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Senior doctors in Wales have called off a planned 48-hour strike after pay negotiations were resumed with the Welsh Government.

Consultants and SAS doctors belonging to union BMA Cymru Wales were due to strike on April 16 in a dispute over pay.

It now says a “significant” proposal from the Welsh Government will form the basis of talks to end the pay disputes with all secondary care doctors including Consultants, SAS and Junior doctors

The committees representing doctors from all three branches of practice have voted to enter pay negotiations based on this proposal.

Junior doctors have also paused plans to announce more strike dates following three rounds of recent industrial action.

In a joint statement, Dr Oba Babs Osibodu and Dr Peter Fahey co-chairs of the BMA’s Welsh Junior doctors Committee said: “This is a significant step forward. It is sad that we had to take industrial action to get here, but we are proud of members for demonstrating their resolve in pursuit of a fair deal for the profession.

“Whilst we are optimistic and hope to quickly resolve our dispute, we remain steadfast in achieving pay restoration. Until we reach a deal, nothing is off the table.

 “We will continue to work hard to reach an offer that is credible to put to members who will ultimately have the final say.”

Dr Stephen Kelly, chair of BMA Cymru Wales’ Consultants committee said: “We’re hopeful that we can reach a deal that sufficiently addresses years of erosion to our pay to help retain senior doctors in Wales but remain ready to strike if we’re not able to do so during negotiations.”

The pay dispute

Last year the British Medical Association rejected a 5% uplift for consultants, junior, and specialty and associate specialist (SAS) doctors. SAS doctors on some contracts were to be awarded 1.5%.

Although it was rejected by the BMA, the Welsh Government went ahead at the time and imposed the pay increase.

Confirming the pay increase in a statement in August 2023, Wales’ health minister Eluned Morgan said the increase, which also includes a pay rise for dentists, mirrors that given to other NHS staff earlier that year.

The Doctors and Dentist Pay Review Body had recommended a 6% increase.

The Welsh Government has consistently blamed the UK Government over a lack of funding to give doctors, and other NHS staff, more money.

However in a statement it said a “significant amount of work” had been done to find funding in its current budget.

First Minister Vaughan Gething said: “We recognise the strength of feeling among BMA members and that industrial action is never taken lightly.

“This is a government that listens and engages to find solutions. I prioritised a meeting with the BMA directly alongside the Cabinet Secretary for Health to reinforce our commitment to that partnership approach.

“We currently face the most severe financial situation in the devolution era which makes our task far harder. Despite this backdrop, we have worked to identify a way forward that I hope will lead to the successful resolution of this dispute and ensure that doctors can return to work in NHS Wales.”