"None Of Us Want to Be on Strike": Doctors Explain Why They’ve Walked Out
Doctors have begun another round of strike action across England - including outside Manchester Royal Infirmary - as resident doctors warn the NHS is reaching breaking point.
In this report, we speak directly to doctors on the picket line about why striking has become a last resort. They explain how real-terms pay has fallen since 2008, why student debt and stalled career progression are driving doctors out of the system, and why full pay restoration could take more than a decade without urgent action.
Doctors also describe years of winter crises, corridor nursing, unsafe staffing levels and the frustration of seeing political leaders criticise strikes while failing to address the underlying workforce crisis.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has called the strikes “dangerous and irresponsible,” while the BMA says it remains committed to patient safety and is calling for a long-term plan for pay and training places.
This video focuses on the voices often missing from the debate — frontline doctors explaining why, as one put it, “no one wants to be on strike”.
Filmed outside Manchester Royal Infirmary on the 18th December.