protest at the Government's wholly inadequate existing plans to expand places, and today's numbers shows exactly why they need to vote yes."

Notes to editors