Hunch. Days before the strike was called, the government put 2.4% for all doctors to the pay review body, and its health department says the demands would cost over £2bn.
The offer market resolves on the Department of Health and Social Care news page on GOV.UK: YES if between 26 October and 06:59 GMT on 25 November 2026 the department or Yvette Cooper formally offers consultants in England pay for next year above 2.4%, or the BMA confirms it received such an offer, and NO if not, with offers without money and pay review body advice the government has not agreed left out. BBC News and The Guardian settle it if the official page is silent.
We looked for cases where a union of health workers in England set dates for a strike between November and March, at least two months after its strike vote and after talks with the government that brought no deal. We found seven such strikes from 2016 to 2025, five by doctors and two by nurses. Six began on the first day. None of them was a strike by consultants.