Responding to the announcement that the government and British Medical Association's (BMA) Junior Doctors’ Committee will enter formal negotiations Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said:

“The government and BMA agreeing to get round the table to begin formal negotiations is a very welcome development.

“This is a vital first step towards the resolving the long-running industrial action which has caused so much disruption for staff and patients. Strikes have had an enormous impact on the NHS, with around 1.5 million operations and appointments cancelled at an estimated cost of £3 billion. NHS leaders and their teams want to get on with the hard work of improving performance and tackling care backlogs, not rescheduling cancelled appointments and plugging staffing gaps.

“We hope these negotiations can find a long-lasting solution to the genuine grievances many junior doctors have about their pay, conditions and training.”