Support for junior doctors has grown since they first took strike action over pay and working hours earlier this month, according to a new poll.
The survey by Opinium, during and immediately after the strike on 12 January, shows 53% of people believed the action was justified against 21% who did not. This compares with a poll in October that found that 41% were in support of action with 26% against.
The proportion of Conservative voters who said they thought the strikes were justified rose slightly from 27% in October to 36% in the latest survey, while backing among Labour voters grew more sharply, from 54% to 76%.
Of those who thought the strikes were justified, 72% said this was because “doctors already work long enough hours”, while 67% said “more doctors are needed rather than changes in hours”.
Just over half, 55%, said changes to junior doctor contracts would mean they would become overworked, with the same proportion saying doctors had the same right to strike as other workers.
Thousands of medical staff were involved in the action against health secretary Jeremy Hunt’s proposed changes to junior doctor contracts. A second junior doctors’ strike has been suspended by the BMA but planned action on 10 February could still go ahead if negotiations stall.
A total of 46% backed the strikes because they thought the changes proposed would be unsafe for patients, while 39% believed that doctors are already underpaid for the work that they do.
Of those who still think the strikes are unjustified, just under three-quarters (74%) agreed with the statement that “Other workers have to accept unsociable working hours”; 69% believed that “weekend and weekday NHS coverage should be the same”, the same proportion as thought that “doctors choose to do a job with unsocial hours anyway”. More than half of those opposing the strike (59%) said that “doctors are an essential public service and should never strike regardless of their grievances”, a similar proportion (58%) to those who said that “the new hours proposed are still reasonable”. More than half, 55%, agreed that “the strike will be unsafe for patients”, along with 53% who believed that “doctors are already paid better than other public sector workers”.
Opinium Research carried out an online survey of 2,003 UK adults from 12 to 14 January 2016
