The IMO has warned that that little progress is being made in moves to settle the junior doctors' dispute.

It says given the 'continued lack of clarity' from the HSE and its 'unwillingness to fully commit to IMO concerns' on excessive working hours of junior doctors (NCHDs), industrial action may be inevitable.

This means a industrial action, including all-out strike action, could take place in around two weeks time unless there is substantial progress in contacts between the IMO and the HSE in the meantime.

The IMO claims the HSE has shown a lack of real engagement in trying to resolve the working hours issue.

It wants the HSE to demonstrate that it will take steps to reduce NCHD working hours in line with EU law. This includes implementing a 48-hour maximum working week by the end of next year and ensuring that no junior doctor is forced to work in excess of 24 hours in a single shift.

The doctors' union, in a statement, said in a survey it carried out of work patterns among NCHDs in the first six months of this year, 70% of them said they were working over 60 hours per week, with 85% of juniors working continuous shifts in excess of 24 hours.

However, the HSE has claimed that significant progress has been made recently in reducing NCHD hours.

Currently, only 5% of doctors are working in excess of 68 hours per week and only 34% are working continuous shifts in excess of 24 hours, compared to 58% working these shifts back in March, the HSE has claimed.

The HSE says substantial progress towards compliance with EU working time limits for NCHDs had been made in some hospital sites. However, it admits that reducing hours is more problematic in smaller hospitals.

The IMO has rejected claims made on Thursday by Health Minister James Reilly, which indicated that working conditions are improving for junior docors.