Green mayoral candidate Sian Berry will join other leading Green Party politicians to support junior doctors on the picket line at St Thomas’ Hospital on Tuesday morning.
Sian Berry, Caroline Lucas MP, party leader Natalie Bennett and London Assembly member Baroness Jenny Jones will join doctors who are taking industrial action over proposed changes to their contracts.
Sian, who is also the Green Party’s lead candidate for the London Assembly, said in advance of the picket:
“We all know that junior doctors do not take strike action lightly, so if they feel they have no option because the government isn’t listening to them, we all ought to believe and support them.
“We don’t let lorry or bus drivers carry on working when they’re too tired to perform their jobs safely, so it seems senseless that the Department of Health is ignoring doctors’ own concerns in the same regard.
“This is a short-sighted move in every respect: doctor fatigue has been found to cause a 15 percent increase in the likelihood of medical errors, and the overstretched National Health Service will end up under even more pressure if we force junior doctors to jeopardise patient safety by working longer hours.”
Caroline Lucas, the MP for Brighton Pavilion, added:
“We fully support the action being taken by junior doctors today. These dedicated professionals must be treated with the respect they deserve – and the people who use the NHS have a right to being looked after by a rested and fairly paid workforce.
“This strike is happening because the Government is failing to address very serious concerns around safe working conditions, while failing to offer proper recognition for those working unsocial hours. Ministers have treated Junior Doctors with contempt and subjected them to a campaign of misinformation – it’s no wonder they’re at the end of their tether.”