Medicine and Science from The BMJ How much should doctors be paid? | BMJ Interviews Economist Richard Murphy
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Jan 23, 2026 
Richard Murphy, political economist and tax campaigner who co-wrote The Green New Deal, discusses doctor pay and NHS economics. He explores why trainee doctors’ real pay has fallen and which inflation measures matter. He links NHS strain to upstream social causes, market power, and youth unemployment. He outlines alternatives to neoliberal approaches and macro changes to improve health system affordability.
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Personal Link To General Practice
- Richard Murphy discloses personal interest: he is married to a retired GP and has long engagement with NHS issues.
- He uses that background to frame his perspective on doctors' pay and working conditions.
Junior Doctors Face An Affordability Crisis
- Junior doctors' real pay has fallen while their costs (debt, housing, interest) rose sharply since 2010.
- Richard Murphy says this creates an affordability crisis that justifies a strong pay claim.
A Doctor's Morning Call Example
- Murphy relays a doctor-wife's morning calls to patients as a grim example of stress: checking if they are still alive.
- He uses this to illustrate the emotional and human cost behind low pay for high-responsibility work.
