More engagement in the working time directive negotiations from the outset would have most likely resulted in a better directive and safeguards against legal challenges such as SiMAP and Jaeger.
The retention of the opt-out and a solution to the problems caused by the SiMAP and Jaeger judgments still remain priorities for the United Kingdom, and together with many member states we continue to seek changes to the European working time directive to address the difficulties from these judgments.
The New Deal contract monitoring returns give an indication of national health service readiness for fully implementing the 48-hour week for doctors in training. Monitoring information is published on the NHS Employers website at: www.nhsemployers.org
The progress of the NHS working time directive pilots programme and research by the medical Royal Colleges also provides useful workforce information to support working time directive implementation.