The Health Secretary said there had been an outbreak of ‘juvenile delinquency’ at the doctors’ union.
The Health Secretary has agreed he has “had it” with the British Medical Association (BMA) as doctors prepare to go on strike just before Christmas.
Wes Streeting also said there had been an outbreak of “juvenile delinquency” at the doctors’ union.
Resident doctors in England will strike for five days from 7am on December 17 until 7am on December 22 as they continue their fight with the Government over training and pay.
It follows similar strike action by resident doctors, formerly called junior doctors, between November 14 and November 19, and other previous strikes.
Mr Streeting was asked on Sky News on Wednesday if he had “had it” with doctors’ unions.
He replied: “With the BMA, certainly.
“I mean, whether it’s the rhetoric and the behaviour of the BMA around general practice, whether it is yet another round of unnecessary strike action being proposed by resident doctors who’ve had a 28.9% pay rise, we’ve seen an outbreak in the British Medical Association of juvenile delinquency, and it is irresponsible, because we know that the NHS is under real pressure.”
He said that “since we came to office, there are real signs of green shoots of recovery, whether that’s on the waiting list, whether that’s on patient satisfaction with general practice, whether that’s the investment we’re putting into urgent emergency care – we could be leaning into this together.
“Instead, the BMA is not only holding back the NHS’s recovery and inflicting damage on patients, it’s also self-defeating for their members who are having to work in these conditions.”
Asked about the impact of forthcoming strikes, he said that in the last round of strike action, the NHS managed to maintain 95% of planned care.
“However, striking just before Christmas in the way that’s proposed is a different order of magnitude of risk, which is why I think it is particularly irresponsible and it’s unnecessary,” he said.
Clinical leaders were “fearful” of what could happen, he said, adding: “It’s not too late to avert that strike action.”
On BBC Breakfast, Mr Streeting said strike action was “irresponsible and high risk given the pressures we’re seeing in the NHS”.
He added: “Just in the last week, we’ve seen 999 call volumes and A&E demand of a kind we normally only ever see on New Year’s Eve, which is the busiest night of the year for the NHS.
“So the NHS is running hot at the moment, and industrial action is the last thing that patients, or indeed other NHS staff, need.”
Mr Streeting described the forthcoming strike action as being of a “different order of risk and challenge” because it does come so close to Christmas.
“So we are having to look now, in advance of that strike action, at what measures we will put in place to protect patients.
“But what I can’t do, and what I won’t do, is sit here and pretend to people watching that there wouldn’t be disruption, that there wouldn’t be greater risk, that there wouldn’t be patients receiving a standard of care that I do not think is acceptable.”
On whether a resolution was possible, Mr Streeting said the last letter from the BMA says “they want to keep open the option of calling off these strikes”.
The Health Secretary added: “So let’s see what we can do in the coming days, to see if we can reach an agreement. We can’t afford to go further on pay this year. We can’t afford to do that.
“There are lots of things where we agree and we want to make progress. So let’s see if we can come to a sensible agreement that works for everyone.”
Speaking on LBC radio, Mr Streeting said the next round of industrial action posed “significant risk” to patients.
He said there has not been a “complete breakdown” of talks, adding: “Officials have been engaging with the BMA since the last round of strikes, which is why I was disappointed and surprised that they announced action this week.
“Proud though I am of the way that NHS leaders and frontline staff got through previous strike action … I’ve got to be honest, the next round of strike action planned is a different order of magnitude when it comes to the challenge and the risk, because of the time of year, the pressures on the NHS, and that’s why I think this is particularly irresponsible.
“But I will do my best to try and see off strike action at the same time as preparing to get us through it.”
Asked if there was a threat to life with this action, he said: “I don’t want to sound catastrophic about it, but that’s my fear always.”
