The British Medical Association (BMA) has rejected a new offer from health secretary Wes Streeting to avert strikes on 14 November. Streeting gave the BMA until the end of today, 6 November, to consider. Not that they would have needed it, mind you – the offer didn’t make any move to restore resident doctors’ pay.

The BMA: too little, too late

As the Canary previously reported, there are two issues at the heart of the doctor’s dispute with the government: job shortages and pay restoration. 34% of resident doctors hadn’t been able to secure regular locum or substantive employment in time for August this year, according to a BMA survey.

Competition for GP speciality training posts is higher than it’s ever been. An average of five doctors are applying for every post available in England. In its recent 10-year plan for the NHS, the government promised 1,000 new specialty training places. However, the rate that Labour proposed to create these new jobs is too slow to match public demand.

And, as a further slap in the face, the government has flatly refused to discuss solutions to the pay issue. Doctors in England have seen their salaries slashed by around 21% in real terms since 2008. And, as of this week’s offer, Streeting still isn’t budging on that central sticking point.

Instead, the health secretary has merely proposed to create new training places more quickly than previously suggested. Labour had planned to create 1,000 training places by 2028. However, the plan is now to add those 1,000 places by next year, and a further thousand by 2028.

He also offered to cover the cost of exam fees and royal college membership costs for resident doctors. So now doctors can wait slightly less time and pay less to get into a job that pays four-fifths of what it did 18 years ago – hallelujah.

‘The choice is clear’

Streeting met with union representatives on Tuesday. He then issued his paltry offer by letter yesterday, and gave the union until the end of today to respond. Of course, given that he’s refusing to budge on pay, the BMA didn’t need the thinking time. So, as the union announced last month, resident doctors will be walking out for five days, starting 14 November.

In his letter, Streeting told the BMA:

The choice is clear. You can continue to pursue unnecessary strike action, which will cause disruption to patients, harm the NHS’s recovery and mean that at least some parts of this offer become unaffordable.

Or you can put an end to this damaging period of industrial action and work in partnership with the government to both deliver real change and improvements.

The health secretary also maintains that he won’t negotiate on pay. He reasoned that, in the last three years, resident doctors have received pay rises of nearly 30%. However, as the BMA has repeatedly pointed out, this still puts residents’ pay far behind inflation.

As such, the chairman of the BMA’s resident doctors committee (RDC) – Dr Jack Fletcher – told Streeting that the government:

can call off strikes for years if they’re willing to offer a multi-year pay deal that restores pay over time.

Sadly, even after promising a journey to fair pay, Mr Streeting is still unwilling to move.

Senior docs stepping in

Now, with resident doctors walking out next week, hospitals are facing significant disruption. After today’s news, the NHS will be moving back and rescheduling appointments which would fall on the strike days.

Residents are striking from routine and emergency care. Given that these doctors comprise almost half of the NHS’ medical workforce, senior doctors will be forced to step in and fill the gap.

Time and again, Streeting has maligned NHS workers and attempted to frame doctors as “wreckers”. Now, as resident doctors are poised to walk out, he’ll be faced with a simple fact – you can’t bully people into working when they’re already past breaking point.

Featured image via the Canary

By Alex/Rose Cocker

From Canary via this RSS feed