Pressure on NHS services in North Cumbria is set to ‘increase’ as junior doctors begin nine days of action over the festive period.

Accident & Emergency departments in north Cumbria are seeing a ‘significant increase’ in the numbers of people accessing services.

The A&E departments at the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle and West Cumberland Hospital are seeing up to two thirds more people than normal and pressure will increase with junior doctors on picket lines.

Junior doctors are taking strike action from 7am on Wednesday, December 20 to 7am Saturday, December 23 and from 7am on Wednesday, January 3 until 7am on Tuesday, January 9 as part of their long running dispute with the government over pay and working conditions.

A spokesperson for the BMA said: “We have been clear from the outset of these talks that we needed to move at pace and if we did not have a credible offer, we would be forced to call strikes.

“After five weeks of intense talks, the Government was unable to present a credible offer on pay by the deadline. Instead, we were offered an additional 3 per cent, unevenly spread across doctors’ grades, which would still amount to pay cuts for many doctors this year.

“A year after our dispute started, we are still too far from turning the tide on plummeting pay, morale, and retention of doctors.

“Rather than waste more time and money and have further disruption to patient care, the Health Secretary needs to make a credible offer now.”

NCIC has made plans to make sure as many services as possible are maintained during the industrial action but has urged people to use the right service for their needs.

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Dr Adrian Clements, executive medical director at NCIC said: “We are putting plans in place to make sure that services can continue safely during the industrial action.

“We will need to stand down some planned appointments and procedures, but we will contact anyone who is affected by this directly.

“It is very important that you attend any appointment you have unless we contact you to say otherwise.”