Exasperated NHS leaders have issued a desperate plea for independent mediation to resolve the bitter pay dispute with junior doctors, as thousands of medics in England begin a five-day walkout.
Health Service Pleads for Mediated Solution
The NHS Confederation, representing health service bosses, has urged Health Secretary Wes Streeting and the British Medical Association (BMA) to agree to arbitration. They warn that patients are becoming "collateral damage" in a conflict that has dragged on for 33 months.
Matthew Taylor, the confederation's chief executive, stated that the current standoff is detrimental to all, but the most severe repercussions are felt by patients. "Some common ground is urgently needed, which independent mediation could support," he said.
Strike Action Coincides with NHS Winter Pressure
Thousands of resident doctors – formerly known as junior doctors – began their latest strike at 7am on Wednesday, 18 December. This marks their 14th round of industrial action since 2023 and is scheduled to last until 7am on Monday, 22 December.
The timing has been condemned by Sir Jim Mackey, head of NHS England, who labelled the action as "cruel" and "calculated", aimed at "causing mayhem" during one of the service's toughest weeks. Hospitals have been forced to cancel tens of thousands of appointments and procedures to cope.
Deadlock Over Pay and Training Places
Last-ditch talks between Streeting and the BMA on Tuesday were described as "constructive" but failed to produce a breakthrough. The core issues remain pay and the expansion of training posts.
The BMA's resident doctors committee is seeking a 26% pay rise over three years, a demand the Health Secretary has repeatedly called unaffordable. They also want a much greater expansion of training places than the government's offer of increasing numbers from 1,000 to 4,000.
Dr Jack Fletcher, chair of the BMA's resident doctors committee, warned that without a credible offer, the cycle of strikes could continue well into the new year. "If the government keeps up the pattern of denial, harsh words and rushed half-measures, then we are going to be stuck in the cycle of strikes well into the new year," he said.
The doctors' current legal mandate to strike expires on 6 January, but the BMA is already planning to reballot its 55,000 members in England to renew it.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson confirmed that while every effort was made to avert the strikes, no agreement was reached. The BMA did not respond to a request for comment on the call for mediation.
