Streeting says BMA ‘will lose a war’ as NHS braces for strikes
Signalling that services will withstand further disruption, Wes Streeting said the NHS is ready for a prolonged dispute with the British Medical Association after a five-day stoppage ended between last Friday and Wednesday morning, wrote in a Guardian opinion piece that Labour will not meet a 29% pay demand, and pointed to fresh talks planned next week.
Framing his offer as a route to “win the peace”, the health secretary urged the BMA to pursue a deal addressing non-pay frustrations, while accepting two conditions: no more strike calls during negotiations and recognition that other NHS staff also require decent increases, not only medics.
The latest walkout by thousands of resident doctors disrupted care, including cancer services, and Streeting asked the union to “drop this unnecessary and unreasonable rush to strike action” and to accept the government’s responsibility to all NHS staff and patients. He accused the BMA of “damage” through a “reckless” long stoppage and of seeking to undermine efforts to cut the 7.4m-strong backlog which Labour has pledged to eradicate by 2029.
Prospects for a breakthrough remain slim: a BMA spokesperson reiterated that “this is still primarily a pay dispute” and called for “a credible offer on a path to pay restoration”, arguing that the real-terms value of salaries since 2008 has been eroded despite a 22% uplift over the last two years; co-chairs Dr Ross Nieuwoudt and Dr Melissa Ryan said Streeting must improve the 5.4% award for 2025-26 and noted this week’s action was the 12th since 2023, adding it could be the last if a “credible offer” emerges.
Streeting contrasted the BMA’s 29% demand with other health unions, noting Royal College of Nursing and Unison members received 3.6% and are unhappy but not pursuing the same “rush” to industrial action; the RCN will on Thursday publish the outcome of an indicative vote in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, while hospital leaders have told the BMA to accept that resident doctors will not force a bigger award this year, a stance echoed by Rory Deighton of the NHS Confederation, who said talks must respect government red lines so the NHS can live within its means.
The figures cited are 29%, five days, last Friday to Wednesday morning, 22% over the last two years, 2008, 5.4% for 2025-26, the 12th since 2023, 7.4m with a 2029 pledge, and 3.6%.
Sourcing rests on Streeting’s Guardian article and statements from the BMA and the NHS Confederation; no polling, dataset or formal study is cited.
