:00:37. > :00:39.Afternoon folks, and welcome to the Daily Politics.
:00:40. > :00:43.Almost 40,000 junior doctors have voted to go on strike for four days
:00:44. > :00:50.Are they putting patients' lives at risk?
:00:51. > :00:54.The Lords have voted for 16 and 17 year olds to have a right to vote
:00:55. > :00:59.But could their inclusion skew the result?
:01:00. > :01:03.Nicola Sturgeon indicates that she's in listening mode on whether British
:01:04. > :01:06.warplanes should bomb IS in Syria - could SNP votes help the PM get
:01:07. > :01:13.And, on International Men's Day, who's issues are taken more
:01:14. > :01:24.Because I think we talk a lot about women's issues these days, we don't
:01:25. > :01:34.I don't even know what a men's issue is, but we never hear about it.
:01:35. > :01:37.All that in the next hour and with us for the whole
:01:38. > :01:40.of the programme today is the broadcaster and Labour Peer, Joan
:01:41. > :01:46.First this morning, a ballot of 40,000 junior doctors
:01:47. > :01:49.has voted decisively to go out on strike for three days in December.
:01:50. > :01:53.Under the plan, junior doctors will provide
:01:54. > :01:56."emergency care only" action for 24 hours on December 1st, followed
:01:57. > :02:02.by a full walk out from 8am to 5pm on December 8th and December 16th.
:02:03. > :02:05.The strike has been called in response to a new contract that
:02:06. > :02:14.It looks like it could be a tricky winter for Jeremy Hunt.
:02:15. > :02:19.The new contract is part of the Government's plan to introduce
:02:20. > :02:23.a 7 day NHS, arguing the current arrangements are 'outdated'.
:02:24. > :02:26.Currently a junior doctors' normal hours are considered to be from 7
:02:27. > :02:33.in the morning to 7 in the evening Monday to Friday.
:02:34. > :02:36.Mr Hunt wants to change that to 7 in the morning to 10
:02:37. > :02:41.in the evening Monday to Friday, and 7-7 on Saturdays.
:02:42. > :02:43.In order to sweeten the pill, doctors are being offered
:02:44. > :02:49.an 11% pay rise, as well as curbs in overtime, and Jeremy Hunt claims
:02:50. > :02:58.However the BMA argues doctors will be forced to work more anti-social
:02:59. > :03:01.hours which would affect patient safety,
:03:02. > :03:10.and they fear the new contract could lead to pay cut in the long term.
:03:11. > :03:21.Thank you. This news just broke earlier this morning. We got the
:03:22. > :03:25.word the ballot had been taken. 40,000 doctors. We understand there
:03:26. > :03:33.was a big turnout and around 98% of them voted to go on strike. Joan
:03:34. > :03:41.Bakewell, are you surprised by the scale of this vote for strike
:03:42. > :03:48.Marciello a sensational vote. 98%. Even the unions can't hit that, 98%.
:03:49. > :03:53.That is absolutely unanimous and I'm not surprised. This is work in
:03:54. > :04:01.progress. This is a contract that hasn't come to a proper solution.
:04:02. > :04:05.They want to go to ACAS and probably well but the minister must stay
:04:06. > :04:07.engaged and continue to negotiate. This will concentrate his mind.
:04:08. > :04:10.And we're joined now by the Chair of the Health Select Committee, and GP,
:04:11. > :04:14.Dr Sarah Wollaston and junior doctor Anna Warrington.
:04:15. > :04:25.I think you've just been on a long shift, is that right? 14 long
:04:26. > :04:28.shifts. What did they consist of? Out of hours emergency care, looking
:04:29. > :04:34.after six people who need care in the night and on weekends. 14 days
:04:35. > :04:40.in a row? Yes, a combination of nights and days. And you won't get
:04:41. > :04:45.the weekend off? I will. When will you be back on? The following
:04:46. > :04:51.Monday. You voted for strike action? I did. Have you done so expecting
:04:52. > :04:57.you will go on strike or to concentrate the government's mind to
:04:58. > :05:01.think again? I have voted for strike action, hoping that strike action
:05:02. > :05:06.will not need to be taken, but it is a last resort in a debate with
:05:07. > :05:10.Jeremy Hunt, who simply has not engaged with junior doctors about
:05:11. > :05:14.are very valid concerns about this on safe and unfair junior doctors
:05:15. > :05:19.contract. The changes he wants to make. Putting aside the issue is
:05:20. > :05:27.just that this question, you have to have made a complete Olic said
:05:28. > :05:31.something to get 98% of doctors who voted to vote for strike action. I
:05:32. > :05:36.don't remember when they last went on strike, if ever. Remember, I
:05:37. > :05:41.don't speak for the government. I understand that. Have they made a
:05:42. > :05:45.complete mess of it? I think there has been serious misrepresentation
:05:46. > :05:48.on both sides of the dispute. We saw at the head of your programme
:05:49. > :05:56.quoting this was going to apply up to 10pm on Saturday. It's not. Some
:05:57. > :05:59.concessions have been made. It is until seven on Saturday. Saturday no
:06:00. > :06:06.longer becomes the weekend. A weekend day. It becomes a normal
:06:07. > :06:09.working day, correct? Yes, but the point I would make is as Anna said
:06:10. > :06:13.at the beginning, what we don't want to see as junior doctors working
:06:14. > :06:17.very long hours over extended periods. There are parts of this
:06:18. > :06:21.negotiation which are about reducing the number of maximum hours. Sorry
:06:22. > :06:25.to interrupts, I will come onto the substance in a minute. That wasn't
:06:26. > :06:29.my question. My question was somebody somewhere in government,
:06:30. > :06:34.perhaps the Secretary of State for Health has badly mishandled this, to
:06:35. > :06:39.get a ballot in which 98% of people who I can never remember striking
:06:40. > :06:42.before, voting to go on strike? Absolutely. The point I would make
:06:43. > :06:46.is there is a breakdown of trust. What both sides are saying, we need
:06:47. > :06:50.to have some process that restores trust. What would you advise the
:06:51. > :06:54.government to do? First of all I would say we need to try and avoid a
:06:55. > :06:58.strike, that would be damaging for patients. I think they should take
:06:59. > :07:02.every opportunity to get back around the table. The Secretary of State,
:07:03. > :07:06.it was being asked if he would drop preconditions which he has done, and
:07:07. > :07:10.now the BMA have come back to say they would like to go through ACAS,
:07:11. > :07:13.because they haven't had any confidence in the process that was
:07:14. > :07:18.delivered already by an independent pay review board. Would it be a good
:07:19. > :07:22.thing? I think rather than having a strike they should seriously
:07:23. > :07:28.consider that. All right. Anna am are you up for the ACAS route? A
:07:29. > :07:35.conservatory advisory service? Throughout this entire debate the
:07:36. > :07:39.BMA have repeatedly asked Jeremy Hunt to engage in fair, level
:07:40. > :07:44.playing field negotiations with them about this contract. He has
:07:45. > :07:47.consistently refused to remove the threat of the imposition of this
:07:48. > :07:50.contract. He essentially says if we do not agree with him, might just
:07:51. > :07:56.impose it anyway. And in some of that is what he did. This is not a
:07:57. > :08:00.man who is willing to negotiate in negotiations. I think bringing in a
:08:01. > :08:05.third party outside body in this case would be advisable because we
:08:06. > :08:09.have lost faith in him. I do not trust that health Minister, does not
:08:10. > :08:13.understand what is to be a junior doctor or the interest of the NHS.
:08:14. > :08:19.He has called me militant and lacking invocations. Personally?
:08:20. > 0:01:24Junior doctors who have taken action as militant. Described as