President of Royal College says not enough doctors for 7-day NHS

President Professor Jane Dacre of the Royal College of Physicians is set to warn government ministers that there are simply not enough doctors in England to staff a seven-day NHS service.

Prof Dacre believes that through her research, she can show that vacant posts are not being filled and that there are huge spaces in rotas, which alludes to the fact that there are not enough doctors, reports the BBC.

The Guardian has also reports on this issue, saying that hospitals are facing a crisis as nearly half of consultant posts are currently left vacant.

Ministers are currently in a dispute with junior doctors over the plans that the government has to improve weekend care for patients of the NHS.

In response to these proposed changes, thousands of medics went on strike to oppose the government's decision regarding their weekend hours.

Research from the Royal College showed that there were four in ten vacant posts for consultant physicians advertised last year that weren't filled by anyone.

Prof Dacre will tell the government: "I feel sorry for NHS trusts. If we have neither enough trainees, nor consultants to run the service now, how are we going to implement a safe seven-day service?"