Wes Streeting has warned doctors that “the public will not forgive you” as the NHS faces months of strike chaos.
The health secretary said that a pay rise is not an option after doctors in England voted in favour of industrial action, which could see walkouts last until January next year.
He also accused them of “squandering an opportunity by striking” instead of working with him to improve working conditions, warning: “You will not find another health and social care secretary as sympathetic to resident doctors as me”.
It comes after the British Medical Association (BMA) announced that resident doctors, formerly known as junior doctors, had backed strike action as part of demands to secure a 29% pay rise.
Warning that more walkouts will be a “disaster” for the BMA’s members and patients alike, “just as we are finally moving the NHS in the right direction”, Mr Streeting called on the union to reconsider.
He told The Times: “Patients do not support the proposed strike action and it doesn’t even command majority support among BMA resident doctors, less than half of whom actually voted for industrial action. There are no grounds for strike action now. Resident doctors have just received the highest pay award across the entire public sector.”
“I urge the BMA, even at this late stage, to reconsider this deeply damaging course of action”, he added.
Commenting on the announcement, Danny Mortimer, chief executive of NHS Employers – which is part of the NHS Confederation, said: “Resident doctors voting for more industrial action after the largest series of pay awards in the public sector is a troubling development.
“Further strikes are the last thing health leaders wanted and could result in tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of operations and procedures being delayed or cancelled, leaving patients in pain or discomfort.”
Source: The Independent, 9 July 2025
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