The Government has made an offer to junior doctors in England with a view to ending the long-running dispute over pay, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has confirmed.
She told the House of Commons on Tuesday that the offer is being recommended by the British Medical Association (BMA) to its members.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting described the formal negotiations with medics, which started only days ago, as “tough” but said the offer was “fair”.
Junior doctors will also be referred to by their chosen title of resident doctors from September.
If accepted, the deal will see junior doctors’ pay rise by between 3.71% and 5.05% – averaging 4.05% – on top of their existing pay award for 2023/24. This will be backdated to April 2023.
Each part of the pay scale will also be uplifted by 6%, plus £1,000, as recommended by the Review Body on Doctors’ and Dentists’ Remuneration (DDRB), with an effective date of April 1 2024.
Both rises mean a doctor starting foundation training in the NHS will see base pay increase to £36,600, up from about £32,400.
A full-time doctor entering specialty training will have basic pay rise to £49,900 from about £43,900.
Ms Reeves said: “The last government presided over the worst set of strikes in a generation.
“This caused chaos and misery for the British public, and it wreaked havoc on the public finances.
“Industrial action in the NHS alone cost the taxpayer £1.7 billion pounds last year.
“That is why I am pleased to announce today that the government has agreed an offer to the junior doctors which the BMA are recommending to their members.”
Mr Streeting added: “I am delighted that we have agreed an offer that finally paves the way to ending industrial action which has caused untold misery to patients and staff.
“Everyone agrees we can’t have more disruption, more cancelled appointments, which is why my priority from day one has been to end this dispute.
“This has been a tough negotiation, but we have worked rapidly to reach a fair offer. I have been honest about the terrible economic inheritance left for this government, while the Junior Doctors Committee has been clear that nothing less than the offer on the table will bring these strikes to an end.
“This is a fair offer. Fair to junior doctors, fair to patients and fair to the NHS. It also represents an opportunity to truly reset relationships so we can begin working together to bring waiting lists down and fix the broken NHS.”
The Government will also ask the DDRB to consider the overall reward package and career progression for junior doctors as part of its recommendations for 2025/26.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) will look at reforming the frequency of rotations among staff, as well as reviewing training numbers.
DHSC will also refer to junior doctors by their chosen title of resident doctors from September.
Junior doctors in England have taken industrial action 11 times in the past 20 months.
Their last strike – which took place from June 27 to July 2, just days before the General Election – affected 61,989 appointments, procedures and operations, according to NHS England.
Industrial action by a number of different NHS staff groups since December 2022 has led to the postponement of 1.5 million appointments, procedures and operations at an estimated cost to the NHS of more than £3 billion.
Ms Reeves paid tribute Mr Streeting, adding: “His leadership on this issue has paved the way to ending a dispute which has caused waiting lists to spiral, operations to be delayed, and agony for patients to be prolonged.
“Today marks the start of the new relationship between the Government and staff working in our National Health Service and the whole country will welcome that.”
Reacting to the announcement, Saffron Cordery, deputy chief executive at NHS Providers, said: “If junior doctors vote to accept the Government’s offer, resolving the long-running dispute and ending strikes, it will be great news for patients who’ve suffered months of disruption to operations, scans and appointments.
“An above-inflation pay award for most NHS workers is welcome too and will help to tackle severe staff shortages and to recruit and keep the people we need.
“We are yet to see the detail of this announcement, though, and the government must work to ensure that the cost of meeting any above-inflation pay awards is not passed on to frontline services.”
