We have to face up to the distinct possibility that these jobs will lose their educational approval and be lost to the system

Jim McCaul BMA

Becoming a pre-registration house officer is the first step on the ladder for a junior doctor.

Since last August, those filling such posts are meant to have a maximum working week of 56 hours.

The BMA says that nearly all junior doctors were able to meet this criteria at first.

However, the number of hours being put in has been gradually creeping up.

According to the BMA, the number of pre-registration house officer posts breaching the 'new deal' on hours has increased from 3% to 35% in the space of seven months.

The Scottish Executive said the rate of non-compliance was 15% at the end of March.

However, BMA News said the actual position was 20% higher because of posts slipping in and out of compliance.

'Difficult position'

This means that although a post might appear compliant on a given day, factors such as sick leave and holidays mean it might not consistently comply with the limits.

It also raises fears that the posts may even be scrapped by the executive if the compliance figures are not reached.

Last October, 26 posts out of 761 across Scotland were removed from the matching system designed to marry candidates with available jobs because they did not comply with the new deal.

BMA Scottish junior doctors committee chairman Jim McCaul said: "This is a disaster."

He said the National Health Service had been left in "a very difficult position".

"We have to face up to the distinct possibility that these jobs will lose their educational approval and be lost to the system," he warned.

Not complacent

Deputy health minister Mary Mulligan spoke of her "concern" at the claims.

She said that according to Executive statistics, 85% of junior doctors were not exceeding the recommended number of hours.

But she vowed to investigate the BMA claims.

"We will act immediately we have any evidence to say that compliance is not being reached.

"We have made progress in the last couple of years, but I'm not at all complacent and I want to see 100% compliance. We will do everything possible to ensure that."