Downing Street has said that hospital consultants who take “strike action” should not be allowed to be seeing private patients on those days.
The British Medical Association (BMA) has said that senior doctors have overwhelmingly backed strike action unless the government makes a “credible” pay offer.
Senior doctors are to strike in England on 20 and 21 July after “consultants in England have voted a resounding YES to taking industrial action” next month.
The BMA has said that consultants pay has dropped by 35% since 2008 and 2009 and Downing Street said that average pay is still £128,000.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said, “If consultants choose to take strike action, it cannot be right that some continue to only treat their fee-paying private patients and benefit financially from that while patient care is put at risk in the NHS.
“We would urge those consultants considering this approach to seriously consider the impact on the NHS.
“It would not be right to put profit before patients.”
This comes as some experienced consultants also work privately to top up their pay and can earn considerable sums of money.
