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Modernising Medical Careers

I, like Ministers, care about what is happening, but perhaps Opposition Members have been more open about some of the problems. Locally, we have discovered that filling out 150 words is worth the same as a PhD, which involves three years or more of hard work. An explanation of that is needed. On the first day the system opened, it was apparently not possible to apply for a job within 50 miles of Worthing or for one in genito-urinary medicine. The problem is not the computer or the method of consulting the people who put the thing together. The problem was caused because the system was not run as a trial in at least one region to determine the experience. Will my hon. Friend commit us to go on working not only for senior and junior doctors, but for those in the MMC system who resigned because of a loss to confidence, by backing the doctors and, if necessary, saying to the Government, ““Why don’t you drop your defences and join in working out the problems and solving them??