Health Secretary Wes Streeting has refused to rule out introducing legislation to ban doctors from going on strike, in a significant escalation of tensions between the government and the British Medical Association (BMA) over the future of the NHS.
Speaking on 9 April 2026, Streeting said he hoped it would not come to that, but declined to take the option off the table as the government faces renewed threats of industrial action from resident doctors — formerly known as junior doctors — who are demanding further pay restoration following years of below-inflation pay awards.
The comments came as NHS waiting lists remain stubbornly high, with millions of patients still waiting for treatment despite the government's pledge to cut waiting times as a central pillar of its health policy. The BMA has warned that without meaningful progress on pay, its members may be forced to consider further strike action, which could cause significant disruption to NHS services.
Streeting's remarks drew sharp criticism from the BMA, which accused the Health Secretary of threatening doctors rather than engaging in good-faith negotiations. Dr Melissa Ryan, chair of the BMA's resident doctors committee, said: 'Threatening to ban strikes is not a negotiating strategy — it is an attack on workers' fundamental rights and will only deepen the crisis of morale in the NHS.'
The government has previously argued that the pay deals agreed with resident doctors in 2024 were fair and affordable, but the BMA contends that doctors' real-terms pay remains significantly below where it was a decade ago, contributing to record levels of burnout and emigration among NHS medical staff.
Health policy analysts warned that any attempt to legislate against medical strikes would be politically contentious and legally complex, potentially triggering a constitutional battle over workers' rights. The situation is being closely watched by other NHS unions, who fear that restrictions on doctors could set a precedent for wider curbs on industrial action in the health service.
