Junior doctors in England are to stage a five-day strike in the run-up to the General Election. Talks had recently reopened with a view to ending the long-running dispute over pay between medics in training and the Government. After the July 4 election was called last week, the British Medical Association (BMA) gave the Government “a final opportunity to make an offer and avoid strikes” but “this opportunity has not been taken up”.
The union announced that junior doctors will stage a full walkout from 7am on June 27 to 7am on July 2. The co-chairmen of the BMA junior doctors committee, Dr Robert Laurenson and Dr Vivek Trivedi, said in a statement: “We made clear to the Government that we would strike unless discussions ended in a credible pay offer.” They added: “For more than 18 months we have been asking Rishi Sunak to put forward proposals to restore the pay junior doctors have lost over the past 15 years – equal to more than a quarter in real terms.
“When we entered mediation with Government this month we did so under the impression that we had a functioning government that would soon be making an offer. Clearly no offer is now forthcoming. Junior doctors are fed up and out of patience.
“Even at this late stage Mr Sunak has the opportunity to show that he cares about the NHS and its workers. “It is finally time for him to make a concrete commitment to restore doctors’ pay. “If during this campaign he makes such a public commitment that is accepta.
