Doctors in England Launch Six-Day Strike After Government Talks Collapse

Junior doctors in England have begun a six-day strike after rejecting a government offer on pay and working conditions, which authorities had described as final. This was reported by Reuters.

The industrial action, coinciding with the Easter holidays, will continue until the morning of April 13, after Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s 48-hour ultimatum expired without an agreement being reached.

The government has already withdrawn its promise to fund 1,000 additional specialty training places, stating that the funding was contingent upon the acceptance of the proposal.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting stated that the cabinet is not prepared to divert funds intended for patients toward a settlement it considers financially unsustainable. He estimated that the strike will cost the health system approximately £50 million per day, totaling £300 million over the six days.

In an interview with Times Radio, Streeting emphasized that junior doctors have already received the largest pay increase of any public sector workers under the current government, yet they rejected the offer without proposing an alternative.

The British Medical Association, which represents approximately 55,000 junior doctors—nearly half of the medical workforce—stated that the offer fails to compensate for the cumulative pay erosion and chronic staff shortages.

Since the beginning of 2023, the organization has organized more than ten rounds of industrial action, with the government blaming the protests for hindering efforts to reduce patient waiting lists within the state health system.

The proposal includes a 3.5% pay increase this year, which the government claims is above the rate of inflation, as well as a total increase of approximately 35% over three years. It also provides for reimbursements for mandatory exams, which can cost doctors thousands of pounds.

However, Jack Fletcher, chair of the association’s junior doctors committee, stated that the proposal does not provide sufficient investment, the reforms are spread over too long a period, and there are uncertainties regarding the creation of new training positions.

He added that the government’s threat to withdraw parts of the proposal has undermined trust in the negotiation process.

“No one wants to strike. But without a realistic offer on the table, doctors have no other choice,” the British Medical Association stated.