Heidi Alexander MP, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, commenting on tomorrow’s industrial action by junior doctors, said:

“Jeremy Hunt’s handling of these negotiations has been nothing short of a disgrace. He has undermined staff morale, destroyed trust and alienated a generation of junior doctors.

“With a strike just a matter of hours away, this issue is now above party politics. That’s why MPs from a number of parties joined together yesterday to make a serious and constructive offer to the Health Secretary, backed by a number of Royal Colleges. Instead of sitting down to talk about this proposal, Jeremy Hunt dismissed it and labelled it ‘opportunism’.

“Even at this late stage, he should do the right thing for patients, staff and the NHS and choose compromise, over strikes.”