The BMA say that they ‘reserve the right’ to organise more strike dates as talks between senior doctors and the government continue.
Strike action by both senior and junior doctors has impacted services at the Cumberland Infirmary and the West Cumberland Hospital.
The BMA’s consultants committee has previously called on the Government to present a credible pay offer for consultants in England, and to commit to “meaningful reform” of the pay review process, in order to avoid strikes by senior doctors after members voted yes to industrial action.
Consultants joined junior doctors on the picket lines in an unprecedented piece of industrial action earlier this year and have warned that more strikes are possible unless progress is made.
Almost 2,000 appointments and operations were cancelled by NCIC because of NHS strike action over the last year, new figures show.
It comes as the number of inpatient and outpatient appointments and operations cancelled due to strikes across England surpassed 1 million following the first co-ordinated strike by junior doctors and consultants in history earlier last month.
Dr Vishal Sharma, BMA consultants committee chair, said: “We gave the Government a month to get back around the table. Whilst it’s been incredibly frustrating that the Government didn’t respond until a few days before the deadline, we have now commenced talks.
“These discussions have been constructive and are ongoing. Therefore, given our willingness to resolve this dispute we are not announcing further strike dates right now – but reserve the right to do so if necessary.
““Neither the Government nor senior doctors themselves want consultants to be on strike – we’d both much rather we were in hospitals seeing patients.
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“To prevent further strikes we need the Government to commit to fix pay now and for the future, only then can we not only resolve this dispute, but retain the NHS’s most expert clinicians at a time they’re needed most.”
Steve Barclay, the health secretary, has ruled out a headline pay rise but is said to be open to increases in other parts of consultants’ contracts.
This could potentially include clinical impact awards, payments worth up to £40,000 a year designed to recognise “exceptional performance”
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