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The German doctor had failed an English test for one primary care trust, so simply applied to work at another.

A new draft bill, published today by the Law Commission, will enable regulators to bar foreign workers from practising and subject them to language tests. Those that fail will be barred from working in Britain.

New powers would allow regulators to proactively investigate instances of suspected poor conduct and practice whenever they come to their attention.

At the moment, some can only investigate once they have received a formal complaint.

The Bill also allows regulators to reconsider cases that have been closed following a mistake or error, as recommended by the inquiry into the scandal at Mid Staffs.

A process of revalidation – where professionals undergo "MOTs" to ensure they are still fit to practise – will be extended from doctors to all health and social care professionals.

Schemes could also be introduced to bar unregulated workers from providing services, according to the UK-wide recommendations.

The nine organisations, including the General Dental Council, General Pharmaceutical Council and Health Professions Council, are responsible for around 1.4 million workers across 32 health and social care roles.

A joint letter signed by the regulators calls on the Government to support the new plans and asks for "urgent parliamentary consideration" of the Bill.

It said: "The Law Commission was tasked with creating a single, streamlined legal structure covering all nine regulators which would enable us to provide better protection for patients, be more responsive, reduce the burden of regulation and to drive down costs.

"We were, and remain, committed to these aims. Realising them is essential if we are to retain the trust and confidence of the public, health care professionals and the health service in which those professionals work.

"The recommendations of Robert Francis QC following events in Mid Staffordshire highlighted the vital importance of effective regulation focused on promoting safe, compassionate patient care rather than, as too often in the past, intervening only after patients have suffered harm."