Junior doctors are going on their longest-ever strike in an aim ‘to save NHS’, says BMA chief
Another winter. Another strike. Except this time the industrial action by junior doctors will be longer than any other in NHS history.
In total, three days starting this morning. Then back out again for six consecutive days from 3-9 January.
In all, there will only be four weekdays unaffected by strike action or holidays over the next three weeks.
The action is already having a serious impact.
Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Trust has announced that Cheltenham A&E has temporarily closed until 8am on 23 December and will do so again from 8pm on 1 January until 8am on 9 January.
Strikes latest:
Action comes at ‘worst possible time’
Cheltenham A&E has temporarily closed
Professor Phil Banfield, chair of the British Medical Association (BMA) Council, told Sky News the strikes were called to protect the long-term future of the NHS which could not afford to keep losing trained doctors.
He said: “The aim is not to collapse the NHS, the aim is to save the NHS.
“We must have doctors, you cannot fly an aeroplane without pilots and we represent the skills and the expertise that patients need, and of course doctors are leaving because of a lack of valuing them in the workplace.”
The strike mandate for junior doctors expires in February. That is why they have chosen to strike in December and January.
Sky News understands junior doctors’ leaders ruled out extended industrial action right through Christmas to give the NHS some recovery time between the strikes.
Sunak condemns ‘disappointing’ strikes
Rishi Sunak told parliament the junior doctors’ actions was “disappointing”.
He said: “We have now reached a resolution with every other part of the public sector and every other part of the NHS.
“And I’d also say that it was the junior doctors who received the biggest increase in their pay through the independent public standing pay review process of around a 10% increase for a typical junior doctor.”
But BMA leaders have challenged the prime minister by saying the government’s proposal of an extra 3% pay rise for junior doctors on top of 8.8% already given would amount to a pay cut for many of its members after years of below-inflation pay rises.
And they also stress that both consultants and specialists have yet to vote in favour of the pay offers they received in January.
More than a million procedures and appointments have had to be rescheduled since industrial action began by health workers last December.
The record waiting list that stands at over 6.4 million patients needing more than 7.7 million appointments and procedures looks set to grow.
Health leaders warn that this strike action could be the most damaging yet.
Julian Hartley, chief executive of NHS Providers, said trust leaders are worried.
“It does mean that there will be a huge amount of concern around managing patient safety and quality during this period because urgent care will be the priority, but a lot of planned care will have to be rescheduled for later in the new year,” he said.
It is too late to call off the strikes that begin today.
But there is hope – albeit very slim – that both sides will still try to find a way to stop January’s industrial action from going ahead.
Despite the ongoing market meltdown on US trade tariffs, executives at major cryptocurrency firms Messari and Sygnum are bullish on institutional Bitcoin adoption later in 2025.
Speaking on a panel at Paris Blockchain Week on April 8, Messari CEO Eric Turner and Sygnum Bank co-founder Thomas Eichenberger said they expect a significant shift in the banking sector’s involvement with crypto in the second half of the year.
According to the executives, the global banking push into Bitcoin (BTC) services has great potential to happen in the second half of 2025 as regulators embrace crypto, including stablecoins and crypto services by banks.
“I think we’re probably looking at a muted Q2, but I’m really excited for Q3 and Q4,” Messari’s Turner said during the panel discussion moderated by Cointelegraph CEO Yana Prikhodchenko, forecasting “really interesting” things coming to the crypto market in 2025.
Crypto adoption is not just about Trump
While some investors focus on the pro-crypto stance of US President Donald Trump, Turner emphasized that broader regulatory momentum is what matters most.
“When you look at the potential of having market structure regulation in the US, stablecoin regulation, and just the fact that across the board, not just President Trump himself, but the SEC and all these regulatory industries are really embracing crypto,” Turner said.
Paris Blockchain Week’s panel with Cointelegraph CEO Yana Prikhodchenko, Bancor co-founder Eyal Hertzog, Sygnum co-founder Thomas Eichenberger, Messari CEO Eric Turner, AWS fintech leader Alex Matsuo and Near chief operating officer Chris Donovan. Source: Cointelegraph
Sygnum co-founder Thomas Eichenberger said international banks with US branches are also poised to enter the market once the legal landscape becomes clearer:
“I think it’s a matter of fact that US banks are preparing to be able to offer crypto custody and at least crypto spot trading services anytime soon.”
“I think by then I would agree with you, Eric,” he continued, projecting a continued phase of market uncertainty until the US establishes a clear regulatory framework.
Related: Ripple acquires crypto-friendly prime broker Hidden Road for $1.25B
Banks are no longer afraid of Bitcoin regulators
With the establishment of clear crypto rules for banks in the US, there will be a rush for crypto services by large international banks that are incorporated outside of the US but have a US-based presence, Eichenberger said.
“Some of them may have had their strategic plans in their cupboard to offer crypto-related services, but have been afraid that at some point they will be gone after by any of the US regulatory authorities,” he said, adding:
“Now I think there’s no one to be afraid of anymore in terms of regulatory authorities worldwide. So I think many of the large international banks will launch this year.”
Magazine: Financial nihilism in crypto is over — It’s time to dream big again
Global trade tensions triggered by US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff measures may come to an end with a potential deal with China as investors remain concerned about escalation from both sides.
Trump’s April 2 announcement of reciprocal import tariffs sent shockwaves through global equity and crypto markets. The measures include a 10% baseline tariff on all imported goods, effective April 5, with higher levies — such as a 34% tariff on Chinese imports — set to begin on April 9.
However, the tariff negotiations may only be “posturing” for the US to reach an agreement with China, according to Raoul Pal, founder and CEO of Global Macro Investor.
“In the end, almost all the other tariff negotiations and rhetoric are all about getting China to agree a deal,” Pal wrote in an April 8 X post, adding:
“That is the big prize and both China and the US understand it and need it. Everything else is negotiation posturing. China needs a weaker $ and the US needs tariffs.”
Source: Raoul Pal
“Also, the US is trying to shut down China tariff arbitrage using other channels such as Mexico or Vietnam,” Pal said.
Related: Bitcoin price can hit $250K in 2025 if Fed shifts to QE: Arthur Hayes
China retaliates with new tariffs
Considering China’s latest retaliatory measures, a resolution remains unlikely in the short term.
In response to US tariffs, China imposed a 34% tariff on all US imports effective April 10, media outlet Xinhua News reported on April 4. China’s foreign ministry also vowed to “fight till the end” against Trump’s tariffs, which it called “bullying” by the world’s largest economy.
China overtakes the US in global trade. Source: Econovis
China overtook the US in 2012 to become the world’s largest trading nation by the total value of exports and imports, surpassing $4 trillion in goods trade that year, according to The Guardian.
Crypto markets watch trade outcome closely
As the trade dispute continues to evolve, analysts say a potential agreement between the two global superpowers could serve as a key catalyst for recovery in digital asset markets.
Crypto markets have a 70% chance to bottom by June 2025 before recovering, Nansen analysts predicted.
Related: Crypto market bottom likely by June despite tariff fears: Finance Redefined
Investor appetite for risk assets such as Bitcoin will depend on the global tariff responses from other countries, according to Nicolai Sondergaard, a research analyst at Nansen.
“We have reached somewhat of a local bottom in regard to tariffs and the impact on prices,” the analyst said during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction live show on X, adding:
“Trump came out guns blazing, and we’ve mostly seen the worst from the US side, so we’ll see if other countries are willing to drop some of the tariffs because it’s very likely the US will do the same.”
Magazine: Bitcoin ATH sooner than expected? XRP may drop 40%, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 23 – 29
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