Kemi Badenoch says Tories would ban doctors from going on strike

Times

11 hours ago

Kemi Badenoch has pledged to ban doctors from striking as she insisted Britain needed to cut spending to 'live within our means'.
The Conservative leader said she would extend rules that prevent police officers and soldiers from striking to deal with what she called the increasingly 'militant' British Medical Association (BMA).
Labour is scrapping Tory rules that would have allowed ministers to set out minimum levels of service staff would have to provide during strike action in the NHS and other public services. Badenoch said she would restore these for other NHS staff and go even further on doctors.
'The BMA has become militant. These strikes are going too far and it is time for action,' she said.
Describing the measures as 'common-sense proposals to protect patients and the public finances', Badenoch said: 'These strikes will have a significant economic effect, but they will also mean cancelled operations, worry for families of the sick and suffering for those who are unwell. We know that previous strike action by doctors even led to some patients losing their lives.'
She again praised Argentina's chainsaw-wielding President Milei, citing him as an inspiration for a future Conservative government. Badenoch has said she will not 'literally use a chainsaw' to cut spending but said that Britain was borrowing too much, adding: 'We need to start thinking about the next generation.'
While seeking to distinguish herself from Nigel Farage, the Reform leader, with a tough line on public spending, Badenoch last week said she aimed to imitate Milei, who won power after brandishing a chainsaw to illustrate his approach to slashing state spending. He has balanced the budget and reduced inflation through deep cuts to public expenditure, such as pensions, which have provoked widespread protest.
• The WhatsApp group: Kemi Badenoch revs up her cost-cutting chainsaw*
'I wouldn't literally use a chainsaw, but it was a very, very visual story that he told about making sure that Argentina lived within its means,' Badenoch said.
She admitted Britain had 'a different set-up' to Argentina but told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips on Sky News: 'We need to start thinking about the next generation. We are borrowing our children's money to pay for today, to pay for welfare. We're paying £100 billion on debt interest. That's just not fair.'
Badenoch previously pledged to stop people with milder mental health problems from claiming disability benefits. The government was forced to abandon plans to cut eligibility for welfare after a revolt by Labour backbenchers.
While cuts in other areas are likely to be far more contentious for a Tory party heavily dependent on older voters, Badenoch insisted 'we need to live within our means' as a country. Farage has pledged to remove the two-child benefit cap as he seeks to win over cultural conservative voters who often want more public spending.
Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, is expected to raise taxes in the autumn to cover the cost of retreats on cuts to welfare and pensioners' winter fuel payments, along with deteriorating economic forecasts and the rising cost of borrowing.