Overseas Doctors (Hansard, 15 July 1992)

§ Mr. Dafis
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make it her policy to oppose current European Community medical directives which restrict the free movement of overseas-qualified doctors within the Community.

§ Mr. Galbraith
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will take action to remove the EC medical directives which restrict the free movement of overseas-qualified doctors within the Community; and if she will make a statement.

§ Dr. Mawhinney
The medical directives were introduced in 1975 to facilitate the free movement of EC doctors within the Community through the automatic recognition of the medical qualifications awarded by member states. The European Commission is looking at the possibility of amending the directives to incorporate overseas qualifications and discussions are presently taking place between health officials of member states.

§ Mr. Dafis
To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she last met representatives from the Overseas Doctors Association to discuss European Community directives on the free movement of doctors and their implications for overseas-qualified doctors.

§ Dr. Mawhinney
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not met representatives of the Overseas Doctors 743W Association recently to discuss this issue but she wrote to their chairman on 25 June setting out the latest position on the European medical directives.
Ministers and officials meet representatives of the association at regular intervals. On 18 February they met my hon. Friend the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State. Their last meeting with officials was on 18 June. On both occasions this issue was discussed in detail.
My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary also spoke on this topic when he attended the association's annual dinner as guest speaker on 2 July.

§ Mr. Dafis
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make it her policy to put discussion on the implications of European Community medical directives affecting overseas-qualified doctors on the programme for the European Community Health Council during the United Kingdom's presidency.

§ Dr. Mawhinney
Proposals to amend the directives are the responsibility of the Commission which is currently consulting member states.