Senior doctors to ballot on new pay offer

The government has made a new pay offer to consultants (senior doctors), and the consultants’ union, the BMA, will ballot on it from mid-December to late July.

In February the Tories said no NHS worker would get more than 3.5% in 2023-4. In July they shifted to 6%, and said there would be no more talks.

After doctors struck, there were of course new talks. The BMA said the offer will bring more pay rises to doctors, varying from 0% to 12.8%, improve the Pay Review Body, and speed up pay progression.

BMA junior doctors, however, still face only the July offer of 6%. “Speciality and specialist” (SAS) doctors are balloting (until 11 December); junior doctors in Wales (until 18 December); and in Northern Ireland, 8 January to 19 February. The junior doctors’ leadership say: “We’ve written to our members in England about the consultant pay offer and where we are in our own negotiations with the Government”.