Problem solved?

Following the collapse of conciliation talks on the Working Time Directive in Brussels on Monday, the right to opt out of the EU's 48-hour working week has been retained. For the moment...

However, the opt-out is only one part of the hugely burdensome Working Time Directive (for a thorough discussion see here). Some groups are already subject to restrictive working time limits under the Directive.

From August this year, for instance, the maximum working time for junior doctors will be reduced from 56 hours to 48 hours per week. Various doctors' groups, including the British Medical Association and the Royal College of Surgeons, have expressed concern that the quality of doctors' training could be threatened by the reduced hours.

We have now noticed that there is a petition on Downing Street's website, calling for an opt-out from the working hours limit for surgeons - whose training is particularly intense. We would encourage as many people as possible to sign it, in order to pile pressure on the Government to push for a permanent derogation from these rules.