Key Takeaways:
- Resident doctors in England will strike for five days starting on Wednesday after rejecting the government’s latest offer to end the pay and jobs dispute.
- The strike will pose a challenge to hospitals already grappling with the effects of the early arrival of the NHS’s usual winter crisis.
- Resident doctors are seeking a 26% pay increase, while the government’s offer would have increased the number of training places but not pay for the current financial year.
- The strike is the 14th since the dispute began in March 2023, and it will run until 7am next Monday.
- The government and the NHS are desperate to see the dispute resolved, but resident doctors remain determined to achieve their goal of "full pay restoration".
Introduction to the Dispute
The resident doctors in England have voted to reject the government’s latest offer to end the long-running pay and jobs dispute, and as a result, they will strike for five days starting on Wednesday. The strike is a major setback to both the government and the NHS, which are desperate to see the increasingly bitter dispute resolved. The health secretary, Wes Streeting, had proposed the deal last week, which would have increased the number of training places to enable early-career doctors to start training in their chosen medical specialty but not increased their pay for the current financial year. However, resident doctors overwhelmingly rejected the offer, with 83% voting against it and 17% in favor, on a 65% turnout.
The Government’s Offer and the Union’s Response
The government’s offer was dismissed by the British Medical Association (BMA) as "too little, too late" to stop the strike going ahead. The union’s chair of the resident doctors committee, Dr. Jack Fletcher, said that the offer did not address the key issues of pay and jobs, and that the government had simply "cannibalised" existing jobs to create new ones on paper. Fletcher also stated that the offer did not provide any new jobs, and that the government’s proposal to increase the number of training places was not enough to address the shortage of doctors in the NHS. The BMA has been seeking a 26% pay increase for resident doctors, which they believe is necessary to restore their pay to the levels it was at in 2008-09, before their real-terms value was eroded.
The Impact of the Strike
The strike will pose a significant challenge to hospitals, which are already grappling with the effects of the early arrival of the NHS’s usual winter crisis, driven by a wave of virulent "super flu". The strike will be the 14th since the dispute began in March 2023, and it will run until 7am next Monday. The health secretary, Wes Streeting, has warned that the strike will be "self-indulgent, irresponsible, and dangerous" and will hit patients and other NHS staff at the service’s "moment of maximum danger". However, Dr. Fletcher accused Streeting of "scaremongering the public into thinking that the NHS will not be able to look after them and their loved ones". Fletcher also stated that the strike is still entirely avoidable, and that the health secretary should work with the BMA to come up with a credible offer to end the jobs crisis and avert the real-terms pay cuts.
The Government’s Response
The government has responded to the strike by accusing the BMA of being "irresponsible" and "self-indulgent". Streeting said that the strike would inflict damage on the NHS at the moment of maximum danger, and that it was "frankly beyond belief" that the strike would go ahead with the NHS under such intense pressure. However, the BMA has accused the government of failing to engage with them outside of strikes, and of making "cruel and calculated" offers that they know will be rejected. The government has also been accused of trying to divide the public and the medical profession, by portraying the strike as a "fantasy demand" for a 26% pay rise. However, the BMA has stated that the pay rise is necessary to restore the pay of resident doctors to the levels it was at in 2008-09, and to address the shortage of doctors in the NHS.
The Way Forward
The strike is a major setback to the government and the NHS, and it is unclear how the dispute will be resolved. The BMA has stated that they are willing to work with the government to find a solution, but that they will not accept any offer that does not address the key issues of pay and jobs. The government has also stated that they are willing to negotiate, but that they will not meet the BMA’s demand for a 26% pay rise. The dispute is likely to continue, with both sides dug in and refusing to back down. However, it is clear that the strike will have a significant impact on the NHS, and that patients and staff will be affected. The government and the BMA must work together to find a solution to the dispute, and to address the underlying issues that have led to the strike. This can be achieved through a combination of increased funding, improved working conditions, and a commitment to addressing the shortage of doctors in the NHS. Ultimately, the goal of both the government and the BMA should be to provide high-quality patient care, and to ensure that the NHS is able to meet the needs of patients and staff.