Resident doctors, formerly junior doctors, will walk out from Wednesday, December 17, until Monday, December 22.
This follows a five-day strike which took place in November, which was the 13th walkout by doctors since March 2023.
Towards the end of November, the BMA were also considering extending their mandate for strikes for a further six months.
After our last round of strike action, we gave @wesstreeting a window to deliver sufficient progress towards a viable deal on jobs and pay.
That hasn’t happened.
We’ve been given no choice but to return to the picket lines.#EndTrainingCrisis #PayRestoration pic.twitter.com/iNlWDNRpRN
— Resident Doctors (@BMAResidents) December 1, 2025
The union’s current mandate for industrial action expires in January, but it could be extended to August 2026 if the ballot is successful.
When this was first discussed, Health Secretary Wes Streeting said he was disappointed “to see the BMA threatening further strike action”, warning it harms patients, the health service and medics themselves.
He also urged the union to “get back around the table” with ministers to put an end to the dispute.
Dr Jack Fletcher, chairman of the BMA’s resident doctors’ committee, said: “A new mandate for strikes should not be necessary.
“We should have been able to put this dispute to bed months ago with a responsible deal on jobs and pay.
“It would have only taken a plan to gradually raise pay over a few years and some common-sense reforms to ensure job security so that doctors aren’t threatened with unemployment.
“Such a plan was perfectly within reach of this Government and we had hoped they would seize the chance to rebuild our medical workforce. Instead the Government waited until we announced industrial action before making an additional offer.
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“So, here we are. We’re asking doctors to vote for the mandate for six months’ more industrial action.”
Dr Layla McCay, director of policy at the NHS Confederation, said health service leaders “will be incredibly disappointed” at the BMA’s decision to re-ballot its members.
“We know that strikes have had a major financial impact on the NHS already, with the last five-day walkout estimated to have cost a staggering £300 million,” she said.
