Junior doctors: Jeremy Hunt announces new contract will be imposed from October
A phased introduction will be rolled out between October and the end of 2017
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Your support makes all the difference.The new junior doctors contract will be imposed on all junior doctors, Jeremy Hunt has announced.
The contract will be introduced in a phased manner between October and the end of 2017.
Addressing Parliament, the Health Secretary said it had been a “difficult decision” but he felt the NHS needed certainty in light of Brexit. He said: “Many people will call for me to return to negotiations with the British Medical Association (BMA) and to them I would like to say this: we have been talking or trying to talk for well over three years.
“There is no consensus around a new contract and after yesterday’s vote it is not clear that any further discussions could create one.
“However, I do believe the agreement negotiated in May is better for junior doctors and better for the NHS than the original contract we planned to introduce in March. So rather than try to wind the clock back to the March contract, we will not change any of the new terms agreed with the BMA.
"... it will be introduced from October this year for more senior obstetrics trainees; then in November and December for Foundation Year 1 doctors taking up new posts and Foundation Year 2 doctors on the same rotas as their current contracts expire. More specialties such as paediatrics, psychiatry and pathology, as well as surgical trainees will transition in the same way to the new contract between February and April next year, with remaining trainees by October 2017.”
The move follows a vote among BMA members to reject the latest Department for Health proposals 58 per cent to 42 per cent. Mr Hunt called the vote “extremely disappointing”.
Some junior doctors have argued the contract is unsafe and unfair, however Mr Hunt has insisted it will improve quality of care in the NHS.
Shadow Health Minister Diane Abbott said: "“To impose a contract on the Junior Doctors, when the morale of NHS staff is at the all-time low, is a kick in the face of front-line staff. Imposing the Junior Doctors contract is inherently unfair and would be an indictment of the Secretary of State’s handling of this situation.
"The government urgently needs to address the recruitment and retention crisis in the NHS, but imposing these contracts is not the way to do this. The Secretary of State has a duty to rebuild the trust he has lost.
"It is not too late to change course. At this time of general instability, I would urge the government to reconsider their position, and initiative meaningful talks.”
Announcing his decision, the Health Secretary also revealed an independent report on the gender pay gap among medical professionals in the NHS will be conducted.
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