LONDON – Thousands of British doctors began a five-day strike on July 25, following the breakdown of last-minute talks with the Labour government over pay negotiations. Picket lines formed outside hospitals across the country as resident doctors – those below consultant level – walked out in protest.
The strike comes despite doctors having accepted a 22.3 per cent pay rise over two years in September 2024, shortly after Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour Party came to power. However, the British Medical Association (BMA) and its members say the offer is not enough to reverse what they call “pay erosion” since 2008.
Junior doctors argue that their real-term pay has fallen by over 21 per cent in the past two decades. “We’re not working 21 per cent less hard, so why should our pay suffer?” said Melissa Ryan and Ross Nieuwoudt, co-chairs of the BMA’s junior doctors committee, in a joint statement.
Prime Minister Starmer made a direct appeal to doctors, warning that the strike could harm patients and further strain the National Health Service (NHS). Writing in The Times, he said: “Launching a strike will mean everyone loses. Our NHS and your patients need you… Lives will be blighted by this decision.”
Health Minister Wes Streeting echoed the concern in a letter published in The Telegraph, saying the government “cannot afford to go further on pay this year.”
The BMA is calling for full pay restoration, demanding a 35 per cent increase to match inflation over the last decade. The previous Conservative government had resisted these demands.
In contrast to the standoff with doctors, the Labour government successfully negotiated deals with other public sector workers in 2024, including a 15 per cent pay increase over three years for train drivers and settlements with teachers. Those agreements were criticised by the Conservative opposition but hailed by unions as overdue relief for workers.
The latest doctors’ strike revives memories of widespread walkouts in 2024 that led to the cancellation of tens of thousands of appointments and delays in treatment. As inflation continues to impact household incomes, the dispute signals that public sector tensions remain high despite a change in government.