Since March, competition ratios have halved, prioritised doctors have filled almost all roles, and in some specialities, prioritised doctors have filled all roles.

The latest NHS England management data has shown the real-life and immediate impact of the Medical Training Prioritisation Act, which came into force in March, responding to concerns about increasing competition faced by UK-trained doctors for postgraduate medical training posts.

Competition ratios have halved, prioritised doctors have filled 98% of roles, and in some specialities, like general practice, all posts have been filled by prioritised doctors.

In summary, 37,689 applications successfully met the required appointable level for one of 9,520 speciality training posts. This is a competition ratio of four to one. 19,706 applications were from prioritised candidates, reducing the competition ratio to two to one.

This means 98% of posts were filled by priority candidates compared to 72% last year.

In Round 1, only 1.75% of offers accepted to date are from non-prioritised applicants compared to 27.95% last year, a reduction from 2,168 to 163 in one annual cycle.

The non-prioritised applicants accepted roles only in specialities or geographies that the prioritised applicants did not want.

Also, for the first time ever, all GP training places were accepted by UK graduates or applicants already working in the NHS. This compares to 62% last year.