The British Medical Association (BMA) has proposed to cancel a planned strike by junior doctors if NHS bosses allow more time for pay negotiations. The BMA announced the industrial action after it claimed the Government had “failed to meet the deadline to put an improved pay offer on the table”.
Thousands of medics are set to strike in England for five days from 7am on February 24 until 11.59pm on February 28. However, the BMA has now written to NHS Employers asking for an extension to the period during which it can hold strike action.
In a letter to Danny Mortimer, the chief executive of NHS Employers, Professor Philip Banfield, the BMA chairman of the council, requested this extension. He wrote: “In return for this agreement the BMA Junior Doctors Committee is prepared to cancel the planned strike action for 24th to 28th February, providing space for the Government to negotiate with us during the next two weeks.”
The BMA believes that if NHS Employers agree to this request, it will give Health Secretary Victoria Atkins and the Government more time to “present a credible pay offer” to junior doctors.
The Government has previously stated it was not open to discussions while strike dates were still on the table. The BMA hasn’t dismissed the possibility of more strikes after these dates, reminding us that junior doctors in England once held the longest strike in NHS history in January, lasting six full days from January 3 to January 9. This upcoming strike will be the 10th by junior doctors since March 2023.
The BMA expressed frustration at the “glacial speed of progress” over pay negotiations with the Government, calling it “frustrating and incomprehensible”. They’ve announced that this round of strikes will be the last under their current mandate, which ends this month. However, they are considering extending the mandate for another six months.
Health and Social Care Secretary Victoria Atkins said: “This action called by the BMA junior doctor committee does not signal that they are ready to be reasonable.”
She added: “We already provided them with a pay increase of up to 10.3 percent and were prepared to go further.
“We urged them to put an offer to their members, but they refused. We are also open to further discussions on improving doctors’ and the wider workforce’s working lives.”
Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting accused Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of “personally blocking a deal with the junior doctors”. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer told broadcasters he wants the Government to “negotiate and bring this to an end”.
A new wave of strikes could see thousands of NHS appointments and operations cancelled. Earlier this year, over 100,000 appointments were shelved during a six-day strike.
Sir Julian Hartley, the top official at NHS Providers, said the news of more strikes is “another body blow for leaders of NHS services already stretched to the limit”.
“Patients having to wait even longer for the care they need is a huge concern,” he stated.
Junior doctors, who make up about half of all NHS doctors, were given an average pay rise of nearly 9 percent this financial year. However, the British Medical Association (BMA) says it’s not enough. They’ve demanded a massive 35 percent ‘pay restoration’ but are ready for talks.
It’s worth noting that junior doctors can be quite experienced, with up to nine years in their chosen specialty or five years preparing to become a GP.
The strike dates have been set too. Junior doctor members of the Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association (HCSA) plan to walk out from February 24 until February 29.
