NHS strike: Consultants reject government pay offer as strike action set to continue

The long-running strike action by senior doctors in England may continue after they rejected a pay offer from the government. The NHS consultants called off their walkout in November last year after receiving the offer of a 4.95% pay rise on top of the annual 6% increase.

The British Medical Association said its members rejected the offer by 51.1% after a month of voting, but it said it would give the Government an opportunity to improve it to a point that may be acceptable to members.

Dr Vishal Sharma, who chairs the BMA consultants committee, said: “The vote has shown that consultants do not feel the current offer goes far enough to end the current dispute and offer a long-term solution to the recruitment and retention crisis for senior doctors.

“It backs up conversations we’ve had with colleagues in recent weeks, who felt the changes were insufficient and did not give them confidence that pay erosion would be addressed over the coming years. In addition, they were concerned about the fairness of the offer and how it impacted different groups of doctors.

“There were also clear concerns about changes to professional development time, and time dedicated to teaching and research. However, with the result so close, the consultants committee is giving the Government a chance to improve the offer. In the coming days we will be further engaging with consultants, and seeking talks with Government to explore whether the concerns expressed by our members during the referendum process can be addressed.”

Medics from the Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association (HCSA) rejected the offer earlier this month. The NHS in England has been beset by strike action for more than a year. Walk outs by various staff groups including doctors, nurses, paramedics and physiotherapists have led to more than 1.3 million appointments, procedures and operations being rescheduled.

Consultants have staged four rounds of strike action in the current dispute, including an unprecedented joint walk out with junior colleagues. Junior doctors in England are currently being balloted to see if they want to continue strike action.