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The under-fire Health Secretary bizarrely requested standing during yesterday's interview with James O'Brien, according to the presenter. Hunt, who faces growing calls to resign, then struggled to bat away accusations that the health service is being "denuded and denigrated". The minister insisted he is determined to "set the NHS on a path" to becoming the world's "safest, highest quality health care system".

He made the comments as more than 20,000 Junior Doctors went on strike over a controversial new contract branded "unsafe" and "unfair". Thousands of them and their supporters marched on the Department of Health in Whitehall last night to protest against his stance. But a bullish David Cameron claimed the strike was "wrong", saying: "To go ahead with the withdrawal of emergency care – that is not right."

BBC The Health Secretary squirmed during the interview on Newsnight

The BMA were not prepared to discuss this in a reasonable way Jeremy Hunt

During his interview with O'Brien, the Health Secretary even repeated his claim that "many doctors don't understand" the contract. Hunt added: "Nor do they understand how hard the Government has worked to find an accommodation and that’s a great tragedy." He went on to criticise the British Medical Association, saying: "The BMA were not prepared to sit around and discuss this in a reasonable way."

BBC He insisted on standing up, according to host James O'Brien