Streeting vows to keep disruption to a minimum as doctor strike begins

Health Secretary Wes Streeting is promising to keep NHS services running as a five-day walkout by resident doctors gets underway in England.

He said the disruption would be kept to a minimum after NHS England ordered hospitals to only cancel treatments in exceptional circumstances.

In previous strikes, the focus has been on staffing emergency care but this time the NHS is striving to keep non-urgent services running. Senior doctors are covering resident doctors – the new term for junior doctors who are striking – for the 12th time in the pay dispute.

The British Medical Association warned that this risks stretching staff too thinly, saying ministers had every opportunity to stop the walkout.

Writing in the Times ahead of the strike, Prime Minister…