Thousands of UK doctors have begun a five-day strike after last-minute negotiations with the Labour government over pay increases broke down.
Picket lines formed outside hospitals across the country as junior doctors walked out, citing frustration over the lack of a new deal. The strike follows an earlier agreement in September, where doctors accepted a 22.3% pay rise spread over two years, shortly after Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour Party came to power.
Despite that deal, junior doctors—those below consultant level—say the current offer does not adequately address real-terms pay cuts since 2008.
Prime Minister Starmer urged the doctors to reconsider, warning that the strike puts patients at risk and threatens significant disruption to the health system.
