JUNIOR doctors across Hampshire are picketing this week over pay.

The strikes, which started on Tuesday, April 11, are expected to last until April 15 and involve members of the British Medical Association (BMA) union. This latest walkout follows on from industrial action in March.

A picket line formed outside of Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester on Tuesday morning. One of the picketers, Dr Rob May-Miller, explained that doctors are striking “because pay for junior doctors has fallen in real terms by about 25 per cent".

He continued: “We are looking for restoration for that amount to meet what we were expected to be paid when we were junior doctors in medical school.”

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National medical director of NHS England Professor Sir Stephen Powis said: “When we had the last period of industrial action a few weeks ago, that was three days, we saw over 175,000 operations and procedures having to be rescheduled. We won’t get the exact number this week until the strike is over but our expectation is that we will see considerably more than that.”

He continued: “I think it will be considerably more than the 175,000 – it’s four days this time, not three days, and of course, it comes after the Easter holidays and a lot of staff are on leave this week.”

Meanwhile, co-chairman of the BMA junior doctors’ committee Dr Vivek Trivedi said that the 35 per cent pay rise the union has asked for is “not a tall ask”.

He told BBC Breakfast: “This uplift that we’re asking for is only to reverse the pay cuts that we’ve had, doctors have had more than a 26% real-terms pay cut over the last 15 years.

“All we’re asking is for a doctor who’s paid £14 an hour to be paid £19 an hour, so it’s not a tall ask.”

Dr Lara Alloway, chief medical officer at Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which manages hospitals in Winchester, Basingstoke and Andover, said: “Our priority is delivering the best possible patient care, ensuring our services run smoothly and safely.

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“We know from previous industrial action that disruption to services is unavoidable - some planned care has been postponed and we are working hard to ensure we can provide safe urgent and emergency care. This is a particularly challenging time, as our teams have also worked through a busy bank holiday period.

“We are urging people to support their local hospitals by keeping emergency departments free for those who need our care the most. Do not put off seeking urgent care in an emergency, however, please only attend our emergency departments if it is an urgent and/or life-threatening situation.

“Patients who have hospital appointments during this period should still attend as planned unless they have been contacted directly.”