NHS strikes next week will put lives at risk amid a wave of “superflu” cases, the government has said.
Resident doctor members of the British Medical Association (BMA) are to go on strike for five days.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood told Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips programme: “I think there is no doubt that the NHS strike is really putting lives at risk.”
The BMA is voting on a government proposal aimed at averting a strike.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has also stepped up pressure on the BMA ahead of the polls closing tomorrow (December 15), saying the strike would be the health service’s “Jenga knocking down the towers”.
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The BMA accused Streeting of “alarmism”, said his actions were “cruel and calculated” and described the government’s proposals as “terrible”.
So when will the strike take place?
When will the strike take place?
BMA member hospital doctors (formerly junior doctors) will go on strike for five days in England from 7am on Wednesday 17 December to 7am on Monday 22 December in response to the ongoing dispute over pay and jobs.
If action goes ahead, it will be the union’s 14th strike since March 2023.
Doctors have gone on strike more than a dozen times in recent years. (Pennsylvania)
When will we know if the strike continues?
After receiving the new proposals, the BMA said it would consult its members through an online survey asking them whether they thought the new deal would be enough to call off the strike.
Online voting will end on Monday (December 15), two days before the five-day strike begins.
How serious is a ‘superflu’ outbreak?
The UK is currently in the midst of a severe flu epidemic, with the latest data showing that the number of people hospitalized with flu in the UK has soared by 55% in a week.
“The flu wave is sweeping through our hospitals,” Streeting said, with an average of 2,660 flu patients hospitalized per day last week, up from 1,717 the week before.
UK influenza hospital admissions. (Pennsylvania)
This time last year, the number was 1,861 patients, compared with just 402 in 2023.
Some hospitals across the country have required staff, patients and visitors to wear masks to reduce the spread of the flu, while others have entered or exited critical status due to high numbers of people attending emergency rooms.
Part of the problem is that the dominant strains of influenza circulating this winter are different from those in previous years.
The UK’s Health and Safety Executive said the predominance of drifted H3N2 strains meant “lower natural immunity in the community”.
“The H3N2 influenza strain generally affects older people more severely than the H1N1 strain, leading to more hospitalizations and deaths, putting further pressure on our NHS this winter.”
Professor Meghana Pandit, NHS national medical director, warned that an “unprecedented superflu wave is leaving the NHS facing its worst situation for this time of year” with no peak in sight yet.
What does BMA offer?
The BMA said the government’s proposals included concessions “designed to address the ongoing shortage of residency training places in England”.
The government has pledged to introduce legislation to prioritize training places for UK medical graduates from next year, increase the number of professional training positions from 1,000 to 4,000 and cover exam costs.
The government insists further pay rises – the reason for the strike announced by the BMA earlier this month – are off the table after hospital doctors have received pay rises totaling almost 30% over the past three years.
The BMA said real wages had fallen by about 20% over the past 17 years.
Opinion polls show public support for the strike is low, with a new YouGov survey showing 58 per cent of respondents opposed it and 33 per cent in support.
