Junior doctors strike: East Midlands doctors join national walk-out

A large picket line was formed outside Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre

Junior doctors in the East Midlands are joining colleagues from across the country in strike action.

Thousands of medics started a three-day strike on Monday which is set to be the biggest by doctors in the history of the NHS.

They are asking for a 35% pay rise, which union British Medical Association (BMA) says makes "perfect sense".

However Health Secretary Steve Barclay says the union's demands are "completely unaffordable".

Junior doctors are asking for a 35% pay rise

Edward Finn, an anaesthetist registrar with Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, said that there was a consistent theme of junior doctors feeling undervalued.

He said he and his wife - who work in the same role in hospitals across Nottingham - are having to make sacrifices due to real-term pay cuts.

"If you look at the overall cost of living, wages that haven't kept up with that, and we don't go out for meals, we don't do anything," he said.

"My wife and I are both part-time - we couldn't afford to be full time with the cost of childcare - but we still have to do the occasional extra shift on top of our contracted hours to keep up with things like the electricity bill.

"When you're talking about somebody who's been a doctor for 12 years, it's quite sad really, isn't it?

"You can't have a thriving workforce in this country, you can't have growth in this country unless you have good health."

Dr Becky Acres, a registrar at Leicester Royal Infirmary, said she would not be striking if she had "any other choice"

Leicester Royal Infirmary's Dr Becky Acres, chair of the BMA's East Midlands regional council, said: "Junior doctors have had their pay cut by 26.1% since 2008.

"The secondary factors are that pay cuts have made it very very difficult to retain colleagues.

"A huge number of my colleagues are currently practising in Australia or New Zealand - we cannot continue to lose colleagues at this rate.

"If I had any other choice but striking then I would be taking it."

Analysis

By Rob Sissons, BBC East Midlands health correspondent

Junior doctors from across the country have started a three-day strike

Contingency planning for this strike has been tough for NHS managers, as it is over a continuous 72 hours. Maintaining emergency cover is the number one priority with consultants stepping into the role of junior doctors.

In some cases for "acting down" consultants will get enhanced payments - something promoted by the British Medical Association. This is the case for certain night cover in Nottingham.

The rates are negotiated locally and hospitals are not inclined to reveal them.

On the Leicester picket line on Monday, it was union reps doing media duties as they hope to concentrate on their key messages.

The stakes are high for all sides in this dispute. The government says the action is disappointing, but they may be disappointed again if the defiant mood in Leicester is anything to go by.

Hospitals are caught in the middle of this fight. Leicester in particular has a large backlog of surgery and an A&E under strain, so the strike is a logistical headache for managers who would prefer to concentrate on the pressures seen week in, week out.

In a statement, Health Secretary Steve Barclay said: "It is incredibly disappointing the British Medical Association (BMA) has declined my offer to enter formal pay negotiations on the condition strikes are paused."

Mr Barclay also said he wanted to come to "a fair settlement" which recognised the crucial role of junior doctors and the wider economic pressures facing the UK.

The government has been working with NHS England on contingency plans to "help protect patient safety during strikes", he added.