The Daily Telegraph

The Telegraph's editorial comment says the strike "goes to the very heart of the debate over the future of the NHS". It argues the walkout went ahead because last-ditch talks collapsed over doctors' Saturday pay - not because of safety fears over the government's new contract. It argues that shows the dispute is now about "funding, not about safety".

Here is the full letter , externalto the BMA from Sir David Dalton, the hospital chief executive brought in by ministers last month to broker a deal in the dispute. In it, he says the last offer to the union was final and that if rejected it would mean there was "no realistic prospect of a negotiated agreement" .

Junior doctors' leaders have rejected a "final take-it-or-leave-it" offer made by government to settle the bitter contract dispute in England, writes the BBC's health correspondent Nick Triggle. The offer included a concession on Saturday pay, but the British Medical Association said it was not enough. The development is expected to lead ministers to announce that they are going to impose a contract on doctors. Read the full story here.

Deana Murphy, from London, tells the BBC her double mastectomy was cancelled this week, an operation she has been waiting almost a year for.

"It's a massive surgery and I know that I could get ill at any time. I think it's important that the public know about what an impact it has when such a big operation is cancelled.

"I am told over and over again urgent cases have to go in front of me. I was told yesterday that the surgery booked for the 17 February has now been cancelled AGAIN. This has been blamed on the doctors' strikes ricocheting into the system. I am devastated my surgery has been cancelled."

Image source, Paola Rodriguez

Image source, Paola Rodriguez

Junior doctors from Colchester General Hospital are sending in pictures from their pickets to BBC News.

At Royal Derby Hospital in the East Midlands, 376 outpatient appointments were cancelled today and 37 patients did not get the operations they were waiting for. 

Dr Sam Thacker - one of the junior doctors striking in the city - says the action was not intended to cause damage, rather to raise awareness.

"If we, as doctors, did not stand up for what we believe in, then we are doing a disservice to the public," he tells BBC News.

It would be a catastrophe if the government were to impose the current contract, he adds.

The BBC understands the government is set to announce a review of junior doctors' training in England, covering areas outside of the contract negotiations. This will mark a recognition of concerns about how training is organised, says BBC health editor Hugh Pym.

It follows a recommendation by the government's main negotiator, Sir David Dalton, in a letter published last week that " the government, the Academy of Royal Colleges, Health Education England and NHS Employers commission a review of the long-standing concerns with recommendations to all parties for action which can improve the welfare and morale of trainees".

A junior doctor on strike, and a consultant who  is covering colleagues taking industrial action, tell Radio 4's PM about life at the picket line and work on the ward.

The government is thought to be inching closer to imposing a contract on junior doctors. Sir David Dalton, the hospital boss brought in to broker a deal last month, met with the British Medical Association yesterday but the meeting finished with little prospect of a deal being possible and there are now suggestions an announcement on imposition could come as early as this week.

Northern Ireland's Health Minister Simon Hamilton said: "Our junior doctors deserve a contract which is fair to them and which recognises the key role they play. 

"Strike action across the water is regrettable. I have made clear before that an imposed contract would be the worst possible outcome. 

"I value the work of our junior doctors in Northern Ireland too much to threaten them with the enforcement of a new contract, but their representatives too must ensure every opportunity is taken to agree the final outstanding issues to replace the existing contract everyone has agreed is not fit for purpose."

In Cambridge protesters and the public are being encouraged to sign a long scroll to pledge their support against the contract.

Gaby Bainbridge from Leeds has had her operation postponed.

She told the BBC: "I have been waiting for surgery for over three months having suffered a pelvic condition for over a year.

"My pelvic dysfunction has been getting significantly worse in the last few months, now at the point where I am unable to walk without crutches, I am unable to carry out day to day tasks, I am unable to work and unable to drive.

"All of this is starting to have an effect on my mental health as although I live with my partner, he works, so the vast majority of the day I am stuck in the house on my own, as my family live a couple of hours away.

"I called my consultant's secretary yesterday who informed me that my operation will not go ahead until March but they are unable to give me a date at this time."

NHS England has issued an update on the industrial action by junior doctors that is taking place today.

Trusts have reported that 43% of junior doctors - out of a possible 26,000 working on a typical day - have reported for duty on the day shift today. 

NHS England confirmed that the 43% figure included doctors who had never intended to strike, such as those working in emergency care.

Combining junior doctors, other doctors and consultants, the data shows 72% of the total trust workforce are in work today. 

Over the weekend, NHS England estimated the following operations have been cancelled as a result of the industrial action: 

- 1,150 - inpatient ops including 1,036 cancelled on the day they were supposed to take place

- 1,734 day case ops including 1,634 on the day of action

Dr Anne Rainsberry, national incident director for NHS England, said: "It is deeply regrettable that this strike has disrupted care for thousands of patients at the most pressurised time of year and we apologise to anyone affected. 

"It's a tough day but the NHS is pulling out all the stops, with senior doctors and nurses often stepping in to provide cover." 

"We are actively monitoring the situation across the country and the impact of the action is broadly in line with what we were expecting." 

NHS trusts are now working hard to reschedule cancelled tests, appointments and operations as soon as is possible, she added.

Johann Malawana, chairman of the BMA's junior doctor committee, has tweeted this video of the NHS "Sing to Survive" choir giving a performance.