Medics are allowed to work even if they speak as little English as many Britons speak Chinese, the chairman of the British Medical Association (BMA) suggested.

He called for tighter regulations to prevent a repeat of the death of David Gray, a pensioner who died after he was treated by a German visiting doctor working his first shift in Britain.

An inquest into the death found that the medic, Dr Daniel Ubani, gave 70-year-old Mr Gray up to 20 times the recommended dose of the drug.

Dr Ubani had previously failed an English test when applying to work in Leeds, but was still allowed to work in the NHS in Cambridgeshire.