Although there is general agreement that the UKCC’s proposals for continuing education are necessary and desirable, there is uncertainty about who should foot the bill for educational activities. Steve Wright explores the professional and legal implications and urges nurses and employers, both of whom may have to snake difficult financial sacrifices, to consider the investment potential of continuing education for nurses

Since the UKCC issued its first proposals for mandatory continuing education for nurses (1), there has been general agreement that this is a proper direction for nursing. The notion that a qualification after three years of study should be a passport to a lifetime of employment, with no requirement that the practitioner should show evidence of keeping up to date, would have few supporters.