"Wes Streeting has accused the British Medical Association (BMA) of being impossible and issuing misleading information in an escalation of tensions with the doctors union. In an unusual move, the health secretary wrote on Thursday to England's 50,000 GPs to convey his frustration with the BMA over recent changes that from last month made it easier for patients to contact them online between 8am and 6.30pm Monday to Friday."
"He has underlined his concern about the union's behaviour by ending its longstanding role as the sole negotiator of the annual GP contract that covers doctors' pay and terms and conditions. Streeting's letter was prompted by a recent speech by the head of the BMA's GP committee, Dr Katie Bramall, in which she accused ministers of being traitors to their profession and of betraying and lying to them."
Wes Streeting accused the British Medical Association of being impossible and issuing misleading information amid rising tensions with the doctors' union. He sent a letter to England's 50,000 GPs expressing frustration over contract changes that made it easier for patients to contact GPs online between 8am and 6.30pm, Monday to Friday. He removed the BMA's longstanding role as sole negotiator of the annual GP contract covering pay and terms. The letter responded to a conference address by Dr Katie Bramall in which she accused ministers of betraying and lying to the profession. Streeting said the BMA had agreed the changes in February 2025 and that union representatives were preventing good-faith engagement, while relations have become increasingly fractious amid resident doctors' strikes over pay and training places.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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