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The BMA has announced that junior doctors will go on strike for a further four days next month, from 0700 on Friday 11th August to 0700 on Tuesday 15th August.
The fifth round of strikes comes following Rishi Sunak’s “final” pay offer of 6%, plus a £1,250 bonus, bringing the average increase to 8.8%.
The BMA says the offer “completely ignores” the union’s calls to “value doctors for their expertise” and restore pay to 2008 levels.
The Junior Doctors Committee is now calling on the Prime Minister to come back to negotiating table with a “credible offer”.
“Junior doctors are not going anywhere”
JDC co-chairs Dr Robert Laurenson and Dr Vivek Trivedi said: “The Prime Minister has told us that talks are over. But it is not for Rishi Sunak to decide that negotiations are over before he has even stepped in the room.
“This dispute will end only at the negotiating table. If the PM was hoping to demoralise and divide our profession with his actions, he will be disappointed.”
“Junior doctors are not going anywhere however much Government might wish we would. The facts have not changed: we have lost more than a quarter of our pay in fifteen years and we are here to get it back,” she added.
Further strike action will “harm patient care,” says government
The JDC have confirmed that consultants and SAS colleagues will cover crucial services during the strikes to ensure that patients can access urgent and emergency care. However, it is expected that thousands more scheduled appointments will be cancelled or postponed.
Minister of State for Health Will Quince has described the fresh round of strikes as “hugely disappointing” and warns that continued action will “harm patient care and put further pressure on other NHS staff.”
“We’re giving doctors in training a fair and reasonable pay rise, as recommended by the independent pay review body, with an average increase of around 8.8% which is above what most in the public and private sectors are receiving. This is expected to increase average pay for NHS doctors in training by £3,800 to around £47,600.
“Our award balances the need to keep inflation in check while recognising the incredibly important work they do. I urge the BMA to put patients first by ending their hugely disruptive strikes immediately,” he said.