The British Medical Association announced a halt to their scheduled strikes on 25 and 26 November across the country over failed negotiations about consultant pay and working conditions.
The BMA consultants committee and the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Yvette Cooper, entered formal negotiations after an urgent meeting held on Tuesday. In the meeting, BMA members agreed to pause planned action to allow these negotiations to take place.
In a statement published by the Department of Health and Social Care Ms. Cooper welcomed the news to pause the planned action, describing the discussion as “constructive”.
However, there is still pressure from doctors. BMA consultants committee co-chairs Dr Helen Neary and Dr Shanu Datta said: “After 18 months of dispute, however, our patience is not infinite, and should these negotiations fail to swiftly deliver on the issues at the heart of this dispute, we will call further action.
“Consultants deserve a deal that recognises our value and gives us a sustainable future in the NHS, both for ourselves and our patients.”
In July 2026, specialists voted to take industrial action against the government for not addressing measures to reduce burnout, keeping the most senior medical leaders working in the NHS, and addressing the 25% real-terms pay cuts over the last 17 years.
The industrial actions were set to take place in medical centres across the country represented by Unite, UNISON and BMA. This meant that NHS trusts would only be delivering emergency treatment during the walkout, including the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in Oxfordshire.
In a statement given by OUH, the Trust commented on how they would deal with the disruption of patient care from the strike. They stated: “As with previous instances of industrial action, OUH has tried-and-tested processes in place to ensure patient safety and continuity of care wherever possible.”
Between 2025 and 2026, the Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) housed 16,347 members of staff, attended 115,978 emergency and unplanned admissions and treated 102,646 elective inpatient admissions and daycases.
As one of the largest NHS teaching trusts in the country, the Trust consists of four hospitals in the area such as the John Radcliffe Hospital including the Children’s Hospital, West Wing, Eye Hospital, Heart Centre and Women’s Centre, the Churchill Hospital, the Nuttifield Orthopaedic Centre, and the Horton General Hospital.
The BMA consultants committee co-chairs also mentioned: “We have received assurances that there are no constraints on what we discuss in these negotiations, and we look forward to hearing their proposals on both pay and working conditions.”
Nevertheless, the Department of Health and Social Care made clear that the negotiations would not involve consultants getting any more than the 3.5% pay rise they had already received for this year.
“This is about more than pay; it is also about ensuring consultants have the time, recognition and support they need to deliver the best possible care for patients and secure the future of the NHS, while not driving themselves to burn out,” said Dr Helen Neary and Dr Shanu Datta.
BMA has not given a deadline of when they expect to resolve the dispute before restarting industrial action.