Resident doctors in England are set to go on strike in the run-up to Christmas after rejecting a government offer aimed at calling off industrial action.
The British Medical Association (BMA) announced on Monday that its members will walk out between Dec. 17 and Dec. 22, following a poll in which 83.2% of respondents voted against the deal. The turnout for the ballot was 65.34%.
The decision comes as the National Health Service (NHS) England warns of a "worst-case scenario" in hospitals, with flu cases up more than 55% in a single week.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting strongly criticized the move, accusing the union of putting patients at risk during a critical period for the health service.
"The BMA has chosen Christmas strikes to inflict damage on the NHS at the moment of maximum danger, refusing to postpone them to January to help patients and other NHS staff cope over Christmas," he told Sky News.
"There is no need for these strikes to go ahead this week, and it reveals the BMA's shocking disregard for patient safety and for other NHS staff."
Streeting said the government's offer "would have halved competition for jobs and put more money in resident doctors' pockets," but claimed that it was rejected because it did not meet demands for a further 26% pay rise.
"Resident doctors have already had a 28.9% pay rise—there is no justification for striking just because this fantasy demand has not been met," he added.
He appealed directly to doctors to continue working, saying: "Abandoning your patients in their hour of greatest need goes against everything a career in medicine is meant to be about."
