Wes Streeting has warned that strikes at Christmas could be “the Jenga piece” that forces the NHS to collapse.
The Health Secretary said a huge jump in flu cases has left the NHS facing a “challenge unlike any it has seen since the pandemic” and urged resident doctors to accept the government’s offer and end their actions.
“The whole NHS team is working around the clock to keep the show on the road. But it’s an incredibly precarious situation,” he wrote in The Times.
“Christmas strikes could be the Jenga piece that collapses the tower.
“That’s why I am appealing directly to resident doctors to accept the government’s offer.”
NHS figures published on Thursday showed flu cases at a record level for the time of year after jumping 55 per cent in a week to an average of 2,660 patients in hospital each day last week.
Mr Streeting warned the numbers could triple by the peak and described the scenes in hospital as “inexcusable”.
He said the British Medical Association (BMA) leadership calling off planned Christmas strikes would have “given the NHS certainty this week, when it is firefighting the flu epidemic”.
“I am appealing over their heads and directly to resident doctors,” he wrote in The Times.
“In this season of goodwill, I’m asking them to call off the Christmas strikes and choose a fresh start. Bring an end to the dispute and begin a new era of partnership.”
The Government has put forward an offer for @BMAResidents.
— The BMA (@TheBMA) December 10, 2025
We are sharing this for consideration by members.
The offer includes:
👉1000 specialty training jobs (repurposed LED posts) this year, with 3000 more repurposed jobs over the following 2 years
👉UK graduate…
The BMA said it will consult members by surveying them online on whether a new deal from the government is enough to call off walkouts next week.
The online poll will close on Monday, just two days before the five-day strike is set to start.
The union said the new offer includes new legislation to ensure homegrown doctors in training have priority for speciality training roles, an increase in speciality training posts over the next three years, with 1,000 of these to start in 2026, and funding mandatory examination and Royal College membership fees for resident doctors.
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