By Burak Bir
LONDON (AA) - Ahead of the general election on July 4, junior doctors on Wednesday announced a full walkout in England for five days due to an ongoing dispute over pay.
Thousands of junior doctors, members of the British Medical Association (BMA), will stage for a full 120 hours from 7 a.m. local time (0600GMT) on June 27 until July 2.
In a statement, the BMA union said they decided to take action as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak continues to refuse to meet junior doctors’ demands for a roadmap to restore pay lost over the last 15 years.
It noted that junior doctors have not received a "credible offer" following three months of talks between the union and the government.
"We made clear to the Government that we would strike unless discussions ended in a credible pay offer," BMA junior doctors committee co-chairs Robert Laurenson and Vivek Trivedi said in the statement.
"Junior doctors are fed up and out of patience," added the statement.
They will call off the planned strike action if Sunak makes a public commitment that is acceptable to the BMA’s junior doctors committee, the statement said.