Health Secretary Wes Streeting has accused the British Medical Association of "juvenile delinquency" as resident doctors plan a five-day strike from December 17 to 22. The walkout, timed just before Christmas, has sparked the strongest criticism yet from the government over ongoing industrial action in the NHS.
Streeting told Sky News on Wednesday the strike was "irresponsible" given current NHS pressures. «Whether it's the rhetoric and the behaviour of the BMA around general practice, whether it is yet another round of unnecessary strike action being proposed by resident doctors who've had a 28.9% pay rise, we've seen an outbreak in the British Medical Association of juvenile delinquency,» he said.
The timing has heightened concerns. Speaking on BBC Breakfast, Streeting warned: «Just in the last week, we've seen 999 call volumes and A&E demand of a kind we normally only ever see on New Year's Eve, which is the busiest night of the year for the NHS. So the NHS is running hot at the moment, and industrial action is the last thing that patients, or indeed other NHS staff, need.»
Public opposition grows
A new YouGov poll shows 53 percent of Britons now oppose the strikes, with 38 percent supporting them. This marks the highest level of opposition YouGov has recorded to date for resident doctor strikes.
The upcoming action will be the 14th strike by resident doctors since March 2023. A previous walkout in November ran from the 14th to 19th, with a summer strike estimated to have cost the health service £300 million.
Streeting warns of "different magnitude of risk"
The Health Secretary described the pre-Christmas timing as posing a «different order of magnitude of risk» compared to previous strikes. He told Sky News: «However, striking just before Christmas in the way that's proposed is a different order of magnitude of risk, which is why I think it is particularly irresponsible and it's unnecessary.»
When asked on LBC radio about potential threats to life, Streeting said: «I don't want to sound catastrophic about it, but that's my fear always.» He acknowledged that while the NHS maintained 95 percent of planned care during previous strikes, the upcoming action presents greater challenges.
«So we are having to look now, in advance of that strike action, at what measures we will put in place to protect patients,» Streeting told BBC Breakfast. «But what I can't do, and what I won't do, is sit here and pretend to people watching that there wouldn't be disruption, that there wouldn't be greater risk, that there wouldn't be patients receiving a standard of care that I do not think is acceptable.»
Dispute over online GP access
Streeting also criticized the BMA's opposition to expanded online booking for GP appointments, despite widespread adoption. He told Sky News: «You would think from the BMA that I've had to drag GPs kicking and screaming to provide something that most services now provide, which is online access in the 21st century. In fact, it's been the opposite. GPs have responded. They're up for it. 98.7 per cent of practices are now delivering online access.»
Patient satisfaction with GP access has risen from 60 percent when Labour took office to 75 percent today, according to Streeting. Yet he accused the BMA of acting like «moaning minnies when their members are doing a really good job working with the government to improve patient care and experience.»
Negotiations continue
Streeting told LBC radio that officials have been engaging with the BMA since the last round of strikes. «I was disappointed and surprised that they announced action this week,» he said. The Health Secretary indicated that while the government cannot afford further pay increases this year, he hopes to reach «a sensible agreement that works for everyone.»
Dr Jack Fletcher, chairman of the BMA's resident doctors committee, said: «With the government failing to put forward a credible plan to fix the jobs crisis for resident doctors at the same time as pushing a real terms pay cut for them, we have no choice but to announce more strike dates. However, these do not need to go ahead. Gradually raising pay over a few years and some common-sense fixes to the job security of our doctors are well within the reach of this government.»
Resident doctors are demanding a further 26 percent pay increase over the next few years to offset what they describe as pay erosion since 2008.
Streeting emphasized the strike could still be averted: «It's not too late to avert that strike action.»
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
