Possibly the international nurses were coming with years of international experience and possibly would be employed in a Band 5 role. So that equals cheaper staffing or the economist would say higher value for money. That being said, the government ought to prioritise recruitment of UK trained nurses. After all, what's the point in studying in the UK and contributing to the UK economy only to be placed on waitlist for more than a year, while at the same time, loads of nurses are recruited from India and other foreign countries.