NHS braces for five-day junior-doctor strike as flu surge tests services

A five-day walkout by resident doctors will begin at 7 a.m. tomorrow as the NHS battles one of its worst flu seasons on record. The strike, organized by the British Medical Association, follows a vote in which 83% of members backed industrial action to proceed, with 17% opposed. Health leaders say the action will pose risks to patients in the run-up to Christmas, at a time when hospitals have declared critical incidents and ambulances have been diverted to other A&Es. The Health Secretary Wes Streeting accused medics of timing the walkout at the moment of "maximum danger," arguing the timing endangers public safety.

The government published a revised offer last Wednesday, proposing emergency legislation to prioritise UK medical graduates for specialty training and to increase specialty training posts from 1,000 to 4,000 over the next three years. It would bring forward 1,000 of those posts to start in 2026 and would fund mandatory Royal College examination and membership fees for resident doctors, but it provides no extra money for a further pay rise. Streeting and other ministers argued that the union's demand for a 26% pay rise is excessive given salaries have already risen by about 28.9% over the past three years. The government characterized the vote as a rejection of a reasonable offer, while the BMA said the proposal did not meet doctors' needs.

Daniel Elkeles, chief executive of NHS Providers, called the vote a "bitter pill" that will inevitably result in harm to patients and damage to the NHS. Rory Deighton, director of acute and community care for the NHS Confederation, said the strikes are "hugely disruptive" and come at a time of rapidly rising flu levels that place extra strain on hospitals. He urged the BMA to reconsider, noting that the strikes are disproportionate given resident doctors' pay increases so far. He warned that walking out during a record flu surge could undermine patient safety and urged a pause to negotiations.

Dr Jack Fletcher, chair of the BMA's resident doctors committee, said the membership had "considered the Government's offer" and that the resounding response should signal to the Health Secretary that the opportunity to end the dispute was squandered. He added that tens of thousands of frontline doctors have stood together to say "no" to what is described as too little, too late.

The dispute unfolds as the NHS contends with a record super-flu season that has forced hospitals to declare critical incidents and re-route ambulances away from overwhelmed A&Es. Health chiefs have warned that strikes during a peak of influenza could heighten risks for vulnerable patients. The government has said it remains open to talks while pressing measures to mitigate harm to care, and NHS bodies stress the importance of maintaining minimum services to protect patient safety. The five-day walkout is set to disrupt routine care across hospitals and regional trusts, with emergency departments and scheduled procedures likely to experience delays during the period.

As the strike begins, officials say patient safety remains the central concern and that hospitals have contingency plans in place to preserve essential services. Ministers and health leaders have urged both sides to redouble efforts toward a negotiated settlement that could avert disruption during one of the NHS's most challenging winters in memory.