Consultants in England are to bring an end to their unprecedentedly long period of strikes after accepting a pay increase of nearly 20%.

Senior doctors who are members of the BMA overwhelmingly backed the revised pay offer, with 83% of members supporting an end to the strikes.

Consultants already pocketed a 6% pay rise in April 2023, before being offered an extra 5% on average at the end of last year.

A new offer includes an additional 2.85% for those four to seven years into their consultant careers, and will be backdated to March 2024.

The new deal means some senior doctors will enjoy a huge 20% pay rise.

Consultants will also be eligible for a separate pay rise for the 2024-25 financial year.

BMA consultants committee chair Dr Vishal Sharma said: “We’ve reached this point not just through our tough negotiations with the Government, but thanks to the resolve of consultants, who took the difficult decision to strike, and did so safely and effectively, on multiple occasions, sending a clear message that they would not back down.”

He added: “But the fight is not yet over. This is only the end of the beginning, and we have some way to go before the pay consultants have lost over the last 15 years has been restored.”

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “The end of consultant strike action in the NHS is excellent news for patients”.

“It will mean we can continue making progress towards our goal of cutting the waiting lists, which have now fallen for the fourth month in a row.

“Consultants perform a vital role at the heart of the NHS – I’m pleased they’ve accepted this deal, which is fair for them and fair for the taxpayer.”

Health and Social Care Secretary Victoria Atkins said: “I hugely value the work of NHS consultants and I am pleased that, after weeks of negotiations, they have accepted this fair and reasonable offer, putting an end to the threat of further strike action”.

“Consultants will now be able to focus on providing the highest quality care for patients and we can consolidate our progress on waiting lists – which have fallen for the past four months.

“This deal directly addresses gender pay issues in the NHS and enhances consultants’ parental leave options – representing a fair deal for consultants, patients, and taxpayers.”

While today’s news will be a relief to NHS patients sick of disruption, junior doctors remain in dispute with the Government.

Junior doctors are demanding a pay rise worth up to 35% a year, with the BMA chairman promising that their fight with the Government “is not yet over”.

Dr Sharma said: “This is only the end of the beginning, and we have some way to go before the pay consultants have lost over the last 15 years has been restored.”

More than 40 days have now been lost to doctors’ strikes over the last year, leading to 1.4 million cancelled appointments.

It’s also harming Rishi Sunak’s mission to get NHS waiting lists down before the General Election.