Thousands of UK nationals have bought fake degrees from a multi-million pound "diploma mill" in Pakistan, a BBC Radio 4's File on Four programme investigation has found. Buyers include NHS consultants, nurses and a large defence contractor. One British buyer spent almost £500,000 on bogus documents. The Department for Education said it was taking "decisive action to crack down on degree fraud" that "cheats genuine learners

British medical authorities acknowledged on Monday that they were checking the credentials of some 3,000 foreign physicians after one was convicted of fraud and accused of falsifying qualifications. A physician used a qualification from her native New Zealand for more than two decades which enabled her to treat patients suffering from dementia and an array of other psychiatric complaints. However, in recent weeks, an investigation by a provincial newspaper uncovered a very different version of her background.