Ministers urged to push forward with protection of ‘nurse’ title
The government has been urged to use the King’s speech this week to push forward with plans to protect the job title ‘nurse’ in law.
It has been one year since the government pledged to introduce new legislation to crackdown on those wrongly using the title and misleading the public.
The move would see it become a criminal offence to use the title without the right Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) registration and could see anyone who violates this facing ‘a hefty fine’.
Today, on International Nurses Day, Labour MP for Brent East Dawn Butler, has asked the government to press ahead and adopt her bill to protect the nurse title, as promised by ministers a year ago.
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Nurse leaders have been campaigning for the title to be protected for several years under the #ProtectNurse movement, and Ms Butler had been working to introduce a 10-minute rule bill to see the nurse title protected last year.
Currently anyone can use the title ‘nurse’ as it is the title of ‘registered nurse’ that is protected in law. This means that those who do not have a nursing qualification or who have been convicted or struck off the NMC register can still call themselves a ‘nurse’.
In a post on social media platform X, Ms Butler paid tribute to the profession on International Nurses Day, thanking ‘all of the nurses who do an amazing job’.
She continued: ‘One year ago today we achieved a phenomenal success – protecting the title of the nurse.
‘When people have been struck off for serious misconduct, even for dangerous conduct, harming people, they can still call themselves a nurse and misuse that title.
‘I made sure that I put a bill forward in parliament and it was adopted by this labour government.
‘It’s a really important bill because what it means is that if somebody calls themselves a nurse that you can trust them.’
Ms Butler added: ‘I urge my government to adopt now in the King’s speech.
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‘To enhance patient safety, protect public trust, and uphold respect for the nursing profession by preventing misuse of the title following many concerning cases.’
The King’s speech is set to be held on Wednesday 13 May.
When promising to ‘protect the title “nurse” in law’ last year, the government said new legislation was expected to be laid in this Parliament and that anyone who subsequently describes themselves as a nurse without the relevant qualifications and registration would be committing a crime.
The government said there would be ‘exemptions’ for relevant professions like veterinary nurse, dental nurse and nursery nurse, where the title ‘nurse’ is legitimately used.
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When the news was announced in May 2025, Nursing in Practice interviewed Ms Butler about what she hoped it would achieve for public safety and the nursing profession.
At the time, Ms Butler told Nursing in Practice that the legislation acknowledged how the nursing profession had been ‘undervalued’, despite playing a critical role in the healthcare system.
The Department of Health and Social Care was contacted today for comment.
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