Doctors strike: Streeting floats student loan write-off in BMA meeting
Wes Streeting could offer to write off student loan debt for doctors to persuade the British Medical Association (BMA) to call off a planned strike.
The idea came up in an extended meeting between the health secretary and the medical union, just a week out from a five day walkout which could involve as many as 50,000 junior doctors – now known as resident doctors.
Student loan forgiveness is being offered on the condition that doctors work in the NHS for a minimum number of years.
The BMA is calling for a 29 per cent pay rise, while Streeting says he “cannot move” on headline pay.
Elsewhere, the idea of offsetting a headline pay rise with cuts to doctors’ pensions has been floated, to offer up “higher pay today” whilst limiting costs for the taxpayer.
Extra subsidies for exam costs have been suggested, alongside the prospect of fast-tracked career progression to get younger doctors organic pay-rises more quickly.
Breakthrough or stalemate?
Streeting described the meeting as “constructive”, adding that “we are working on areas where we can improve working lives for resident doctors”.
He said: “Strikes have a serious cost for patients, so I am appealing to the BMA to call them off and instead work together to improve their members’ working conditions and continue rebuilding the NHS.”
There is “a window of opportunity – albeit small – in which the government can put forward a proposal, strong enough for the strikes to be averted”, according to BMA resident doctors committee co-chairs Dr Melissa Ryan and Dr Ross Neiuwoudt.
They indicated that there may be openness to other deal-sweeteners outside of headline pay if those solutions “address the cost of living of resident doctors”.
However, they added: “We believe that pay remains the simplest and most effective way towards improving their working lives.”
“We remain willing to meet with Mr Streeting as many times as we can in the coming days to find an acceptable solution that delivers for doctors, patients, and the NHS.”
This time last year, junior doctors were offered a 22 per cent pay rise to avoid strikes – which included a backdated cash injection of more than 4 per cent from the 2023/24 tax year.
The prospect of wide-ranging doctors’ strikes pile pressure on the government, with Rachel Reeves’ fiscal headroom already razor thin.