00:00What do we want?
00:01Main restoration.
00:02How are we going to get it?
00:03Strike.
00:04Doctors in England began a five-day strike on Wednesday over pay and working conditions.
00:09The walkouts come amid a surge in flu cases and an ongoing dispute between the government
00:14and the doctors' union.
00:16This is the latest in a series of strikes this year by junior, or resident, doctors
00:21who make up nearly half of the medical workforce and say their pay has been eroded over more
00:26than a decade.
00:27The government says it cannot afford further pay increases, and Health Minister Wes Streeting
00:33has described the strikes as self-indulgent, irresponsible, and dangerous.
00:39National Health Service England has warned hospitals are facing a worst-case scenario due to a surge
00:45in cases of a virulent flu strain.
00:48So there are two issues.
00:49The first one is we have a jobs crisis.
00:51Doctors cannot find work and they're being turned away from jobs.
00:54And then you talk about pay.
00:56Pay is important.
00:58We must value our doctors in this country.
01:00They are seeing better offers elsewhere.
01:02We are training doctors in this country who are then seeing countries nearby, like Ireland.
01:08Just across the RAC, they pay doctors more in Ireland than they do in this country.
01:12Australia, other industries even in the UK.
01:15We saw more doctors taking that step to leave the profession last year than any did in the
01:20last decade.
01:21Flu hospitalisations in England surged by more than 50% in early December, reaching an average
01:27of 2,660 patients a day, the highest ever recorded for this period.
01:33Health leaders warn that the peak is still not in sight.
01:36During the strike, NHS England says there may be fewer doctors on duty, requiring staff to
01:42prioritise life-saving care, and some appointments may be rescheduled.
01:46They don't pay the bills!
01:47Clubs don't pay the bills!
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