Streeting ‘wants to end dispute with resident doctors’ with talks in new year

Health Secretary Wes Streeting has said he wants to end the dispute with resident doctors, adding “we will get around the table with them again in the new year”.

Resident doctors in England have entered the second day of strike action due to a bitter dispute with the Government over jobs and pay.

It comes as new figures from the NHS show that the number of people in hospital in England with flu continues to rise and remains at a record level for this time of year, though the rate of growth has slowed.

Mr Streeting said the British Medical Association is “demanding an extra 26% on top of what we’ve already given” but “that is not a figure that we can afford”.

During a visit to an ambulance station in London, he said: “I think where we are is in a position where the BMA is actually very supportive of lots of things we want to do on jobs, but on pay, they are demanding an extra 26% on top of what we’ve already given. That is not a figure that we can afford but we will get around the table with them again in the new year.

“I do want to end this dispute. I don’t want us to be locked in a bitter dispute, and I’m never going to shut the door to talks, and I will do my best to see if we can start 2026 off on a better foot.

“But there does need to be a closing of the gap between the BMA’s expectations and… not just the Government’s but the public’s ability to afford what they’re asking for.”

He said the BMA has been “very clear that they reject Acas’s offer to host talks”, adding: “I’ve never shut the door to the BMA, not like my Conservative predecessors, who were unprepared to meet.

“So give people a bit of a chance after this round of strikes is over, to take stock, decompress, come back in the first week of January and get around the table again and see if we can start 2026 off on a better foot with resident doctors.”

Mr Streeting also said he is not sure if the flu season has peaked, and he is “very worried about what the coming weeks will look like because that’s often when you see the knock-on consequences” after strikes.

Asked if the flu season is a bad one, or if it has come earlier than usual, he said: “This has been a very challenging season for us on flu, partly because it’s come early, partly because we’ve had a new strain that’s provided real challenges to the health service.

“We’re not yet sure if it’s peaked. It’s too early to make a call on that. And what we do know is that that flu, combined with usual winter pressures, combined with strikes, are making this an extremely challenging winter for the NHS. And that’s not just over these five days of strike action.

“I’m very worried about what the coming weeks will look like, because that’s often when you see the knock-on consequences following strike action, in terms of the impact, the disruption.

“So my focus right now is to get the NHS through these five days of strike action, to help the service recover and get through the coming weeks, and to make sure we start 2026 putting our foot down on the accelerator on that road to recovery for the NHS.”

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said that flu levels are “now starting to stabilise”.

An average of 3,140 flu patients were in hospital each day last week, up 18% from 2,660 the previous week.

At this point last year, the number stood at 2,629 patients while in 2023 it was just 648.

NHS England said there are “welcome signs” that the rise in flu cases in hospitals is slowing in some parts of the country – pointing out a fall in the North West over the past week.

The figures show the number of flu patients in hospital in north-west England has fallen week on week, but has risen in all other regions.

An average of 386 patients with flu were in hospital in the North West last week, down 4% from 403 the previous week.

The biggest percentage increases were in south-west England (up 40% from 139 to 195) and eastern England (up 39% from 207 to 287).

In south-east England flu patients were up 33% (from 202 to 269); in north-east England and Yorkshire they were up 21% (from 673 to 813); in London they rose 18% (from 408 to 484); and in the Midlands they increased by 13% (from 627 to 706).

Some 128 flu patients were in critical care beds across England last week, up from 106 the previous week and slightly higher than the number at this point last year (125).

Separately, an average of 427 hospital beds were filled each day last week by patients with diarrhoea and vomiting or norovirus-like symptoms, up 21% from 354 the previous week.

Professor Meghana Pandit, NHS England’s national medical director, said: “While some parts of the country will be breathing a sigh of relief with flu cases not rising as quickly as feared, we are nowhere near out of the woods yet.

“Combined with the impact of strikes, a stream of winter viruses means many hospitals will be on high alert in the days ahead.

“But it remains vital that people continue to come forward for NHS care as normal.”

Officials have also reminded people to get their flu jab to protect themselves going into the new year.

Hospital admission rates for flu in England look to have levelled off, according to data from the UKHSA.

There were 10.3 admissions per 100,000 people last week, broadly unchanged from 10.2 per 100,000 the previous week.

The rate had previously been on a steady upwards trend since early November.

Admissions remain highest among people over the age of 85.

Dr Alex Allen, consultant epidemiologist at the UKHSA, said: “With Christmas just around the corner, it’s reassuring to see that flu levels are now starting to stabilise, but flu is notoriously unpredictable and can bounce back and peak a second time in the new year and so we’re urging people to continue taking sensible steps over the festive period to help stop the spread.”

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said that the resident doctor strikes were “dangerous and utterly irresponsible”.

The BMA and the Government have been urged by healthcare leaders to enter external mediation in a bid to end the dispute.

Conciliation service Acas said that it is “well prepared and ready to help with the dispute”.

It is the 14th round of strikes by resident doctors in England, formerly known as junior doctors, since 2023.