Mr. Jim Breslin:

There is quite a degree of movement. The Nurses and Midwives Act 2011 provides for the NMBI to enter into agreements with third countries for the purpose of mutual recognition. That will allow the registration bodies in both jurisdictions to say that there is equivalence and that people can seamlessly move back and forth. The same applies in the case of the Medical Council. The bodies involved may need to change their internal rules somewhat, but given the historic linkages and the equivalence that we currently enjoy, the latter is something that all regulators on the two islands wish to continue.

I do not know what the UK's plans on the working time directive are. I do not mean to disagree with the Senator, but the essential point is not the number of hours, but the quality of the training in the course of those hours.