Resident doctors to ‘press ahead’ with strikes as no agreement reached after crunch talks
UK-based doctors are set to announce a six-day work stoppage next week after critical talks failed to block a planned strike, prompting the government to withdraw a significant part of its offer.
The Department of Health and Social Care has announced that a proposal for 1,000 additional training places previously included in the government’s pay and employment agreement is no longer considered “financially or operationally” feasible.
The decision comes as the NHS prepares for the serious impact of the upcoming strike.
Tens of thousands of junior doctors across England are expected to take part in the massive strike, which is planned to begin on Tuesday, just after the Easter weekend.
The development follows Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s latest ultimatum to the British Medical Association’s (BMA) junior doctors committee.
He had given them a 48-hour deadline to reconsider the government’s comprehensive pay and jobs package, which now includes canceled NHS training posts.
As the deadline approached, the BMA compiled a list of demands that needed to be addressed in order for the government to call off the strike.
In response, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “It is disappointing that the BMA has decided to continue strikes next week, despite the discussions we have had in recent days to protect the NHS from strikes.
“This Government has offered junior doctors a generous deal to improve their pay, career progression and working lives, which would see junior doctors on average 35.2% better off than they were four years ago.
“As the BMA junior doctors committee has not agreed to call off these strikes and make offers to members, we will no longer be able to provide the 1,000 extra training places the BMA has requested.
“These posts were due to go live this month, but as systems now need to prepare for strikes and further uncertainty it will not be operationally or financially feasible to launch these posts in April for this year’s recruitment, which will not impact overall numbers of junior doctors and the NHS will be there for patients when they need them.
“Our focus, and that of leaders across the NHS, is now on protecting patients, staff and our NHS by minimizing disruption to the healthcare service.”
Chairman of the doctors’ committee, Dr. In a letter sent early on Wednesday, Jack Fletcher said the Government’s current offer was “inadequate” and “does not meet the required standard” that should be applied to union members.
“We have consistently maintained that we are willing to postpone industrial action if a genuinely credible offer is presented,” he said in a letter to Health Secretary Wes Streeting.
“This situation continues now, until and throughout any period of industrial action.”
Dr Fletcher said the Government’s “threats” to remove training places from the current proposal were “unnecessarily and inevitably exacerbating the dispute”.
The BMA said that in order to cancel the action, several issues would need to be addressed in the Government’s new proposal on work and pay.
“We remain open to any improved offers or further negotiations. We are prepared to talk before, during and after any industrial action,” Dr Fletcher added.
