Draft terms for a new trainee doctors and dentists contract have been drawn up by the British Medical Association (BMA) and NHS Employers.
The proposed terms will now be considered before deciding whether to attempt a formal renegotiation of the contract.
This would require a mandate from the Junior Doctors Committee and the Health Departments.
Concerns were raised that the 13-year-old contract is no longer working as well as it could for NHS Employers, doctors and dentists in training and patients.
NHS Employers proposed the creation of a new contract which would make those in training feel “valued and engaged”, which is “affordable and adaptable” minimising conflict.
The BMA has raised questions over working hours, quality of life and the stability of pay and training.
Dr Ben Molyneux, chair of the BMA’s Junior Doctors Committee said: “Since the current contract was drawn up we have seen radical changes to the way doctors in training work.
“We believe there is scope for producing a contract that works better for both junior doctors and their employers.”
Dean Royles, chief executive of the NHS Employers organisation, said: “This is an important step towards modernising the junior doctors’ contract.
“We are hopeful that we can negotiate a new contract which will be better for doctors, employers and crucially our patients. These discussions in partnership with the BMA have been extremely useful and we very much hope to achieve a mandate for formal negotiations.”
