Junior doctor pay ask 'simply unaffordable' warns Health Secretary

Almost 97 per cent of the union's members voted in favour of a 72-hour strike on a turnout of in excess of 71%. 

More than 5000 junior doctors were eligible to vote. 

BMA Scotland said the result offered a "clear mandate" for strike action in its ongoing efforts to reverse "unacceptable pay erosion" junior doctors in Scotland have suffered for more than a decade.

The trade union warned that unless the Scottish Government puts forward a "credible offer", junior doctors in Scotland will begin preparations for their first ever walkout.

EXPLAINER: Why are junior doctors striking, and what is impact for NHS? 

The BMA Scotland says that what they are is seeking "pay restoration." They argue that junior doctors today are earning 23.5% less in real terms than they were in 2008, and are looking for on top of inflation.

Speaking to BBC Scotland's Sunday Show, Mr Matheson said he had been in talks with the BMA's Scottish junior doctors committee since his appointment and confirmed further negotiations would take place this week.

"I've been very clear from the outset that 35% is simply unaffordable because it would result in a very significant cut to the health services budget as a result, which would have a detrimental impact on the level of patient services that we could provide.

"But I also recognise the extremely important role that our junior doctors play within our health care system.

"There are over 5000 of them right across the NHS, both in primary and in secondary care, they are critical to supporting the sustaining of health service going forward.

"And I want to do what I can to try and help to address the concerns that they have. We did implement the 4.5% increase last year, which was in line with what the doctors and dentists review body recommended.

"But they believe that still insufficient, and they're also looking for a further increase this year.

"So what I will do is do everything I can to try and help to get some level of agreement with them.

"But to not just try and address the issues that have got in the short term, but to try and make sure that we address the long term issues that they believe also need to be addressed and as making sure that NHS Scotland is a place where they feel valued, and that we help to support them in the training programmes as they move through the NHS over a number of years."

READ MORE: Junior doctors in Scotland vote for three-day strike

Dr Chris Smith, chairman of the BMA's Scottish junior doctors committee, told the programme he was glad the government had got back round the negotiating table.  

"None of us want to go on strike," he said. "Every single doctor that filled in that ballot and posted it back really would have had to have thought about that.

"No one goes into health care not wanting to do the absolute best for their patients. If we can get this done around the negotiating table, rather than at the picket line that will be beneficial for everyone."

He said his members were "burning out". 

"The real issue is that we've lost 23.5% of our pay since 2008. And that is causing doctors to look elsewhere like Australia, New Zealand, Canada, even Ireland, where our skills are compensated at the level that we think we deserve.

"When asking for a pay rise, we're just asking to be brought back to where we were 15 years ago, our work certainly hasn't got a quarter easier, it's certainly not a quarter less of it, we just want to be brought up back to where we are."

Dr Smith said it was really difficult for him and his colleagues at the moment.

"It was a competitive process to get into medical school. We were delighted when we got into the NHS. But what we've been greeted with is a service under strain where we're having to apologise for the care that we're giving, for the waiting times that people are experiencing.

"These are things happening and we haven't been on strike. And what's happening is people are burning out, which means they're leaving the health service, they're going abroad, they're going into the private sector, or they're taking time off sick.

"That means there are more rota gaps, which means that the doctor has to do the job of two doctors making the work harder, the burnout happens more quickly. It's a self-repeating cycle, and it's hard to get out of."

Scottish Labour Health Spokesperson Jackie Baillie said Mr Matheson needed to "put his money where his mouth is and do all he can to avoid strike action later this month."

She added: “Our NHS has suffered over a decade of SNP mismanagement, and it simply cannot afford more delays to a system already under immense pressure.

“Junior doctors, like many others in the health service, have suffered through some of the most challenging years the NHS has ever seen. They have seen their workload increase as conditions worsen, and their concerns have been falling on deaf ears for years.

“Mr Matheson has an opportunity to fix the issues left by his predecessor and actually work with doctors to make our NHS stronger. He knows where the issues lie, so he must now work to end delayed discharge, invest in primary care, and retain our amazing NHS staff."