Facts

This claim has been repeatedly debunked by fact-checking organisations. For example, when the claim was initially made in the Tory party manifesto, FullFact demonstrated that it was misleading. The 50,000 figure is not made up of new nurses, as it includes successfully encouraging nearly 19,000 existing nurses to stay. Only around 31,000 will be newly trained or recruited. 

Verdict

Nadhim Zahawi, echoing Boris Johnson’s false claim about 50,000 more nurses, was misleading TV viewers. 

We approached Mr Zahawi’s office and the Department for Education for comment, but received no reply.