Resident doctors announce new strike dates in long-running dispute over pay

Walkouts will begin at 7am on Monday June 15, ending at 6.59am on Friday June 19.

The walkout is part of the British Medical Association's long-running dispute with the Government over pay.

The union is accusing the new Health Secretary James Murray of not improving their offer.

The BMA said further strikes will be announced for July if no progress is made.

Dr Jack Fletcher, chairman of the BMA’s resident doctors’ committee, said: “We had hoped that a change in leadership at the Department of Health and Social Care would lead to a change in approach.

“Sadly, we have run up against the same unwillingness to move we encountered under Mr (Wes) Streeting.

“We were prepared to give Mr Murray time to settle into his role before completing the work his predecessor left unfinished – to both make a fair and meaningful pay offer and make concrete commitments to end the jobs bottleneck throttling the careers of our colleagues.

“He had a genuine opportunity to break this logjam with fresh energy and ambition.

“He has not taken it. Instead, we are hearing the same tired line: vagueness on new jobs and no further money on the table.

“We cannot be asked to negotiate in good faith for weeks, only to be told there is nothing left to negotiate about on pay and no further details at this stage on jobs.

“Thousands of doctors continue to leave the NHS, and take-home pay remains a fifth lower in real terms than it was in 2008.

“If Mr Murray wishes to make a success of his new role, he must confront this issue before any other. “We are prepared to accept that he may have inherited plans already in motion when he took office. “If so, he now has a new opportunity to demonstrate genuine leadership and prevent further strike action.

“Our ask is straightforward: a credible, meaningful offer comprising concrete new jobs and real progress towards pay restoration.

“Mr Murray arrives in this role directly from the Treasury, where his job was to weigh the costs and benefits of public spending.

“We would expect him, of all people, to understand that the costs of prolonged, avoidable strike action would far outweigh a deal that secured the future of the NHS workforce. “The calculation is not a difficult one.”

The last round of action by resident doctors, which lasted for six days over the Easter holiday, was the 15th strike since 2023.

The cumulative cost of the walkouts is estimated to have topped £3 billion.Mr Streeting had initially struck a deal to end strikes by resident doctors during the first months of the Labour Government in 2024, although industrial action by medics resumed in 2025.

Before the April strike, Mr Streeting had offered a 4.9% increase in average basic pay from 2026 to 2027, which he claimed would have left resident doctors 35.2% better off than four years ago.

His proposal had also included an offer of 1,000 extra training places, although that was taken off the table because of increasing strike costs to the NHS.

Resident doctor members of the BMA have a mandate for industrial action until August.

The union is also balloting consultants and specialist, associate specialist and specialty (SAS) doctors, in a vote to close on July 6.