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Health Secretary reprimanded doctors He was described as “self-indulgent” and “dangerous” after voting to extend the five-day strike before Christmas.
British Medical Association(BMA) resident doctor members rejected the last minute proposal. Wes Streeting To prevent a walkout, the doctors are set to join the picket lines from 7am on Wednesday.
The move warned of a “very difficult Christmas”. NHS Amid fears that the strike would put patients at risk as “superflu” cases surge in the country. Flu cases in hospitals across England are at record levels for this time of year.
The Prime Minister said he was “devastated” The news led him to join Mr Streeting in appealing to doctors to ignore their union and go to work this week, warning that they were losing public sympathy over the dispute.
Mr Streeting warned that the dates, just before the Christmas bank holiday, represented a “risk of varying magnitude” for previous industrial action.
He accused the BMA of choosing the timing to “damage the NHS at a time of maximum danger” and attacked its refusal to postpone until January.
“There is no need for these strikes “To go ahead this week, and it exposes the BMA’s shocking disregard for patient safety and other NHS staff,” he said. “These strikes are self-indulgent, irresponsible and dangerous.”
He added: “I am appealing to ordinary resident doctors to go to work this week. There is a different magnitude of risk in striking at this time. Abandoning your patients at their time of greatest need goes against everything a career in medicine stands for.”
Mr Streeting had offered the union a new deal which included greater access to specialist training posts and funding for expenses such as examination fees, but, crucially, no additional pay.
But the proposal was rejected, with the BMA condemning it as “too little, too late”. A total of 83 percent of doctors voted in favor of continuing the strike, while 17 percent voted against, resulting in a turnout of 65 percent.
Dr Jack Fletcher, chair of the BMA’s resident doctors’ committee, said: “Thousands of frontline doctors have come together and said ‘no’ which is clearly too little, too late.
“This week’s strike is still entirely avoidable – the Health Secretary must work with us in the short time we have now to put forward a credible proposal to end this jobs crisis and push for real pay cuts in 2026.”
Sir Keir condemned the attacks as “irresponsible”.
He told MPs on the Commons Liaison Committee that he was “very disappointed. Ten out of ten. This is irresponsible at any time, especially at this time.”
He added: “This has led to a much higher pay increase than last year. There is a deal that we have put on the table that could have been taken forward, and so I think this is irresponsible action by the BMA and not the first time.”
“I would appeal to the doctors themselves to take action against the BMA. They are losing public sympathy. They are losing the support of their colleagues.”
The BMA said it was “committed to ensuring patient safety” during the walkout. But hospital leaders said the strikes were happening because the NHS “needs to be on standby”.
Daniel Elkels, chief executive of NHS Providers, said: “This vote is a bitter pill to swallow that will inevitably result in harm to patients and damage to the NHS.
“We were hopeful that the government’s recently updated offer would be enough to withstand another walkout at a time when so many people are suffering from flu, and the NHS needs all the help it can get.
“Trust leaders and staff will be working now to minimize the impact of the strike, but sadly this will mean further disruption and delays, and will make for a very difficult Christmas for the health service.”
Rory Deighton, director of acute and community care for the NHS Confederation, described the vote as “extremely disappointing”.
Mr Streeting told broadcasters it was “now clear” that “these strikes are actually a completely unrealistic demand for the BMA to demand an extra 26 per cent on top of the 28.9 per cent pay rise they have already had”.
He said he had asked the union to postpone the walkout until January “due to the enormous risk to patients and the NHS at the worst possible time”.
Last week, a YouGov poll found opposition to the strikes was at a record high, with 53 per cent of Britons opposed and 38 per cent in support.
Figures released by the Health Service last week show flu cases have increased by more than 55 per cent in a week. Some hospitals across the country have asked staff, patients and visitors to wear face masks to reduce the spread of flu, while other hospitals have been left in dire straits due to the high number of people attending A&E.
Shadow Health Secretary Stuart Andrew said: “We Conservatives have repeatedly warned Labor that they would set a dangerous precedent by delivering a pay rise that beat inflation last year.
“And now we are seeing the results of their dedication, with more disruption, more demands and no end in sight.”