HCSA consultant and SAS doctor members employed by the NHS in Northern Ireland have returned a decisive Yes vote for both strike action and action short of strike on pay.

Members voted 85% for strike and 100% for action short of strike.

Announcing the result, HCSA Executive Committee member for Northern Ireland Dr Mark Worthington said:

"HCSA members in Northern Ireland have never before gone on strike. This historic result shows the determination of our members and how bad the situation with senior doctors' pay has got.

"Morale in hospitals is at an all-time low. Consultants and SAS doctors in Northern Ireland are no longer willing to accept less for doing more.

"It is now up to the government to show it values senior doctors and resolve this dispute."

In a letter to Health Minister Mike Nesbitt, HCSA General Secretary Dr Paul Donaldson and National Officer for Northern Ireland Billy McCreight emphasised that hospital doctors were not prepared to see pay fall further behind their counterparts in neighbouring jurisdictions.

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