Resident Doctors: Industrial Action

Peter Prinsley Excerpts

Thursday 26th March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Wes Streeting]

I thank the shadow Secretary of State for his response and questions. Beneath some of the criticism of the Government was a consistent message about the unreasonable and unnecessary position of the BMA, but let me address his criticism none the less.

The shadow Secretary of State accused me of “boasting” yesterday about the progress this Government are making on the NHS. For once, I cannot say we are following the pattern of our predecessors, because of course, they did not make any progress. From the moment they entered government, we saw the NHS begin to slide in the worst direction, to the extent that we went into a modern health emergency—the pandemic—woefully underprepared, leaving our country more damaged as a result. I am proud of the progress we are making. We know that what we have seen in terms of results and patient satisfaction are grounds for optimism, not cause for complacency. What we are trying to do as a Government is absolutely essential for the country, to give it back an NHS that is there for people where they need it, when they need it. That is why the BMA’s position is both disappointing and self-defeating for all of us.

The shadow Secretary of State talked about the approach I took in opposition. There is a difference between the approach that this Government have taken and the approach of our Conservative predecessors. We have always been prepared to get around the table; we never close the door. As I said from the other side of the House, the power to end strikes does sit with the Government when they are willing to compromise, willing to negotiate and willing to treat the workforce with respect. That is what this Government have done, in contrast to our Conservative predecessors, which is why it is so disappointing that with a deal available—a good deal—the BMA is turning away.

The BMA should reflect not just on the contrast with the past, but on the contrast with the future. There is no more pro-NHS, pro-doctor Health Secretary or Government waiting in the wings. I am not even sure that the alternative is a Conservative Health Secretary; that person may well come from Reform UK—the party whose Members occasionally turn up and sit in the corner, when they can be bothered and when they are not flouncing out in a hissy fit. Catch them on a good day and Reform Members may even say the quiet bit out loud: they do not believe in the NHS. They do not believe in it as a public service free at the point of use, and they are certainly not going to treat the BMA or resident doctors with more respect or generosity than a Labour Government. I think the BMA needs to reflect on that.

The shadow Secretary of State asked about affordability. One of the great things about the deal that we agreed is that it is affordable because it involves productivity gains—not just the productivity gains that we have already achieved in the NHS, the target being 2% and the reality that we have achieved 2.7%, but the productivity gains built into the pay structure reform.

The shadow Secretary of State asked about the jobs. I will be honest, and I am sure NHS chief executives will want to say more about this. The fact is that I and Jim Mackey have had to do a considerable degree of persuading and arm-twisting to persuade NHS trusts to create additional specialty training places, because they have not been convinced of their necessity or utility. Part of their reservation has been about the conduct of resident doctors and the BMA. I have had a hard job to do to sell that. Those jobs will not materialise if the BMA rejects this deal, I am afraid. There is a not a “something for nothing” culture here.

I say to the crab people who still believe that they are pursuing a really effective “bank and build” strategy that they should look at what they are confronting now, and look their members and their colleagues in their eye. This is not bank and build any longer; this is a high-and-dry strategy, and it is not going to work. That is why it is important that we end this dispute and that we do it together, in the spirit of partnership. There is still time to do that—there is still a week. The door is not closed; the offer is still there, and I urge them to take it before it goes.

[Peter Prinsley (Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket) (Lab)]

I share the frustrations of Ministers and of the Government. I know that they have worked really hard on this. Dr Fletcher of the BMA has also worked hard, and I am sure that there is a deal to be done somewhere. The Medical Training (Prioritisation) Act 2026, to prioritise UK graduates, was very welcome, but I wonder whether we can also do something to fix the foundations of medical careers, by devising a much better system than the crazy foundation lottery that sends a doctor from Norwich to Belfast and a doctor from Belfast to Norwich. That would be a great expression of good will. Meanwhile, I am sure that my colleagues in the NHS will work around this strike—our patients will be safe—and I am sure that our NHS will continue to improve under this brilliant Labour Government.

[Wes Streeting]

I thank my hon. Friend for his support in trying to influence a more constructive approach, for the advice that he has given me and members of the resident doctors committee, and for the experience that he brings to these exchanges. He is right to praise Jack Fletcher for the constructive approach that he and his officers have taken. It has not been easy, but I know that officials have enjoyed the constructive engagement, and I thank enormously the officials who have worked tirelessly on this. I think all those involved in the discussions, on both sides of the table, are disappointed by the outcome, and that is why I urge the BMA to seize the offer before it is too late.

My hon. Friend talks about other changes, such as to placements and rotations. I think that BMA officers recognise my desire to not only do this deal, but to create a new business as usual with the BMA, where we have people around the table on a regular basis looking at what we can do to improve the health service for patients and staff and to make real progress on those issues. We cannot do that if we are in conflict. That is the tragedy of the position we find ourselves in. I think we have built trust through engagement and dialogue with the BMA committee officers. It is only disappointing that members of the committee are not prepared to get around the same table as me, because if they did, they might realise the sincerity and the opportunity.