Junior doctors across England have launched a four-day strike this morning (April 11) amid a worsening dispute over pay. 

Huge disruptions are expected within the NHS with an estimated 350,000 appointments, including operations, to be cancelled as a result of the walkout by members of the British Medical Association (BMA).

Doctors mounted picket lines outside hospitals from 7 am this morning which will remain in place until Saturday morning ( April 15) in what is set to be the longest strike in the wave of unrest, which has seen nurses, ambulance crews and other health workers take action since last year.

People could die as a result of junior doctor's strikes

Dr Hilary Jones MBE, said on Good Morning Britain (GMB) on Tuesday that people would die as a result of the junior doctor's strike this week.

Dr Hilary was asked on the morning show "are people going to die as a result of this strike action",

He said: "Yes, I believe they are because treatment will be delayed.

"If you've got one doctor trying to look after 10 patients and they're all acutely ill, you can't get to them all at the same time. 

"This (strike action) is disruptive, this is dangerous, this has never been more dangerous."

Chief executive of the NHS Confederation, Matthew Taylor, agreed the strikes would have an impact on “patient safety and patient dignity”.

Also speaking on ITV's GMB, Mr Taylor said: “The health service is going to be under incredible pressure over the next few days.

“You can’t take out half your medical workforce and not have an impact on patient safety, on patient dignity."

He added the NHS had been planning for these strikes for weeks but it was still due to have a severe impact.

Mr Taylor said: "We will sustain urgent and emergency care critical areas of care.

“But, in order to do that, we are going to rely on consultants to work in the spaces and places that junior doctors would have worked, and what that does mean is we’re having to cancel hundreds of thousands of outpatient appointments and operations.

“And although that’s just a statistic, for an individual that can be a very traumatic experience."

National medical director for the NHS in England, Professor Sir Stephen Powis, told Times Radio this morning: “This is going to be the most disruptive period of strike action that we’ve seen this winter, probably the most disruptive period of action in NHS history.

“A few weeks ago, when we had three days of strike action by junior doctors, we saw over 175,000 appointments and procedures having to be rescheduled, so my expectation is that we will see more and perhaps considerably more than that this time.

“Our focus has been on providing cover for absent junior doctors – they make up to half of the medical workforce – so consultants will be doing that along with other members of staff.

“But it does mean that we’re focusing on emergency services- and of course, those staff who are covering can’t be in two places at once so that does mean disruption and cancellations and rescheduling, I’m afraid.”

Sir Stephen added these strikes would have a lasting effect a could cause disruptions for weeks to come.

A "credible" offer from the Government would lead to junior doctors calling off strike

Co-chairman of the British Medical Association’s junior doctors committee, Dr Vivek Trivedi, told the PA news agency there could be more strike action in the future unless the Government entered negotiations over the ongoing pay dispute.

Dr Vivek said: “Strikes are by nature designed to be disruptive, to put pressure on the Government to come to the table to ultimately work towards an end to this dispute.

“We just want them (The Government) to come to the table in an honest and meaningfully meaningful way.

“But of course if they don’t, then we would reserve the right for further industrial action.”

Dr Vivek added the Government had “not given any counter-offer at all”.

Speaking to the PA news agency, he said: “Anyone who’s negotiated knows that one side puts out their opening offer – which we’ve done – the other side puts up their opening offer.

“But we haven’t had that, the Government has not even tried to meet us anywhere in the middle, it hasn’t give us a counter-offer at all.

“We’ve made it clear, we’re willing to negotiate, we need to have an open dialogue, which the Government is refusing to do.

“It’s just an unreasonable, untenable position from (Health Secretary Steve Barclay) and the Department of Health and Social Care, and I would urge them to come to the table as soon as they can.”

Dr Trivedi added: “When he met us, the first time he had no mandate to negotiate and the second time he met us he didn’t give us an offer at all.

“We’ve extended our olive branch many times and he’s continuing to kick the can down the road, which is why we need to see some goodwill from him.”

Halesowen News: Junior doctors have begun a four-day strike today.Junior doctors have begun a four-day strike today. (Image: PA)

He added that a “credible” offer from the Government would lead to doctors’ calling off the strike action for the rest of the week.

Is Wales affected by the Junior Doctor strikes?

It is just junior doctors in England, members of the BMA, that will be taking part in the four-day strike beginning today. 

So the strike action will not impact the NHS in Wales.