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Junior doctors protest over renting rooms
Anna Davis, Evening Standard16.06.08
Hundreds of medical students were protesting outside London hospitals today over the scrapping of free accommodation for young doctors.
Students from St George's University, UCL and Guy's, King's and St Thomas' said they will be £5,000 worse off because of the Government's decision to make them pay for hospital rooms.
Junior doctors have been given free rooms for their first year in the job since 1983, but this will be abolished in August.
Paulo Perella, president of St George's University student union, said: "Medical students already graduate with huge amounts of debts of more than £ 20,000. Removing accommodation support for newly qualified doctors is likely to add to this debt and could, in the long-term, discourage young people from studying medicine, particularly those from lower socio-economic groups."
About 500 students were expected to demonstrate on the streets of London today, and a protest will take place on Thursday outside Bart's and The London hospital.
Newly qualified doctor Ayoola Awopeth, 25, will start his first job at Kingston hospital in August on a salary of £22,000. He said: "I have been offered accommodationin the hospital but will have to pay more than £400 a month for it, which is more than I pay for my rented flat at the moment.
"We understand there are problems in the NHS and we don't want to be unreasonable, but we are effectively being given a pay cut."
The British Medical Association said medical students' debts on leaving university are set to rise to £37,000 with the introduction of variable top-up fees.
