Today in Focus Doctors strike again amid flu crisis – The Latest
Dec 17, 2025
Denis Campbell, the Guardian's health policy editor, dives into the ongoing strike by resident doctors in England amid a winter flu crisis. He highlights how this walkout, involving about 70,000 doctors, is set to disrupt NHS services significantly. Denis discusses the intense pressures caused by a surging flu outbreak and the nurses' demands to restore pay to 2008 levels. He also explores the government's fiscal constraints and the public's shifting support amid the unfolding crisis, revealing the complexities at play in the healthcare system.
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Scale Of The Walkouts
- Around 70,000 resident doctors make up about half of England's medical workforce and many thousands are on strike.
- NHS England expects this disruption to be the greatest yet and the impact on services is significant.
Early Super Flu Strain
- Hospitals face an unusually early and severe flu surge causing record numbers of seriously ill patients.
- NHS England warns hospital bed pressure could rise from ~2,600 to potentially 8,000 in the coming weeks.
Demand For Full Pay Restoration
- Doctors want full pay restoration to 2008 real-terms levels, demanding an additional ~26% on top of recent rises.
- They view this as a principled reversal of long-term pay erosion rather than a negotiable uplift.