Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has considered reformulating unfilled training posts to enable them to be given to medical students in their second foundation year who have prior experience in the relevant department.

There has been no such consideration. Foundation training and medical speciality training involve different responsibilities, expectations, and levels of experience. The two-year foundation programme acts as a bridge between medical school and specialty training. The programme provides trainees with the defined practical skills, competencies, and sound knowledge of how to manage acutely ill patients that prepares them for entry into specialty training.