Consultant and junior doctor contract negotiations begin

Abstract

Contract negotiations for consultants and junior doctors began this week after NHS Employers announced that the government had given it a formal mandate to negotiate with the BMA. The contract negotiations will apply to consultants working in the NHS in England and Northern Ireland, and to junior doctors across the United Kingdom. Consultants in Scotland and Wales already work under a different contract to that in place in England and Northern Ireland. The BMA’s consultants committees in Scotland and Wales have said that they do not believe that negotiations on a UK-wide contract would be in the best interests of their doctors. The announcement follows months of preliminary discussions between the BMA and NHS Employers, and their …