After ‘productive’ discussions with the health secretary, the British Medical Association said there was a small window of opportunity to avoid strikes by resident doctors.
Residents – previously junior – doctors from England will walk out for 5 days starting at 7:00 am on Friday, 25 July to protest pay restoration.
The BMA stated that in a discussion with Wes Streeting yesterday lasting over an hour, pay and non-pay questions were discussed. This was a very limited window for the government to make an offer which can be presented to its resident doctor committee.
Melissa Ryan and Ross Nieuwoudt, co-chairs of the committee, said that they had “a constructive meeting” with the secretary of health today. We did not get much information, but we believe that the government has a small window to make a strong proposal in order to prevent the strike. It’s good to hear that no doctor wants a strike, and that talking about it now will help to prevent them from having to.”
“However we made it clear to Mr Streeting, that the proposed strike is little more than one week away. Within that time, he must give us a credible proposal and meet the needs and demands of resident doctors in England whose pay has been eroded by more than five percent in the past two decades.”
Streeting stated: “We will be continuing our conversation in the next few days to try and avoid strike action.”
Ryan and Nieuwoudt both said that they were open-minded to various solutions for addressing the cost of living issues of resident doctors who are on strike until January.
Streeting said that the government could not move on the 5.4% pay increase for this year, which is the biggest award in the public service. This was after the 22.3% salary increase last year, accepted last September. The BMA wants a 29% increase in pay.
According to The Guardian, the Department for Health and Social Care may be looking at a “loan forgiveness” scheme. The Department for Health and Social Care is believed to be considering a loan “forgiveness” scheme, according to The Guardian.
Another possible proposal is to improve the annual leave entitlement for resident doctors.
Ryan and Nieuwoudt stated: “We are of the opinion that improving pay is still the easiest and most effective method to improve their working life. We are open to exploring additional measures that the government may agree upon to restore the value of resident doctors and their wellbeing.
We are willing to meet Mr Streeting in the next few days as many times as possible to find a solution that is acceptable for doctors, NHS patients and NHS staff.
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