What makes a good software engineer and why have women struggled to make an impact in the profession?

What kind of digital footprint do we leave as we roam the internet and does that leave us open to dangers?
And can a video game teach us anything about mental illness? Just some of the questions we explore on this week's Tech Tent.
It started with an internal memo from a software engineer protesting about Google's diversity policies, it has turned into a crisis for the company and seen America's culture wars expose divides in Silicon Valley.
But at the heart of this debate is the question of why so few women end up developing software for major tech firms.
For the long view on this question we turned to Dame Stephanie Shirley, who learned to code in the 1950s. She started her own company in the 1960s - and called herself Steve Shirley as a way of getting through to male clients who, in those sexist days, might not have responded to a business run by a Stephanie.
She deliberately employed women as coders and points out that in the early days of computing programming was seen as a female job - "think of all the coders at Bletchley Park in World War Two".
Dame Stephanie says she's "disappointed rather than depressed" by the fact that, while attitudes have changed since the days when a government minister tried to pinch her bottom while negotiating a contract, there is still a major gender imbalance in the technology industry.
Amongst the reasons she cites are the fact that tech industry has a very macho aura, and not enough girls are doing science and maths in school.
An interesting blogpost from a former Google engineer and manager this week argued that the problem is that many in Silicon Valley have got the wrong idea about what constitutes a great software engineer, seeing it as an occupation for obsessive lone geniuses rather than a collaborative process.
"Engineering is not the art of building devices; it's the art of fixing problems," wrote Yonatan Zunger. And fixing problems turns out to be all about understanding how people tick, which means successful engineers need the kind of interpersonal skills you may not develop if you rarely emerge from behind your screen.
Dame Stephanie Shirley insists that the skills you need to succeed in software development have nothing to do with gender. What is most heartening is to hear how enthusiastic she remains about a career in technology - "It is such an attractive way of life, I've had such a wonderful life that technology has opened for me", she tells us.
We are used to the idea that film directors and novelists do extensive research and consult experts about the subjects they explore. But as Tameem Antoniades, co-founder of the Cambridge firm Ninja Theory tells us, that has been relatively unusual in the games world.
In developing the firm's new title Hellblade, he brought in Cambridge University professor of neuroscience Paul Fletcher to try to make sure that players of the game would have real insights into what it feels like to experience psychosis.
The central character Senua has mental health problems brought on by traumatic events. Her personality and the environment in which she operates were developed after advice from Professor Fletcher and from a group of people who had lived through psychosis.
"We just had to make sure we understood the subject as best we could," says Tameem Antoniades.
Senua hears voices, and by using binaural audio which mimics the way we experience sound in the real world, Hellblade makes the hallucinations she suffers seem all the more real.
Paul Fletcher is impressed with the final result, and says he had long felt that games could be a useful way of explaining mental illness: "They offer quite an interesting perspective to a participant -  you're not a passive observer you're actively participating in it."
The hope is that Hellblade - as well as being a very immersive work of art - will help change the way we see people going through this kind of illness.  The early reviews have been very positive - "the game often seeks to make you feel frustrated, confused, and helpless" said one critic, making clear this was a good thing.
Games are growing up. They have already shown they can compete commercially with other entertainment industries, and now they are showing that they can also provide as profound an experience as any movie or play.
What kind of personal information do we leave lying around on the internet as we roam the web and use social media? And does that leave us open to all sorts of threats - from identity theft to physical harassment?
A few weeks ago a security company offered to study my digital footprint to see how much of my data I'd put online. Digital Shadows produced a chunky 30 page report, with a lot of detail about my social media activity, my family and my connections with colleagues.
Having been pretty liberal with my use of social media, I found this unsurprising - after all information such as home addresses is pretty easily accessible via the Electoral Register.
But James Chappell from Digital  Shadows explained that it was important to "raise the bar" for potential fraudsters by taking simple steps such as turning off geo-location on photos or asking online directories to remove your details.
What concerned me far more was that Digital Shadows managed to find passwords for some of my online accounts, either on the dark web or just dumped in various collections of stolen data.
In most cases they had been changed long ago, and some were for accounts I no longer use - but James Chappell warned me they could still be dangerous.
He explained that if messages can be sent to your friends which look like they're from you, then people can be duped. And one kind of online account is especially important to protect - "once you've got someone's email account you can take over their lives digitally."
The stolen data looked like it had come from the hacking of some of the best known firms on the internet, and James pointed out that just about everyone in the Western world who has a presence online was likely to have been affected by those hacks.
This week the UK government announced new legislation, mirroring Europe's GDPR, which will allow users to eradicate their personal data from the web.
But that is unlikely to help you if that data is held not by a giant corporation but by a group of criminals on the dark web.


Ever since the Pakistan Taliban massacred 132 schoolboys in a Peshawar school last December, the Pakistan army has been confronting some of the country's militants, with unprecedented determination.

But the campaign is still patchy. While the Pakistan Taliban have been forced on to the back foot, other Pakistan-based militant outfits have been left undisturbed.
Publicly, Pakistani officials insist that they no longer make a distinction between the "good" Taliban (proxy forces of the Pakistan state) and the "bad" Taliban (which mount sectarian or anti-state attacks).
But privately they argue the army has to prioritise which groups to confront first. The immediate, urgent task, they say, is to fight the militants who have caused tens of thousands of deaths within Pakistan itself.
It means militant groups such as the Haqqani network, which focuses most of its efforts on Afghanistan, can fight on unimpeded. The group, which is based in Pakistan's tribal areas, is believed to have mounted a series of attacks on Kabul this summer.
It has been a devastating campaign. In the first six months of 2015, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan documented the highest level of civilian casualties in the country since it began keeping authoritative records in 2008.
Similarly, the Afghan Taliban have stepped up their military activity - most recently in the city of Kunduz in the north of Afghanistan.
Kabul for years has complained that many Afghan Taliban leaders live in and around the Pakistani city of Quetta.
When asked about the issue, Pakistani military officials say that, with as many as three million Afghans in Pakistan, it is difficult to be sure who is living where.
The lack of an outright denial is deliberate. The perception that Pakistan controls the Afghan Taliban gives Pakistani officials diplomatic leverage. If the West wants peace in Afghanistan, they are implicitly suggesting, it will have to secure Pakistani co-operation to deliver it.
In fact, history suggests that the Afghan Taliban, while happy to accept Pakistani support, are quite capable of ignoring Islamabad's instructions and formulating their own policies.
Who are the Taliban?
When the new Afghan President, Ashraf Ghani, won power in 2014, he said improving the relationship with Pakistan was a top priority: if Islamabad would cut its links with the Afghan Taliban, then Kabul would try to prevent anti-Pakistan forces finding sanctuary in Afghanistan.
The two countries, he suggested, could only find stability by working together.
But for all the hope that President Ghani engendered, Islamabad and Kabul have reverted to hurling accusations at each other. And the distrust seems set to continue.
Senior Pakistani military officers say one of the reasons they have a continued interest in Afghanistan is because India is extending its influence there.
Islamabad fears that, among other things, Delhi is using its presence in Afghanistan to build a closer relationship with Baloch separatists, who for a decade have been fighting to split away from Pakistan.
The issue is especially sensitive because of Pakistan's plans to construct the China Pakistan economic corridor. The planned trade route will run through Balochistan, close to the Afghan border, down to the new deep-sea port of Gwadar.
Pakistan is hoping the corridor could generate billions of dollars of revenue.
It is a highly complex geostrategic situation.
Put at its most succinct, Pakistani strategists are supporting Islamist militants to counter Indian intelligence officers working with Baloch nationalists to thwart Chinese traders.
It all shows the extent to which the Great Game, in which outside powers struggle for control of Afghanistan, is alive and well.
As has so often been the case in the past, the stability of Afghanistan depends on it being left alone. But the regional powers all see the country as a place that can cause them problems.
The result is that many of Afghanistan's neighbours sponsor local, tribal and religious militias so as to prevent anyone else's proxy getting control.
It is a process Afghan civilians recognise all too well because, more often than not, they are the ones caught in the crossfire.


Larne council has been told it can keep a sculpture of a crown on display in the town until December 2015 but will then have to remove it.

The eight-metre metal crown was put up by the council in the middle of a roundabout without planning approval.
A steel replica of a coronation crown, it was erected to commemorate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee last year.
While the UUP has defended erecting it without planning approval, Sinn Féin opposes it on "grounds of equality".
The Department of the Environment has confirmed that the structure was put up by the council without the necessary planning approval last year.
A note on the planning file says the chief executive of Larne Borough Council, Geraldine McGahey, was told before the crown was put on display that it was "not PD" (permitted development), and if erected the council "would proceed at their own risk".
Ms McGahey told the BBC: "On the basis that approval was unlikely to be denied, work proceeded."
The Ulster Unionist mayor of Larne, Maureen Morrow, also defended the decision to erect the structure which cost the ratepayers of the borough £13,000.
"Planning was applied for, but due to time constraints, it (the crown) had to be put in position in time for the jubilee, "she said.
Party colleague Mark McKinty said the crown was attracting tourists to the town.
"It has been a boost for Larne. Overall it has brought people into Larne, especially tourists," he said.
But Sinn Féin MLA Oliver McMullan said that if something had to erected in Larne, the council should have considered a symbol that would be more inclusive.
"There is an equality issue involved in this - what (the council) has done here means Larne is not a shared space.
"I would like to see some other kind of public art put up there that is reflective of both sides of the community."
"The crown was put up as a temporary measure to celebrate the coronation and the Ulster in Bloom competition, but both of these are now over, so the council should be taking it down."
The council had applied for retrospective planning approval for the sculpture.
After giving a commitment to planners that it would only be displayed on the roundabout for another two years, the DoE has this week agreed to give the structure temporary planning approval.
A senior planner said the department would "proceed with processing the application to an approval with a condition that the stature be removed on or before 1 December 2015".


Saudi Arabia has agreed to reopen the case of a Sri Lankan maid sentenced to death for adultery, Sri Lanka's deputy foreign minister said.

The woman - a 45-year-old mother of two - was convicted in August along with an unmarried Sri Lankan man.
She was sentenced to death by stoning, while the man was sentenced to 100 lashes.
Saudi Arabia's decision to stone the woman was condemned in Sri Lanka, where protests were held.
Sri Lankan embassy officials visited the woman in a Saudi jail on Sunday, Deputy Foreign Minister Harsha de Silva said.
The country had appealed to Saudi Arabia's government to pardon the couple.
"Through our intervention, they have agreed to reopen the case," Mr de Silva said.
"This is a big victory. We will provide her with legal help."
Deputy minister Ranjan Ramanayake added that the Sri Lankan government was informed about the woman's case only after she had been convicted in August 2015 - despite the fact she was arrested in April 2014.
"Islamic Sharia law says four respected Muslims need to be eyewitnesses for this type of case, but this has not been possible in this case," he said.
"Unfortunately, not knowing the law, she has confessed under pressure without any legal help."
Protests were held outside the UN compound and the Saudi embassy in Sri Lanka's capital, Colombo - with some calling for a ban on sending Sri Lankan workers to Saudi Arabia.
The Sri Lankan government says it is gradually reducing the number of women sent to work in the Middle East.


Kirsty Gilmour was beaten in the Scottish Open final by Line Kjaersfeldt at Glasgow's Emirates Arena.

The Commonwealth Games silver medallist was bidding for her second Grand Prix crown in the space of six weeks.
"I don't think I played particularly badly, but just that extra little bit of tension, just not hitting convincingly enough," said Gilmour.
"I did everything I could to get that feeling back but she (Kjaersfeldt) was on form today."
Despite Gilmour winning a close first game 21-16, the Dane responded strongly by taking the second by the same scoreline.
When Gilmour led 13-10 in the decider, Scotland's hopes were high but fourth seed Kjaersfeldt turned the tables to lead 16-15, then move swiftly to 20-15 before clinching victory on her third match point.
She had beaten the top two seeds in Gilmour and Beatriz Corrales in the last 24 hours and she beat both players on the way to her first Scottish Open final appearance in 2011.
Top seed Gilmour, who last month won the Dutch Open Grand Prix as well as the Prague Open, had wanted to provide the perfect finish to the Championship.
"It's not lost on me that I'm 22 and could still have eight of these to do," she said. "I need to look at silver linings.
"I've got a long time in this game; this isn't the end for me. This isn't the end of the Scottish Open Trial. Everything right now is experience and a learning curve until I stop playing. I need to take this one on my chin.
"I landed a bit funny yesterday and brought back an old injury, but adrenaline is running through me right now so I don't feel a thing!"
Kjaersfeldt said: "I wasn't really that nervous. I knew all the pressure was on Kirsty coming into the match, so I was just relaxed and played my game.
"I'm really happy. It was my first Grand Prix win. It was a really good atmosphere. The crowd here are very knowledgeable about badminton and I always enjoy coming here."
Danish top seed Hans-Kristian Vittinghus defeated England's Rajiv Ouseph with a 21-19, 11-21, 21-16 victory to claim the men's title for Denmark for the first time since Peter Gade won in 1996.
Finals day got off to an unhappy start when Dutch player Iris Tabeling had to retire in the second game of the women's doubles with a suspected torn calf.
She and Samantha Barning were trailing 21-14, 14-11 when the injury occurred, handing victory to Japan's Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota.
Germany's Michael Fuchs and Johannes Schoettler downed England's Andrew Ellis and Peter Mills in winning 21-15, 21-18 in the men's doubles.
The mixed doubles went to Russia's sixth seeds Vitaly Durkin and Nina Vislova, who defeated France's third seeds Ronan Labar and Emilie Lefel.


Yahoo says its chief executive Marissa Mayer will not be on the board of a company that emerges from the $4.83bn (Â£4bn) takeover deal by Verizon.

Yahoo is in the process of selling its email, websites, mobile apps and advertising tools to Verizon.
What is left after that sale will be owned by a holding company to be named Altaba.
Its main assets will be a 15% stake in Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba and a 35.5% stake in Yahoo Japan.
Five other current members of the Yahoo board also won't be on the board of the new firm.
Ms Mayer is expected to remain with Yahoo's core business.
Verizon's deal for Yahoo's core internet assets came under renewed scrutiny last month after the Yahoo disclosed one of the largest known data breaches in history.
Verizon is examining the impact of the data breach and there is speculation that the deal may not go through.


A £22.5m development of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff, including a 450-seat concert hall, has been unveiled.

There is also a 160-seat theatre named after actor Richard Burton, along with studio, teaching, rehearsal and foyer spaces.
The concert hall is named after Dora Stoutzker, a major donor's mother who used to teach music in south Wales.
A gala opening is due to take place later this month.
College principal Hilary Boulding said: "Offering world class facilities in such a stunning location will allow us to continue to attract leading international arts practitioners to work here, and to increase national and international recognition for Cardiff as a home of world class artistic training.
"They will also significantly enhance opportunities for audiences in the city and region of Cardiff, and for the many professional and community groups that contribute to Cardiff's vibrant cultural life."
The college, which opened in the grounds of Cardiff Castle in 1949, hosts more than 300 public events a year including theatre, opera, musicals and orchestral concerts and fashion shows.
Celebrated former students include actors and entertainers including Sir Anthony Hopkins, Rob Brydon and Ruth Jones.
The construction firm behind the project, Willmott Dixon, has now completed the work and handed it over to the college.
"These high-profile facilities will attract attention from across the world so it was important for the college that the development was striking, effective and able to provide the perfect acoustic environment for the many performances that it presents annually," said Neal Stephens, managing director of Willmott Dixon.
"It will not only attract students from across the world but will be a popular visitor destination, further enhancing Cardiff's offering."
The Dora Stoutzker concert hall was named after the musical mother of Ian Stoutzker, a merchant banker who has donated £500,000.
Born in 1897, Dora Cohen spent her first 25 years in Tredegar, Blaenau Gwent, where she taught piano and singing until she married and left for London.
Mr Stoutzker was evacuated to his mother's birthplace when the family home was bombed during World War II.


Tesco is launching a same-day delivery service across the UK to compete with online retail giant Amazon.

The UK's biggest supermarket chain already allows customers in London and the South East to order groceries for same-day delivery.
Now it says it will extend the service across most of the rest of the UK by the end of August.
Customers who order online by 1pm will be able to receive their groceries sometime after 7pm on the same day.
Shoppers in London and the South East will be able to access the same-day service seven days a week. Elsewhere it will be available from Monday to Saturday.
The firm says the extended service will give it the "biggest reach of any retailer in the UK, stretching from the Shetland Islands in Scotland to Cornwall in south-west England".
It says it will cover more than 99% of UK households, as opposed to 99% of the UK.
Tesco recently extended its same-day click and collect service to 300 UK locations. Last month it also launched Tesco Now, a one-hour delivery service for central London customers.
Amazon - in conjunction with Morrisons - allows some of its prime customers to receive a food delivery within one hour of ordering it.
At the moment Amazon's service is only available in parts of London and Hertfordshire, but it too is planning on rolling out the service nationwide.
Amazon is also buying Whole Foods in a $13.7bn (Â£10.7bn) deal that marks its biggest push into traditional retailing yet.
Tesco and other major grocers, such as Sainsbury's, have faced stiff price competition from the likes of Aldi and Lidl, and have been looking for ways to freshen up their shopping offer.


The health ministry in Nicaragua says it has quarantined a member of staff at the US embassy in Managua amid concerns over contact with Ebola.

Nicaragua has asked the US to send a plane to remove him.
The embassy acknowledged the man had travelled to Liberia but he had not come into contact with Ebola patients.
It said he had no sign of haemorrhagic fever and that both the US and Nicaragua's health ministry had cleared him to return.
The embassy said the 51-year-old man had been examined at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in the US before returning to Nicaragua.
However, the Nicaraguan government has asked the US state department to send a plane "with all the equipment necessary" to take him back to the US.
The health ministry has isolated him at his home, setting up a security corridor around it.
"The man confirmed that he had spent time in health facilities where Ebola patients are being treated," said the head of epidemiology at the health ministry, Carlos Saenz.
"The man does not show any symptoms of the disease and the measures are strictly preventive," he said.
A number of Latin American countries have banned travellers from Ebola-stricken countries in West Africa.
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa that erupted last year has killed more than 10,000 people, almost all of them in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.
But the World Health Organisation says the number of new cases has fallen and the risk of the disease spreading appears to be receding.


A diplomatic row has intensified between China and Japan after collisions between two Japanese patrol boats and a Chinese trawler on Tuesday.

Beijing has urged Japan's ambassador to stop the "illegal interception" of Chinese fishing boats.
Meanwhile, Japan has arrested the captain of the Chinese vessel.
The incidents in the East China Sea took place near a disputed chain of islands, which Japan controls but are claimed by both China and Taiwan.
According to state media the Chinese authorities told the Japanese ambassador that his country must stop what it called illegal interceptions of Chinese fishing boats.
A Japanese Coast Guard spokesman said the Chinese vessel had collided with two Japanese patrol boats in two separate incidents, 40 minutes apart. No injuries were reported.
She said the 41-year-old captain of the fishing boat had been arrested after repeatedly ignoring requests to leave the area.
A China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said China had repeated its claim to the Diaoyu islands and urged Japanese patrol boats in the area against any "so-called law enforcement activities or any actions that would jeopardise Chinese fishing boats or Chinese people".
The BBC's Martin Patience in Beijing says the collisions are the latest example of rising tensions between the two countries over territorial rights in the East China Sea.
The disputed chain of uninhabited islands which Japan controls are also claimed by China and Taiwan.
China calls them the Diaoyu islands while Japan refers to them as the Senkaku islands.
In the past Japan has lodged protests with China over entry of the country's vessels in to water close to this territory.


Ebola dramatically adapted to infect human tissues with ease in the first few months of the 2014-15 outbreak, research suggests.

Two studies, in the journal Cell, found a mutation increased the virus' ability to infect human cells fourfold.
Scientists have argued the mutation may have been "pivotal" in the outbreak becoming the largest in recorded history.
There were 28,616 Ebola cases in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
And 11,310 people died during the outbreak.
Researchers at the University of Nottingham and the University of Massachusetts analysed the genetic code of nearly 2,000 Ebola virus samples.
What they noticed was a change on the surface of the virus that allowed it to lock on to human cells more easily.
Prof Jeremy Luban, University of Massachusetts Medical School, told BBC World Service's Science in Action: "The mutation makes the virus more infectious.
"It arose early in the outbreak, perhaps three or four months in."
Prof Jonathan Ball, from the University of Nottingham, said an up to fourfold increase in infectivity was "not trivial".
He told the BBC News website: "When a virus is introduced into a new environment, a new niche, it will try to adapt to that new environment.
"That just happened to coincide with widescale spread of the virus - this was a mutation that appeared when the virus took off."
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa was not just the biggest of all time, but it was bigger than all other outbreaks combined.
One reason for Ebola's explosive spread was that the virus managed to get into dense urban cities such as Monrovia in Liberia.
But Prof Luban added: "One possibility is this mutation, which has never been seen before, in some way contributed to the severity of the outbreak and answering that question conclusively is probably something we cannot do.
"[But] it is hard to imagine the mutation was not relevant."
The research provided other insights into the changes taking place in the Ebola virus.
As the virus adapted to more readily infected people it became less able to infect its likely natural host species - fruit bats.
And the people infected with the mutant form of the virus were more likely to die than those infected with the original version.
This runs slightly contrary to the prevailing thought that as Ebola spent more time in people it would evolve to become less deadly in order to help it spread.
Dr Ed Wright, from the University of Westminster, commented: "One of these changes occurred around the time when the number of cases started to dramatically increase.
"This gives rise to the possibility that this change could have been pivotal in the virus' ability to infect humans and ultimately the scale of the outbreak.
"However, these studies do not definitively answer the latter question."
Follow James on Twitter.


Doctors should spend more time listening to their patients in order to avoid unnecessary treatments, according to Scotland's chief medical officer.

Catherine Calderwood wants doctors and patients to have more open and honest conversations about the benefits and risks of procedures or medication.
She argues that quality rather than quantity of life can be more important.
The British Medical Association Scotland said doctors needed time to "learn, teach and reflect".
But its chairman, Dr Peter Bennie, said it regularly heard from doctors that they did not have the necessary time to do this.
Dr Calderwood names her plan "realistic medicine" in her new annual report.
She said she came up with the concept in response to research that found that doctors would make different choices for themselves and their families than they do for their patients.
In some areas, realistic medicine is already well established.
When Alastair Macgregor, 76, was referred to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary's renal unit with poor kidney function, he had a conversation with his consultant and decided dialysis was not the right option for him.
"There is nothing worse than getting towards the end of your life and you realise you wasted day after day," he said.
"As the sun comes up every day I'm looking for something interesting, and it's a bonus day.
"I didn't fancy spending three days of the week in the Royal Infirmary when I can be out doing things with my family. I want quality of life, I don't want length of life particularly."
Dr Calderwood wants to see more of these conversations in hospitals and in GP surgeries across the country.
After speaking to doctors about how to implement realistic medicine, she now wants to involve the wider health community and to consult people on how they can become more involved in a "person-centred" approach to healthcare.
She said she had recently met a man who had undergone surgery.
"When I asked him if he was pleased with his knee replacement he said 'well I want to stand on my doorstep and talk to my neighbour and I asked them for a grab rail and they gave me a knee replacement, and I still don't have a grab rail and I still can't talk to my neighbour'.
"So he had had a major procedure when actually he wanted a simple solution to his problem which was to chat to his neighbour on his doorstep."
Dr Calderwood, who still practices as a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist, explained that modern medicine tends to over medicalise.
"I think that doctors are fixers, they want to help but I think we have perhaps overestimated the benefits of some treatments and maybe underestimated the risks and perhaps underestimated the burden of healthcare, so visits to hospital, visits to the GP surgery, blood tests, monitoring.
"And now we are having much more open and honest conversations."
Dr Caroline Whitworth, a consultant nephrologist at the renal unit in Edinburgh, is an advocate of realistic medicine but acknowledged it can mean having difficult conversations with patients:
"You've got to be very honest, but you've got to be honest in a sympathetic, empathetic way," she said.
"It's too brutal to say you've got however many weeks or months left and actually we don't know the answer to that.
"But what you do have to be honest about is where you can make a difference and where you might not make a difference.
"And when you are talking about particular treatments you've got to be honest about whether that treatment realistically is going to make a difference."
Dr Peter Bennie, chairman of BMA Scotland welcomed the chief medical officer's report and said doctors wanted to engage with patients to provide the best possible care.
He said: "Doctors want, and expect, to be innovators and leaders in improving outcomes for patients, however to do this well we need time to learn, teach and reflect.
"It is good to see that the CMO recognises the need for innovation within the NHS but with the ever increasing demand and high levels of long term vacancies, the BMA now regularly hears from doctors that they do not have the necessary time to do this."
He added: "We need to have an honest and open debate with the public and politicians about what the NHS can realistically provide.
"We look forward to further discussions with the CMO on many of the ideas discussed in her latest report, and to hearing more detail on the plans for the development and use of a national atlas of variation and a single national formulary."
Dr Calderwood's annual report is the second phase of the introduction of realistic medicine.
Leaflets will shortly be distributed to hospitals and GP surgeries encouraging people to ask more questions.
There will be a review of how patients consent to procedures in an effort to help them understand more fully the benefits and risks, and there are to be consultations with the public on what realistic might mean to them.
Putting it into practice will mean challenges as doctors are stretched.
Prof Derek Bell, President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, said: "Issues such as the overuse of clinical treatments, interventions and antibiotics remain high on the college agenda.
"Patients also need to be treated in the right place at the right time."


Northern Ireland Executive ministers have discussed the serious financial pressures on their budgets.

They face having to make £200m of cuts between October and April, equivalent to 4% of all departmental budgets.
While a paper by Finance Minster Simon Hamilton was circulated, it was not formally tabled for discussion and no decisions were taken.
Justice Minister David Ford said there had been "an unwillingness to have a serious, meaningful discussion".
"In the face of difficult spending issues, intransigence on the streets that is causing difficulties for the community, and intransigence around economics at the executive table, we have simply failed to live up to the responsibilities that the people of Northern Ireland gave the executive parties as a whole," the Alliance Party leader said.
"Unless the executive gets agreement, then we have difficult problems and there seems to be no sense of understanding as to where we are."
Regional Development Minister Danny Kennedy said there was a "general discussion but not a formal one".
"It's now clear that irrespective of what is happening to other parties internally, that shouldn't impact on the good government of Northern Ireland and we need to deal with these financial issues as quickly as possible," the Ulster Unionist assembly member said.
Mr Hamilton has been stressing the need to find £200m in savings during this financial year.
That includes nearly £90m in fines imposed by the Treasury because of Stormont's delay in implementing welfare reforms.
The Northern Ireland Executive's financial pressures are estimated to be increasing at a rate of £5m per week.
While DUP ministers said they believe the budget shortfall must be addressed urgently in order to avoid breaching Treasury spending limits, Sinn Féin ministers have continued to resist paying any Treasury fines.
Their party has argued that the welfare changes should be subject to further negotiation with Westminster.


Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Half of a Yellow Sun has topped a list of the last decade's winners of the Baileys Women's Fiction Prize.

She won the "Best of the Best" award as part of the celebrations to mark 20 years of the annual Â£30,000 prize.
Nigerian author Adichie won in 2007 for her story, her second novel, set during the Biafran War of the 1960s.
Adicihie said she was "grateful and happy", adding: "This is a prize I have a lot of respect and admiration for."
The 38-year-old novelist continued: "Over the years it's [the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction] brought wonderful literature to a wide readership that might not have found many of the books.
"I have a lot of respect for the books that have won in the past 10 years and also for the books that have been shortlisted - I feel I am in very good company."
Other winners of the Baileys Prize from the last decade include Zadie Smith for On Beauty, Rose Tremain for The Road Home and Eimear McBride for A Girl is a Half-formed Thing.
This year, Ali Smith won for How to be Both.
The winner of Best of the Best of the prize's first decade the first decade in 2005 was Andrea Levy's Small Island, which won the main title in 2004.
Established in 1996, the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction - first known as the Orange Prize for Fiction - is awarded to the best novel of the year written by a woman. Baileys took over sponsorship in 2014.
Adichie's novel was chosen by the chairs of the judging panels from the last 10 years. They included the novelist Joanna Trollope, actresses Miranda Richardson and Sheila Hancock and broadcasters Fi Glover, Kirsty Lang and Muriel Gray.
Gray, who chaired the judges the year Adichie won the Baileys Prize, said: "While it's sometimes pompous to call a book 'important', it's appropriate to say it of Half of a Yellow Sun.
"For an author, so young at the time of writing, to have been able to tell a tale of such enormous scale in terms of human suffering and the consequences of hatred and division, whilst also gripping the reader with wholly convincing characters and spell-binding plot, is an astonishing feat."
Half of a Yellow Sun tells the story of the Nigerian war through the eyes of three characters: Olanna, a young woman who abandons her privileged lifestyle to live with her university professor lover, the shy English writer Richard and the poor village boy Ugwu.
The novel was also named as Radio 4's Woman's Hour listeners' Best of the Best in a vote held on the programme's website.
Adichie's other books include Purple Hibiscus from 2003, which won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize.
Her latest work, Americannah, was published in 2013 and won US accolades including the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction and The Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize for Fiction.
In the UK, it was also shortlisted for the 2014 Baileys Women's Prize. And it's being turned into a film starring Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong'o.
The Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction is open to any woman writing in English - whatever her nationality, country of residence, age or subject matter - is eligible.
The winner of 2016 award will be named on 8 June, for novels published in the UK between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2016.


Munster's Pro12 win over the Scarlets at Thomond Park on Saturday ensured all four Irish provinces will compete in next season's European Champions Cup.

The 35-15 win secured Munster's place in Europe's leading competition along with Leinster, Connacht and Ulster.
With seven places reserved for the Pro12 that means the other competing nations only have once team each.
Glasgow will represent Scotland, Scarlets are Wales' representatives and Zebre take the Italian place.
With only teams in the top six guaranteed a place, two-time European champions Munster were in danger of missing out after dropping to seventh in the table last month.
However, their two closing bonus-point wins over Edinburgh and the Scarlets enabled them to avoid the indignity of failing to qualify for Europe's top-tier club competition for the first time.
"It's very important for us to be in Europe next season," said Munster coach Anthony Foley.
"We still have ambitions of winning trophies again and making sure we're in knock-out stages so it's important for this group to make sure they are playing at the highest level possible."
While Munster's European blushes were spared, they missed out on the Pro12 play-offs as Connacht, traditionally the weakest of the four Irish provinces, confirmed their home semi-final by beating Glasgow 14-7 in Galway.
Pat Lam's Connacht side will have to do battle again with Gregor Townsend's defending Pro12 champions in the semi-final at the same venue on 21 May.
Ulster's 46-26 win over the Ospreys at the Liberty Stadium means Les Kiss' side will face Leinster in an Irish derby in the opening semi-final at the RDS on 20 May.
Ireland's northern province have not won the title since 2005-06 while the last of Leinster's four triumphs came in 2013-14.
With the Ospreys finishing eighth in the table, they miss out on a place in the top-tier European competition for the first time.
Zebre clinched their Champions Cup spot as they leapfrogged compatriots Treviso to move off the bottom of the Pro12 table by hammering the Dragons 47-22 in Italy.


Petrol stations and motorway services will be required to install electric charge points, under plans outlined in the Queen's Speech.

The measure forms part of a government push to increase the number of electric vehicles on UK roads.
The Automated and Electric Vehicles Bill also contains plans to push driverless car technology.
It includes an extension of car insurance to cover the use of automated vehicles.
There are several trials of driverless cars ongoing in the UK.
Car insurance will be extended to automated vehicles "to ensure that compensation claims continue to be paid quickly, fairly and easily", the bill says.
Lawyers have long argued that getting the legal framework right is essential if automated cars are to become popular.
Peter Allchorne, a partner at law firm DAC Beachcroft, said the measures were needed.
"The pace has been picking up on vehicle automation in the last 12 to 18 months and this proposed legislation comes as no surprise."
But, he added: "Legislation enabling driverless cars doesn't mean that there will be a universal buy-in overnight. There is still a degree of public scepticism and these vehicles will be expensive."
Official government research suggests that the market for automated vehicles in the UK will be worth Â£28bn by 2035.
The government is investing more than Â£200m in research and testing infrastructure and is hopeful that the advent of driverless cars can have a profound impact on road traffic accidents.
In 2015, more than 85% of reported collisions that caused personal injury involved human error, according to government statistics.
The government has also committed to spending Â£600m during this Parliament to support the growing market for low-emission vehicles.
In the first quarter of 2017, 13,800 ultra-low emission vehicles were registered, up 17% from the same time last year.


Brexit Secretary David Davis has said the Conservative pledge to bring net migration down to the tens of thousands is a "major policy imperative".

The claim: Brexit Secretary David Davis has said the Conservatives aim to bring immigration down to "sustainable levels as soon as is economically viable". In its manifesto, the Party repeated its commitment to reduce annual net migration to less than 100,000.
The verdict:  There is simply not enough detail in the published proposals to predict their impact on non-EU migration. In terms of migration from the EU, the Conservatives plan to end freedom of movement, but they have yet to set out a policy to replace it.
It is a goal that has existed since the 2010 Conservative manifesto, but has never been met.
The most recent data shows that annual net migration to the UK is running at an estimated 273,000, so there is a long way to go.
Of those people, roughly half are European Union citizens and half are from non-EU countries.
When asked how long it would take to meet the objective, Mr Davis said: "We're aiming to bring it down to sustainable levels as soon as is economically viable. And the aim is to do it in a way that doesn't cause labour shortages, that allows us to train people up to do the jobs."
The Conservative manifesto contained a plan to double the Immigration Skills Charge to £2,000 a year by 2022.
The charge, introduced in April, is designed to encourage employers to train UK workers rather than employ overseas staff.
It affects workers seeking a Tier 2 work visa, which is for skilled workers earning more than £30,000 per year.
There is a cap of 20,700 Tier 2 visas available every year and some occupations are given priority to help fill skills shortages in the UK.
The government publishes a list of those priority occupations. It includes engineers, nurses and ballet dancers.
Some types of workers can avoid the cap altogether. For example, workers transferring within companies are not subject to that cap.
Overall, the number of Tier 2 visas was 56,058 in 2016.
Most of those visas are likely to attract the raised charge. That might be more manageable for larger employers, but for smaller companies it might be a more significant expense.
Funds from the higher charge will be used to train UK workers for those high priority sectors. That could mean more training in computers and information technology, as workers in those sectors take up half of the Tier 2 visas.
The Conservatives plan to raise the earnings thresholds for those hoping to get visas for family members outside the European Union.
There was no detail on how much that will be increased. At the moment, those applying to bring a partner to live with them must have a minimum annual income of £18,600 before tax.
For applicants bringing dependent children, the threshold rises by £3,800 for one child and £2,400 for each additional child.
But it is hard to bear down too much on that area of immigration, as it affects some British nationals who want to bring family members from abroad and they have the right to do so.
Finally, visa requirements for students will be tougher and they will be expected to leave the country after their course is finished, unless they meet higher requirements for them to work in the UK. There was no detail about what those requirements might be.
But migration experts point out that the government has already cracked down in this area and reducing student numbers further would be difficult.
There is a question over whether students should be included in the figures at all. If they were to be excluded that would reduce the immigration figures by around 120,000 a year.
About half of migrants to the UK come from the European Union.  Both the Conservatives and Labour plan to end their right to freedom of movement.
So the UK needs a new immigration policy to regulate those workers.
In their manifesto, the Conservatives pledged to "control" the number of migrants from the EU, "while still allowing us to attract the skilled workers our economy needs".
How much that will affect overall immigration depends on what sort of policy is in place. The government faces a major challenge in getting that legislation passed before Brexit in March 2019, so some kind of transitional period is likely.
The independent Office for Budget Responsibility has estimated that cutting annual net immigration from 273,000 now to 185,000 by 2021 - still a long way short of the below 100,000 target - could cost £5.9bn - because of considerations such as a lower tax take and a higher proportion of non-working people in the overall population.
On the BBC's Newsnight, the Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, said the cost to the economy had not yet been worked out.
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People who buy their gym memberships and mobile phone deals through a work benefit scheme are set to pay more.

Known as "salary sacrifice" schemes, employees give up part of their salary for a non-cash benefit, with both the company and worker paying less tax.
As part of his Autumn Statement, the chancellor called the perks "unfair" and abolished many of them from April.
Schemes covering pensions, child care, ultra-low emission cars and cycling to work will not be affected.
Arrangements set in place before April 2017 will be protected until April 2018. The more expensive agreements for cars, accommodation and school fees will be protected for longer - until April 2021.
What the Autumn Statement means for you
Ministers back Autumn Statement forecasts
UK economy 'resilient' despite £122bn hit
Autumn Statement latest updates
Key points at-a-glance
Your questions answered
The business lobby group, the CBI, warned that the "measure sends the wrong signal to companies wanting to invest more in employee health and wellbeing".
And the Reward and Employee Benefits Association (Reba), which represents HR workers for some of the UK's largest firms, said the move would affect lower paid earners the most.
"It will be the 'just about managing' employees which will be most affected by no longer having access to so many health and wellbeing benefits and mobile phones," said Debi O'Donovan, director at Reba.
"While the Reward & Employee Benefits Association agrees that the government did need to clamp down on the increasing misuse of salary sacrifice for more 'luxury' perks, we are disappointed that so many essential employee benefits have been caught up in this change."
However, the Treasury estimates that of the £200m per year that it expects to save, more than half will come from higher rate earners. It reckons that about one million employees benefit from such schemes and that they have increased by 30% since 2009-10.
In its consultation document, it gives the example of a 24-month mobile phone contract worth £1,000. That would cost the Exchequer £321 for a basic rate taxpayer, or £426 if the employee is in the highest rate tax bracket.


Moon Express has become the first private firm to win US approval for an unmanned mission to the moon.

The two-week mission was given the go-ahead by the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Commercial Space Transportation.
The plan is to send a suitcase-sized lander to the moon in late 2017.
The lander, which is not yet completed, will be carried on a rocket made by Rocket Lab, a start-up firm which has not launched any commercial missions.
Science experiments and some commercial cargo will be carried on the one-way trip to the lunar surface.
Moon Express also plans to beam pictures back to the Earth.
What if you could mine the moon?
"The Moon Express 2017 mission approval is a landmark decision by the US government and a pathfinder for private sector commercial missions beyond Earth's orbit," said Moon Express co-founder Bob Richards.
His partner, Naveen Jain, says the company is keen to explore the possibilities of mining on the moon.
"In the immediate future we envision bringing precious resources, metals and moon rocks back to Earth," he said.
Mr Jain, was born in India, but moved to the US in 1979 where he worked in the technology industry and founded technology firms.
Co-founder Bob Richards is a Canadian-born space entrepreneur, and the firm's third founder is entrepreneur Barney Pell.
Moon Express is one of the teams competing for the Lunar X Prize, which was set up in 2007.
There is a $20m prize, funded by Google, for the first commercial group to land a probe on the moon.
So far only government missions have flown spacecraft beyond the Earth's orbit, with the Chinese completing the most recent visits to the moon.
In December 2013 China landed a rover on the moon as part of its Chang'e-3 mission - the first "soft" landing on the Moon since 1976.
Other private companies are expected to follow Moon Express and seek permission to fly to the Moon.
Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX plans to go even further, with a Mars mission in 2018.


Free, easy-to-use hacking tools help many young people slip into a life of cyber-crime, according to a report.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) has detailed the "pathways" taken by people who become criminals.
Many started by getting involved with game-cheat websites or forums that talked about ways to change or "mod" games, its report said.
Mentors, role models and positive opportunities could deter people from committing cyber-crime, the NCA added.
The report is based on a small number of interviews with people arrested or cautioned for carrying out computer-based crimes as well as analyses of academic studies of offenders.
It also draws on information resulting from many more "cease and desist" visits to people the NCA identified as being on the periphery of malicious hacking.
Many of the people interviewed and charged were teenagers "unlikely" to be involved in theft, fraud, sex or harassment crimes.
The average age of those interviewed and arrested was 17, far lower than for those the NCA picks up for drugs offences (37) or financial crime (39).
By Angus Crawford, BBC News correspondent
At the heart of the NCA's report is a simple but worrying conclusion: the internet is creating a new kind of criminal.
Young people who in the real world wouldn't dream of committing a crime are, in their online world, stealing other people's data, vandalising websites, taking down servers. Breaking the law, causing real damage to real victims.
It's a world where the line between right and wrong can seem blurred.  After all if you can win a computer game by launching a cyber attack on an opponent, it may seem like a short step to doing the same to a school, company or government agency you don't like.
This world can seem very seductive. Where you can make "friends" quickly and easily and you are praised for your skills, rather than being criticised for being a "nerd". But it is also a place where the vulnerable or naive can become criminals without quite realising what they are doing.
The bad news is that suspects are getting younger. Seventeen is the average age, according to the National Cyber Crime Unit, but some are as young as 12.
The good news, though, is that they don't seem to be motivated primarily by money, which means early intervention can be very successful.
Factors defining the pathway leading to cyber-crime included:
These factors conspired to create "an environment in which more young people are becoming involved in cyber-crime", the NCA said.
This brought a significant risk with it, because it had "brought the ability to cause significant harm within reach of the young and relatively unskilled cyber-criminals".
In contrast to older criminals, few of those in the report sought to make money directly from hacking.
Instead, it found, many did it because they liked overcoming programming problems, bolstering their skill with web and networking technologies.
"I was driven by my curiosity, I wanted to understand the best modifications and cheats," said one offender picked up for running "booter" sites that aggrieved gamers can use to kick rivals off servers.
Others got involved because they wanted to prove themselves to their peers - a fact that underscored the "key" social aspect of cyber-crime.
"Offenders thrive on their online relationships," said the NCA.
This social aspect could also help provide a way out of cyber-crime by giving offenders examples of positive ways to use their skills.
Interventions by ex-offenders, computer professionals or police could also help divert younger people, it said.


A man from Ramsey has been charged with a number of serious drug offences, Isle of Man police have said.

The 46-year-old was arrested on Tuesday after drugs including heroin valued at ??6,000 and cannabis resin were sent via post to his home address in Ramsey.
Officers said ??2241.22 in cash was also seized during the operation which involved the police dog section.
The man will appear at Douglas courthouse later.


A Canadian nurse who used insulin to kill eight elderly patients in Ontario care homes has been sentenced to life in prison, local media report.

Elizabeth Wettlaufer, 49, pleaded guilty earlier this month to killing five women and three men in two nursing homes between 2007 and 2014.
Wettlaufer was described by the judge on Monday as a "shadow of death" that passed over her victims, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp (CBC) reported.
She was told she may never be released.
"I caused tremendous pain and suffering and death," Wettlaufer said after receiving her sentence, adding: "Sorry is much too small a word. I am extremely sorry."
Ontario Superior Court Justice Bruce Thomas said Wettlaufer was a "predator" who took the lives of those she was supposed to protect and care for during her time as a nurse, CBC reports.
Many of the victims' relatives were present in the courthouse for Wettlaufer's sentencing and were told by the judge to take their time when reading their victim impact statements.
Friends of some of the victims also gathered outside the courthouse in Woodstock, Ontario, on Monday to express their hurt and anger.
"I think she should spend the rest of her life in a small box contemplating what she's done," said Laura Jackson, a friend of Maurice Granat, one of the victims.
Arpad Horvath, whose father was also killed by Wettlauffer while in her care, said the former nurse's statement in court only made him angry.
"An apology like that is just a waste of time, paper and air," he said.
Police launched an investigation into the nursing home deaths in September.
Wettlaufer resigned from the College of Nurses of Ontario a day after that, and was arrested in October.
In January, police brought six additional charges - four counts of attempted murder and two counts of aggravated assault - against Wettlaufer for other incidents that took place in care homes between 2007-16. â€‹
The victims


Fernando Alonso says he does not feel "much pressure" before Indianapolis 500 qualifying on Saturday.

The McLaren driver, who is missing the Monaco Grand Prix for next Sunday's race, impressed with the fourth best time on 'Fast Friday', when drivers prepare for qualifying.
Spaniard Alonso was fifth in the list of times done without a slipstream from another car, as will be the case in qualifying on Saturday and Sunday.
His best lap was 231.827mph.
France's Sebastien Bourdais, an ex-Formula 1 driver, was quickest on 233.116mph.
Alonso's speed was 6mph faster than he had gone before during the week of practice at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but he said the extra pace was not noticeable when you are driving.
"You always want an extra mile to be able to go faster," the 35-year-old said.
Qualifying runs over two days this weekend, with Saturday defining the 'fast nine' drivers who can compete for pole position on Sunday.
The remaining 24 drivers also qualify again on Sunday, but only to determine the grid positions from 10th to 33rd. Qualifying pace is determined by a driver's average speed over a four-lap run.
Alonso, who has never raced on an oval track before, said: "It is about doing a good four laps. Hopefully I will be in the first nine and wait for Sunday for the real final classification.
"Saturday is another day, but for me, in my case, it is another learning day. We'll see what we can do but there's not much pressure for tomorrow."
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While the two-time F1 champion was matter-of-fact about his performance, regular Indy drivers have been impressed by him.
Japan's Takuma Sato, a former F1 driver who moved to IndyCars seven years ago and Alonso's team-mate at Andretti Autosport, said: "Very impressive. Kind of what we expected.
"Fernando is one of the best drivers in the world and having had this much practice time and this much support, we expected him to be up to speed very quickly.
"This was something new to him again, full [turbo] boost. But he did drive extremely well and his feedback is proper feedback.
"He is learning but he can feel [the car] in the same ways. It's nice to work with him in the same team and it's extra attention for the team."
Racing legend Mario Andretti - the 1978 F1 champion, 1969 Indy 500 winner and father of Alonso's team boss Michael Andretti - said: "He's looking really, awfully good. I'm not surprised."
The top five fastest times on Friday included four drivers who have experience in F1.
Besides Alonso and Bourdais, who drove for Toro Rosso in 2007-8, former BAR and Honda driver Sato was third quickest and Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya, who won five grands prix in a five-year career with Williams and McLaren, was fifth fastest.
In the list of times without a 'tow', Bourdais was second behind 2014 Indy winner Ryan Hunter-Reay, with former F1 driver and 2016 Indy winner Alex Rossi third from Brazilian Indy veteran Tony Kanaan and Alonso.


Celtic manager Ronny Deila says it is too early to say whether Carlton Cole will join the club.

Cole, 31, is a free agent after leaving West Ham and is training with the Scottish Premiership champions.
"We have a good squad but we are always looking to improve," said Deila. "We are happy he is here.
"He is a target man. He's been good in the two exercises I've seen him doing but he needs more time. He hasn't trained for a while."
Deila, whose side host Raith Rovers in Wednesday's League Cup tie, did not commit to saying how long Cole's trial might run. And, when asked if it might be longer than a week, the Norwegian replied: "We will see how it comes."
Capped seven times by England, Cole has made over 380 senior club appearances, scoring 85 goals in the process, including spells at Chelsea, Aston Villa and the Hammers.


As a victim of persecution himself, United Nations special  rapporteur on torture Juan Mendez is more than qualified for the post.

He was arrested, held and tortured during Argentina's Dirty War - an era of state-sponsored violence from 1976 to 1983, in which an estimated 30,000 Argentines were killed or disappeared at the hands of the military regime.
With this background, Mr Mendez, who has just published a book on the history of human rights around the world, understands the human cost of persecution all too well.
At the height of the repression, he was working as a young lawyer defending opponents of the military government.
As a result, he spent 18 months at a prison outside the city of La Plata in 1976, where he was tortured with an electric prod and watched friends being pulled from their cells and executed.
Since 2007, Argentine courts have successfully prosecuted 170 perpetrators of these atrocities.
Although it has taken a long time for the country to reckon with its past, Mr Mendez believes the Argentine experience has an important lesson to offer the world.
"Argentina is really showing that we don't have to live with impunity," he says.
But the trials had a rocky beginning.
In 1983, civilian rule was restored and the prosecution of perpetrators of violence began.
However, three years later an amnesty law was enacted that protected the military.
Many argued the amnesty would foster a democracy without bitterness and help Argentina to move on but Mr Mendez disagrees.
"The most important argument about the Argentine experience of today is that these things don't go away.
"Thirty years later the wounds are still open, the victims are still there, they will continue to press and you will just have to deal with it later."
In 2007, the amnesty law was overturned and the trials began again in earnest.
At first they were slow-moving and disorganised but now both the Supreme Court and the prosecutor's office have made them a priority.
In October 2011, a court convicted one of the most notorious of the regime's murderers, Alfredo Astiz. He was a navy captain based at the Naval Mechanical School in Buenos Aires (Esma) which was the biggest secret torture and killing centre of the Dirty War.
However not all the defendants have been successfully prosecuted. Recently one with a bloody record was acquitted. But for Mr Mendez, such outcomes are not a setback.
"The courts are living up to their responsibility to provide fair trials," he says.
"It is a victory for the law - the courts and prosecutors have been very systematic in respecting the rights of all defendants, even the most notorious of them."
The trials do have overwhelming public backing: in a recent opinion poll, more than 80% were in favour of them.
"The Argentine population has remained faithful to democracy, the most ungovernable kind of democracy is better than the worst kind of dictatorships," Mr Mendez says.
He believes it is this mission to find justice that has helped Argentine democracy through the greatest challenges of the past 30 years.
"We have had quite a bit of stability even in the worst-case scenarios, hyperinflation, default and a complete melt-down of the banking system in 2001.
"Greece is a playground compared to what happened in Argentina."
He also argues that the Argentine experience is one that many countries, especially the US, can take heed of.
"There are many countries where impunity reigns and I would say the most disappointing - obviously on a different scale - is the United States where the torture that has happened during the war on terror is not being investigated by political decisions not to investigate it."
"In the US there are civil society groups that pursue justice very valiantly but in terms of public opinion there is still this idea that these are people we don't care about, names we can't pronounce."
He added: "There is generally an attitude that if torture keeps us safe then we don't really care about it.
Yet there are countries, for example South Africa, Chile and Peru, that have tried or are trying to pursue justice for past wrongs.
"The attempt to prosecute and punish and to tell the truth is making more headway now than at any time. Thirty years ago it would have been impossible to predict that any country would try and do this," Mr Mendez says.
But does Argentina run the risk of getting too mired in its past and failing to look to the future?
"I don't think the 80% of people that are in favour of the trials will see it that way'," he says.
"Argentina has moved on, is moving on and in fact is moving on thanks to the trials not in spite of them. It is moving on to more respect for freedom of expression, freedom of association."
Juan Mendez is the UN's special rapporteur on torture, listen to him on BBC World Service's Outlook via iPlayer or download the podcast. His book, Taking a Stand: The Evolution of Human Rights is published by Palgrave Macmillan.


Calls have been made for an independent investigation at Avon Fire and Rescue Service after the departure of three senior officers in five years.

The BBC has uncovered evidence of infighting among senior management and allegations of bullying in one case.
Three councillors on the Avon Fire Authority, which oversees the service, have called for an independent review.
The authority said the allegations had been investigated twice and concluded no further action was needed.
Former assistant chief fire officer Dave Salmon took early retirement on the grounds of ill-health in 2014, following a suspension.
The BBC has been told he was met with resistance from colleagues after pushing for reforms to the service.
An independent doctor, who saw him when he was pursuing part of his under-dispute pension, said Mr Salmon "appeared to have been subject to behaviours which could be argued as being bullying and harassment prior to his suspension".
Avon Fire Authority said it could not comment on personal circumstances but that it had been subject to a "malicious campaign" at a time when it was working to make savings.
Deputy chief fire officer Gerry O'Brien was given a year's secondment and Â£25,000 pensionable allowance before retiring in 2012.
But the secondment never happened and Mr O'Brien spent time instead on garden leave, the BBC has been told.
Maggie Harte, who was HR director until she took early retirement in 2011, said disagreements at board level made her ill.
"I had been in the fire service for 30 odd years, my sickness record almost flawless.
"Suddenly I found I would be vomiting before I went into work on a Monday, which was our board meeting day, just at the thought of yet another clash.
"It was so unpleasant it broke me for a period of time."
Nick Wilton, who has called for a review, said: "I would describe the atmosphere as toxic. The fact that three senior officers have exitedâ€¦ I think is a real cause for concern."
The authority said it had been aware of the "unfounded" allegations for some time and they had been dealt with twice in recent months.
A spokesman said it had "treated the matters seriously".
"The second time a more in-depth review of the allegations was carried out and we received a statutory report from the fire authority's new monitoring officer, who was able to bring a fresh perspective to these matters," he said.
The authority added an overwhelming majority of its members decided "no further action should be taken" and they have "full confidence" in the chief fire officer.


Norway will release a controversial Iraqi cleric after Italian prosecutors suddenly dropped a long-standing extradition request.

Iraqi-born Mullah Krekar was detained one year ago as part of a Europe-wide anti-terror raid.
Italian prosecutors accused Krekar of plotting attacks - which he denied - and asked for his extradition.
Norwegian prosecutors said Italy had sent a letter saying the request would be withdrawn.
In a statement, the Director of Public Prosecutors (DPP) said a letter from Italian prosecutors had made clear that the basis for the extradition was repealed by an Italian court in early March.
The DPP said no explanation was given for why the ruling was revoked, or why it took so long for Italy to tell the Norwegian authorities about it.
Mullah Krekar - born Najmaddin Faraj Ahmad - is the founder of the defunct Islamic group Ansar al-Islam, but distanced himself from the organisation in recent years.
Italy had accused him of being behind the European-wide network Rawti Shax, which seeks to establish a caliphate in Iraq's Kurdistan region.
He came to Norway as a refugee in 1991 from Iraq.
Norwegian authorities have been trying to deport him since 2003, after deeming him a threat to national security.
However, under Norwegian law, he cannot be deported to Iraq because he could face the death penalty there.
He has been jailed several times, including in 2012 for making death threats against officials and others, and again in February 2015 after praising the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris.


Children's Laureate Chris Riddell has a chance to win the Kate Greenaway illustration medal for a fourth time.

Riddell is shortlisted this year for his drawings in A Great Big Cuddle, a book of children's poetry by Michael Rosen - a former laureate himself.
The poems are all about what it's like to be a small child in a world of toys and games and many changing emotions.
Meanwhile, the nominees for the Carnegie children's writing prize include Philip Reeve for Railhead.
Reeve is best known for his Mortal Engines quartet of books and has won many children's writing awards, including the Carnegie for Here Lies Arthur.
Railhead is an intergalactic fantasy thriller about a petty thief in which hi-tech trains transport people between planets and galaxies.
It's up against seven other books, which seem mainly to have stories based on the issues of identity, survival, love and friendship.
Lauren Wolk's Wolf Hollow tells of a young girl trying to find her sense of identity while coping with bullying in a small US town in the 1940s.
Mal Peet, meanwhile, is posthumously shortlisted for his last book Beck, a "coming of age epic" about a mixed-race boy in 1900s America.
Peet died before finishing the story, so Meg Rosoff - who was brought on board as co-author from the start - is also nominated for completing it.
See the full list of nominees
Other names on the Kate Greenaway list include Jim Kay for his work on JK Rowling's illustrated edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.
The winners for both the Carnegie Medal and the Kate Greenaway Medal will be announced on 19 June.
The winners will receiving a gold medal, Â£5,000 and Â£500 of books to donate to their local library.
The Carnegie Medal was established in 1936 in memory of the Scottish-born philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.
The Kate Greenaway Medal, named after the popular 19th Century artist, followed 19 years later.
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram at bbcnewsents, or if you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.


Greek bank deposits have fallen to their lowest level in more than 10 years, as concerns persist over the country's debt burden and possible exit from the euro.

Deposits stood at €139.4bn (£100bn) in April, a 3.9% decline on the previous month, according to the European Central Bank.
The data include all deposits by households and companies in Greece.
Its banks have struggled to hold on to deposits during the debt negotiations.
Greece's falling reserves have prompted calls for capital controls from some experts and an opposition MP.
However, government spokesman Gabriel Sakellaridis on Monday rejected the idea.
The Greek government, European Union (EU) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) have been locked in negotiations for four months over economic reforms the IMF and EU say must be implemented before the latest €7.2bn tranche of the country's bailout fund is released.
Greece has to make a payment of €1.5bn (£1.09bn) to the IMF on 5 June.
Mr Sakellaridis said that Greece would maintain repayments to its EU-IMF creditors for as long as possible.
Nevertheless, if Greece fails to come to a deal with its eurozone partners there is a real chance it could default on its loans.
That could push the Greek government towards leaving the single currency, otherwise known as "Grexit".
In an interview with a German newspaper on Thursday, IMF chief Christine Lagarde is quoted as saying that "a Greek exit is a possibility".


Britain's financial regulator created a false market in shares of life insurers last year, a group of MPs has said.

The Commons Treasury Select Committee said the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) made a serious error last year by mishandling a pre-briefing of its life insurance review.
Comments made by an FCA official in a newspaper interview sent insurers' share prices plunging.
Companies affected included Aviva, Legal & General and Prudential.
Clive Adamson, the head of supervision, said in the interview that the FCA would investigate whether people locked into pension plans were being treated unfairly.
That sparked fears about a possible effect on insurers' profits and prompted some investors to sell their stakes.
In a strongly worded 89-page report, the Treasury committee said the incident had been a "major self-inflicted distraction" from the FCA's core purpose of making markets function smoothly.
Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the committee, said: "By effectively breaching its own listing rules, the FCA itself created a false market in life insurance shares. Had a regulated firm behaved as the FCA did last March, the FCA is likely to have imposed a considerable fine."
However, the report stopped short of calling for resignations and instead set out several steps the watchdog should take over the next six months and report back.
The FCA said it was determined to learn the lessons and ensure this would never happen again, and would study the committee's recommendations.
The authority's executive committee, headed by chief executive Martin Wheatley, should examine communications methods and "poor working relationships" between divisions, the report said.
The board, headed by FCA chairman John Griffith-Jones, should commission an external review of its own effectiveness, according to the committee.
The FCA and the Bank of England's Prudential Regulation Authority should each produce a map setting out the responsibilities of senior officials in the same way the regulators are asking banks to, MPs said in the report.
They also called on the FCA to stop briefing certain journalists on forthcoming announcements unless it published the news at the same time any stories appeared in the media.
Further, the authority should train its staff on how to handle price-sensitive information.
"The evidence from this episode suggests that problems may still exist at the FCA. It is not yet clear to the committee that the FCA has fully grasped this," Mr Tyrie said.
The report echoes an independent inquiry by Simon Davis published in December that led to Mr Wheatley and other senior FCA officials losing their bonuses.
Mr Adamson left the FCA two days before the Davis report was published.


Tour de France leader Chris Froome wants more respect after again stressing he is a "clean rider" following a dominant stage-10 victory.

Team Sky claimed on Monday their computers had been hacked by critics convinced 30-year-old Froome is using performance-enhancing drugs.
Briton Froome said he "understood" why there are doubts because of the "history of the sport".
Tuesday's stunning ride increased his overall lead to nearly three minutes.
Froome plans to be independently tested between the Tour's finish and the Vuelta a Espana, which begins on 22 August, to try to determine what makes him such an exceptional athlete.
"I do understand where the questions are coming from, the history of the sport and the people before me who have won the Tour," said Froome.
"I am sympathetic, but at the same time there needs to be a certain level of respect also."
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Froome has been subjected to sustained scrutiny since his Tour win in 2013, with some sceptics using power data to justify their case against him.
"It doesn't make me angry," added Froome. "It would be a different story if I had something to hide.
"I know I've worked extremely hard to be in this position."
Froome said he has tried to be a spokesman for clean cycling, suggesting night-time testing and raising concerns to the sport's governing bodies.
He said: "What else is a clean rider supposed to do?"
Froome added that critics on social media who try to interpret power data are "clowns", adding that it means nothing without context.
Team Sky boss Sir Dave Brailsford had said even before Froome's 10th-stage win - the fifth stage victory of his career - he was braced for more questions over doping.
"It's part of the game, isn't it?" he added. "If he does well on Tuesday, the rest of the Tour it's: 'How do you know he's not doping?'
"The question of how to prove a negative is always going to be a difficult one.
"I used to worry about it a lot more, but I don't any more. It's part of the game. Just try to be honest, tell the truth, be open."
The Team Sky rider is now well positioned to secure a second win after powering away from the field on the first major climb of this year's race to open up a substantial lead at the head of the standings.


Travellers using train services to and from Glasgow Central are facing major disruption due to damaged overhead lines near Cardonald.

Ayrshire coast services have been cancelled, delayed or are starting and terminating at Paisley Gilmour Street.
Commuters faced long queues for replacement bus services from Paisley into the city.
Buses were running between Glasgow Central and Paisley, and from Glasgow Central to Prestwick Airport and Ayr.
ScotRail said disruption was expected until the end of the day. It was understood the fault was not related to adverse weather conditions.
The firm said anyone with a valid train ticket or smart card could use First Glasgow Bus services in both directions between Glasgow Central and Paisley Gilmour Street, and Glasgow Central and Paisley Canal.
Tickets could also be used on McGills buses on the direct route between Inverclyde and Glasgow.
Extra McGill buses are running between Paisley and Glasgow. However, customers were advised to pay for these bus journeys and claim back on their rail ticket.


People have been told to keep away from swollen rivers as dozens of flood warnings remained in place after heavy rain across parts of England.

The Environment Agency (EA) said further downpours could lead to localised flooding.
But a spokesman said there were "no significant concerns" with no major flooding to properties reported.
He said the River Severn was expected to peak in Gloucestershire on Wednesday with no major problems expected.
Flood defence schemes across the country have protected thousands of properties, including 600 homes in Taunton and 25,000 properties along the River Don through Doncaster and Bentley, he said.
The river warning came after a school minibus with 14 children and a driver on board was pulled from floodwater in Herefordshire.
Firefighters were called just before 08:30 BST after the minibus became stranded a few hundred yards from Fairfield High School, in Peterchurch.
Kevin Giles, from Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service, said: "With the help of a local farmer, we were able to attach a winch to the minibus and pull it safely out of the water."
While the students were then able to get to their school, it had already closed for the day, due to flooding in the area from the River Dore.
Crews also rescued two drivers stranded in floodwater.
On Monday a man and his dog drowned while crossing a flooded ford in a car in Hampshire.
In Northamptonshire, about 1,000 people had to leave their homes as heavy rain led to flood warnings for four areas.
And an annual boating festival in Northampton, which had been threatened due to drought fears, has now been postponed because there is too much water.
In Gloucestershire some roads were closed, including one lane of Flaxley Road in Cinderford which was shut after the road collapsed, and a number of minor routes in Tewkesbury which were under water.
And three flood warnings remain for the River Severn in Gloucestershire, affecting the Severn at Deerhurst, Apperley and Ashleworth, the Environment Agency said.
Dave Throup, of the agency, said: "We're expecting levels to go up by eight to 12 inches (20-30 cm) by about this time tomorrow, but that's certainly manageable.
"The rivers have responded very quickly in the Stroud area and with the rain now stopping we don't expect the situation to get any worse."
Many roads had tree debris and standing water but Gloucestershire County Council said highways staff were working hard to keep roads open.
Although the wettest April on record started to restore water levels below ground, the EA said it would take much more time and rain to undo the effects of two dry winters and bring large parts of England out of drought.
Thames Water warned its 8.8 million customers that a hosepipe ban would remain in place.
Richard Aylard, director of sustainability and external affairs for the company, said the firm was aware of the "irony" that heavy rain had set in after the hosepipe ban was announced.
"But it took the two driest years since records began for us to get into this drought and one wet month, even one as wet as April, will not be enough to get us out of it," he added.


Commons Leader William Hague has said legislation affecting just England should only be passed "with the consent of the majority" of English MPs.

He announced four options for "English votes for English laws" in Parliament, including giving English MPs enhanced scrutiny and a veto over new laws.
He said new arrangements for England were a "fundamental issue of fairness".
But Labour said the plans, which follow the pledge of new powers for Scotland, were a "backroom stitch-up".
Plaid Cymru said the principles involved were "reasonable" but it would be "unjust" if Welsh MPs were unable to vote on laws which affected funding for Wales under the existing Barnett formula.
The options announced by Mr Hague in a Commons statement include three Conservative proposals and one Lib Dem suggestion. They are:
Many Conservatives argue that it is unfair that Scottish MPs should currently help decide how things such as schools and the health service are run in England when English MPs have no such say over how they are run in Scotland.
"Devolution to other parts of the United Kingdom has created the situation in which MPs representing constituencies outside England may vote on legislation which does not affect their constituents while English MPs are not able to influence these policies in other nations where they are devolved," Mr Hague said.
The Commons leader said the proposals built on the recommendations of last year's McKay Commission, which supported the principle that Commons decisions with a "separate and distinct effect" for England should "normally be taken only with the consent of a majority of MPs sitting for constituencies in England".
Analysis by UK editor Mark Easton
It all sounds so straightforward - only English MPs should vote on matters that affect only England. But defining an English law is far from easy.
For a start, any law that involves government departments spending extra money in England, or which reduces the amount of money spent in England, will have a knock-on impact on how much money other parts of the United Kingdom receive under the Barnett formula - the system for allocating Treasury funds to devolved administrations.
How much Scotland receives for, say, health spending is dependent upon how much is spent on health in England.  The precise amount is worked out on the basis of the populations of each nation as a proportion of the total UK population.
One can see, then, why Scottish, Welsh or Northern Irish MPs will argue that any law involving additional or reduced departmental expenditure in England affects the whole of the UK. Cuts to public spending in England will have a direct effect on money available for spending in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Read Mark's full blog
This principle would also apply to legislation relating to England and Wales only.
Mr Hague added: "Just as the people of Scotland will have more power over their affairs, it follows that the people of England, Wales and Northern Ireland will have an opportunity to have a bigger say over theirs."
The government's document acknowledges that determining which new laws may apply to England only or England and Wales only might be "technically complex and subject to political debate".
It suggests the Speaker of the House of Commons could be asked to rule on the territorial extent of bills or that the whole of the Commons may be required to vote.
Labour said the plans were "more in the interest of the Conservative Party than the country", arguing a wide-ranging Constitutional Convention was needed next year to give the public a "loud voice".
"We do need to consider the way English MPs, or English and Welsh MPs, can have a greater say over legislation that affects only England or England and Wales but what we must not do, only months after the Scottish people voted to keep our kingdom united, is allow our country to be divided by the back door," said its justice spokesman Sadiq Khan.
The opposition boycotted talks led by Mr Hague, putting forward its own proposals last week. These would create a committee of English MPs to scrutinise bills that would not apply elsewhere in the UK.
And Conservative backbencher John Redwood said only an English Parliament would suffice. "England expects English votes for English issues and we expect simplicity and justice now," he told MPs.
The chair of the Commons Political and Constitutional Reform Committee, Labour MP Graham Allen, said the proposals were a "missed opportunity".
"England will remain under Whitehall control with a little different window dressing in a rubber-stamp Parliament," he said. "Government sees Parliament's role as delivering for Whitehall not championing devolution to the localities of England."
Prime Minister David Cameron has promised to bring in changes if he is in power after the next election, saying this should be linked to the transfer of more powers to Holyrood following September's independence referendum.
A commission on Scottish devolution set up by Mr Cameron after the referendum no vote has recommended that the Scottish Parliament should be able to set its own income tax rates, with all of the cash earned staying north of the border.
It also said a share of VAT should be assigned to Holyrood and Air Passenger Duty fully devolved.
But Professor John Curtice, from the University of Strathclyde, said he did not believe there would be agreement on the English question before the general election.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today: "Although David Cameron started this particular ball rolling, and for a while at least it was a ball that did indeed cause the Labour Party considerable embarrassment, I think we are going to discover today that actually now he has got trouble on his own side of the House of Commons."


A Dutch zoo says two male vultures in a long-standing relationship have become parents after successfully hatching an egg.

Staff gave the gay griffon vultures an abandoned egg, which they cared for in their nest for two months.
Zoo keeper Job van Tol said the two fathers are "a very tight couple" and are doing the job perfectly.
"We have had them for some years. They always build a nest together, bond and mate together," he told the BBC.
"But, as two males, the one thing they could not do was lay an egg."
So when staff discovered a lone egg that none of the other vultures would adopt, they first cared for it in an incubator, and then decided to place in the male couple's nest.
"It was a bit of risk as we had no guarantees of success, but we thought, finally, this is their chance," said Mr Van Tol.
Artis Amsterdam Royal Zoo said the new parents are very protective of their fast-growing chick, which is now 20 days old, and they have been breaking up its food to make it manageable to eat.
"As in some penguin species, vultures do everything the same, they alternate all the jobs. Females lay the eggs, but they breed together, they forage for food together. Males are programmed to have that duty of care," said Mr Van Tol.
This is the zoo's first successful hatching in five years.
Another chick was also hatched during the same period, by two heterosexual parents who were rescued from a road accident in Spain.
"We are lucky to have two very special stories this year," said Mr Van Tol.
The zoo is hoping to release the two new birds into the wild when they are older and independent.
In April 2016, there was news of another pair of gay vultures caring for an abandoned egg at Nordhorn Zoo in northern Germany.
Unfortunately, that egg never hatched.
"They sat on it in the nest, but it was not fertile," Dr Heike Weber, veterinarian and zoo curator, told the BBC. "We did not think it was, but we did not want to take it away from them to examine it."
When the zoo keepers finally intervened, the birds became aggressive. "They were attached to it, absolutely," said Dr Weber.
Vultures are very maternal and underappreciated for the roles they play, according to Dr Corinne Kendall, a vulture expert at North Carolina Zoo in the United States.
"They take really good care of their chicks," she said. "Ancient Egyptians respected vultures for their parenting. They were seen as symbol of femininity."
In most species of vulture, it is hard to distinguish males from females in the wild, so there is not a lot on record about homosexuality, she said.
"But given the chance, it makes sense that two males could take care of an egg," she added. "Beyond laying it, they are capable of all the other steps."


Bosses at loss-making interior fittings firm Havelock Europa have agreed to defer part of their salaries until such time as the company returns to profit.

The move follows a "challenging year" for the Fife-based firm, which reported an operating loss of £2.4m for 2015.
Chairman David MacLellan said that from 1 April, he was deferring £25,000 of his £55,000 salary per year.
The two other non-executive directors are deferring £5,000 of their £30,000 salaries.
Kirkcaldy-based Havelock has been undertaking a major restructuring of its business since David Ritchie took over as chief executive last May.
Last year it shed more than 110 jobs - about 20% of its workforce - as part of efforts to "simplify" its structure in order to "make it more agile and better able to maximise the customer experience".
According to the company's annual accounts, Havelock saw sales from continuing operations fall by 11% in the year to £70.3m.
It blamed the fall on reduced UK retail activity and delayed public sector contracts.
The company reported exceptional costs of £1.9m in 2015, the bulk of which was accounted for by restructuring.
Mr MacLellan said current trading within the business was in line with market expectations, supported by an opening order book for delivery in the year of £25m.
He added: "Although the business is continuing to progress and diversify, it still retains a high dependence on second half orders which restricts our visibility for the full year outturn.
"The implementation of the revised strategy of simplifying the business and maximising the customer experience is continuing and the board believes that this strategy is strengthening our ability to identify and develop opportunities in our chosen markets."
Havelock specialises in furniture and interiors for the education, healthcare and commercial sectors.
Its client list has included high street brands such as Lloyds Banking Group, Marks and Spencer, Primark, Accessorize and House of Fraser.
In November the firm was hit by news that its largest financial services client, Lloyds Banking Group, planned to cut development and refurbishment spend in 2016.
It warned at the time that the move would have a "material" impact this year "before mitigating actions are undertaken".


Artists on the French Riviera are dismayed by a decree from the far-right town hall of Frejus, obliging them to give free workshops for schoolchildren or lose their low-rent accommodation.

David Rachline, one of 11 Front National (FN) mayors elected in France last year, has decided to strong-arm a collective of 15 painters and designers known as Lastrada, who for more than 20 years have worked out of subsidised studios in the centre of the historic town.
Enemies of the far-right see the move as evidence that after a year of acting cautiously in the municipalities under its control, the FN is reverting to its old book-burning instincts.
Supporters say it is husbanding scarce resources and asking for a reasonable quid pro quo.
The row erupted at the end of July when Rachline told a council meeting that he was going to adjust the artists' contracts with the town, to require them to spend 90 minutes a week taking in classes from local schools.
Until now, members of Lastrada have had only to make certain unspecified contributions to Frejus's cultural life in order to justify their subsidies and Rachline said these were no longer sufficient.
"The town finances a big part of these ladies' and gentlemen's rent. They need to give more back. So either we agree on this, or I am going to put an end to this situation where we pay the rent of all and sundry,"  he said.
The background to the move is a rule brought in by the Socialist government in Paris, which by adjusting the school timetable requires town halls to fund new extra-curricular activities for children.
This is deeply resented by many municipalities - not just of the far-right.
Rachline is trying to mobilise Lastrada artists into giving workshops in order to offset the cost.
No-one questions the fact that the Frejus artists do enjoy special treatment.
Their rental is 2.5 euros monthly per square metre, compared to an average in the town centre of between 10 and 20 euros. The mairie (town hall) says this amounts to an annual subsidy of 80,000 euros.
But Olivier Isselin, a photographer who acts as Lastrada's spokesman, told me that foisting this new demand on them was unacceptable.
"It has been upsetting to see the way the story is reported in the French press," he said.
"We are portrayed as loafers living off the taxpayer. I have had a number of disagreeable remarks. But we all work extremely hard.
"What is forgotten is that we were brought into the old centre of Frejus under a deliberate initiative to revitalise the place. It was becoming depopulated, with all the shops driven out of business by the out-of-town malls."
According to Isselin, the artists were never even told of  the change before they read of it in the local press.
"How am I supposed to look after a class of children? I have no training for it. I have no insurance to bring them into my studio.
"I am all for volunteering and I'd be glad to do something for the town that was within my competence. But you can't make people be volunteers. This idea serves no-one - not the children, not the artists, not the town."
Though he is careful not to get too political - "We are here for all the people of Frejus, and don't forget nearly half of them voted Front National" - Isselin is sure the artists have been targeted because of their perceived left-wing leanings.
Rachline's response has been to publish a lengthy blog, accusing detractors of exaggerating his plan and expressing surprise that anyone could look at it askance.
He says the overall bill to the local taxpayer for the Socialists' new out-of-school activities is 400,000 euros.
"What seemed to me a legitimate trade-off has become for some people a state scandal!
"One would laugh, were it not for the extremely narrow outlook it all shows in certain self-proclaimed artists - who you would think would be delighted to give children the benefit of their knowhow," he writes. (in French)
Since the municipal elections in March last year, the French press has been waiting to swoop on any hint of a far-right kulturkampf.
But so far they have been disappointed, with FN mayors under strict instructions from Marine Le Pen not to court adverse publicity.
So is this "earn your keep" campaign the first sign of a reversion to type?
Rachline's critics note that last week also saw a concert in Frejus by the controversial band In Memoriam - who play nationalist punk. Police had to intervene after there was fighting in the crowd.
In normal times in France, there is little mileage to be had in taking on the arts establishment.
Culture enjoys a huge level of protection by comparison with other countries (the rent subsidies in Frejus are typical) and the mainstream parties all staunchly defend the status quo.
But these are times of financial hardship, and Rachline has carefully calibrated his move.
Asking artists for a "contribution to the community" will be seen by many as a cynical FN provocation.
But others will be saying, why not?