LAURA Humphries is clearly someone who is prepared to get off her backside and work hard.

She must have worked hard at school to get into Cambridge and she is now working hard as a student in London to qualify as a doctor.

And yesterday, she was out on the streets, busking with her saxophone, in an attempt to make ends meet.

We can't help feeling that this is a rather sad Christmas story - that a bright young woman should be reduced to glorified begging in order to hold back the tide of debt.

So far, Laura's dream of working in the world of medicine has left her £12,000 in the red. Figures produced by the British Medical Association show that the average medical student ends up owing more than £20,000.

Of course, she will be in a strong position to earn good money once she is qualified. She will be in a better position to pay off her debts than many other students.

But how many talented youngsters might be put off from pursuing their ambitions because of the financial mire they have to wade through?

With Britain suffering from a dire shortage of doctors in key areas of the National Health Service, we believe Laura's story underlines a serious problem.