Resident doctors in England have called off a planned four-day strike after the government made a last-minute offer, which will now be put to a vote by members of the British Medical Association (BMA). The walkout, scheduled to begin at 7am on Monday, would have been the 16th round of strike action since 2023.
The BMA announced on Saturday that the offer includes an average 6.6% pay uplift, to be fully implemented by April 2027, and standard 2016 resident doctor contract terms for all locally employed doctors. Dr Jack Fletcher, chair of the BMA's resident doctors committee, said the union had always been clear that strikes could be avoided if a suitable offer was made.
Dr Fletcher stated: 'We have always been clear that no strikes needed to go ahead if we received an offer appropriate to put to our members. This should not have been left to the last moment, but we hold up our end of the bargain when the government shifts its position.' He added that tens of thousands of frontline doctors will now vote in a referendum on whether the offer is sufficient.
Health Secretary James Murray welcomed the development, calling it 'positive and welcome – especially for patients'. However, he noted that after a 28.9% pay rise for resident doctors over the last three years, 'the country simply cannot afford to increase the pay offer for this year'.
Prof Frankie Swords, national medical director at NHS England, had previously warned that the strike would have created a 'triple whammy of pressure' coinciding with warm weather and the World Cup. The BMA has indicated that if members reject the offer, further escalated strike action could follow next month.
