Health secretary John Reid is planning to tighten controls on nursing agencies hiring staff from developing countries.

In a move designed to avert criticism that the UK is damaging the healthcare systems of developing nations, Reid said he would be updating and clarifying the NHS’s ethical recruitment code in order to eliminate abuse.

The code, introduced by the Department of Health in 2001, requires NHS employers not to recruit nurses from 150 developing countries unless there is bilateral government agreement.

But the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) claims nurses are joining the NHS after being hired by agencies to work initially for private hospitals and homes.

Beverley Malone, general secretary of the RCN, is urging the government to extend its code to encompass recruitment agencies.