Thursday, 30th July 2009
Conservatives face betyral by Labour and SNP on the Working Time Directive
Dear Sir,
It seems incredible that despite the success of Conservative MEPs in preventing the Council of Ministers from introducing the working time directive with its mandatory limit of 48 hours per week, the Westminster and Holyrood governments are nevertheless determined to press ahead with the imposition of this harmful legislation.
Even in the face of a swine flu pandemic which has stretched the resources of the NHS to its limits, the governments north and south of the border have decided to impose the mandatory European Working Time Directive as of Saturday 1st August. By severely restricting the hours that doctors can work, the 48 hour week will have a massive impact on the services our hospitals can provide, not to mention a horrendous impact on NHS costs.
RemedyUK has already stated the workload on the NHS is mounting, with more than 100,000 people being diagnosed with swine flu every week. The doctor’s pressure group has asked for special measures to bypass the working week regulations.
It is appalling that after Conservative MEPs fought this socialist legislation to a standstill in Brussels, we now face betrayal by the Labour and SNP governments at home.
Yours faithfully,
Struan Stevenson
Scottish Conservative Euro MP
