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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Karen McVeigh

Thursday briefing: How pay erosion and job shortages pushed doctors to strike again amid winter flu surge

NHS Wes Streeting United States Jack Fletcher Sir Keir Starmer BMA United Kingdom
Doctors In The UK Go On Strike For Five Days Over NHS Pay, London, United Kingdom - 17 Dec 2025
The 14th strike since 2023 begins.
 Photograph: Vernon Yuen/Nexpher/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

Good morning. The “moment of crisis” for the NHS that led Keir Starmer to warn resident doctors not to strike this week is already upon us as a winter flu epidemic sweeps the country, having started weeks earlier than usual.

Yet, despite the warnings, Tuesday’s last ditch talks between the government and the British Medical Association, representing 55,000 of 70,000 resident doctors in England, failed to reach agreement over pay and jobs.

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