DAUK accuses health secretary of breaching ministerial code while undermining BMA

The Doctors’ Association (DAUK) has backed a call for the Prime Minister to investigate whether health secretary Wes Streeting’s attacks on the BMA have breached ministerial code.

The group of frontline doctors also raised ‘serious concerns’ about the Government’s decision to dilute the BMA’s role in GP contract negotiations.

DAUK, a non-profit organisation led by frontline doctors, wrote to NHS England saying that the BMA GP committee, as the trade union that has ‘held the statutory right to negotiate GP contracts since the foundation of the NHS’, should remain the exclusive negotiator when it comes to the terms under which GPs work.

It comes after Pulse revealed that as part of GP contract negotiations for 2026/27 the Government will ‘consult’ the BMA’s GP committee, alongside a wider group of stakeholders, including patient groups, rather than as the sole negotiator.

The DAUK letter to NHSE’s director of primary care Dr Amanda Doyle said: ‘DAUK fully supports the BMA GPC in their negotiations and believes they are the “correct” organisation to ensure the GP contract meets the needs for patients, in a way that can be achieved by those who will deliver it.’

The association has also supported a complaint against Mr Streeting over the language he used to criticise the BMA.

It signed a letter to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, written by Nottinghamshire LMC chair Dr Shan Hussain, urging the PM to investigate whether Mr Streeting has breached the ministerial code.

The language mentioned included Mr Streeting comparing the BMA to a ‘cartel’ at the NHS Providers conference in November and a recent interview with Sky News, in which Mr Streeting accused the BMA of ‘juvenile delinquency’ and behaving like ‘moaning Minnies’.

Dr Hussain’s letter said: ‘As a result of these remarks, the reputation of the BMA, a respected professional body, has been publicly undermined. The language used was strongly derogatory, dismissive of the organisation’s professional standing, and appears intended to degrade public confidence in the BMA’s role.’

The ministerial code sets out the standards of conduct expected of ministers and how they discharge their duties, and says that ministers are ‘expected to maintain high standards of behaviour’ and to behave in a way that ‘upholds the highest standards of propriety’.

Dr Hussain added: ‘Whilst I appreciate that professional disputes are an emotive subject and ministers are entitled to express opinions, the persistent use of derisive, demeaning, and reputationally damaging language – especially in public and directed at a professional organisation – goes beyond mere policy disagreement or robust political debate.

‘By publicly branding the BMA with terms such as “cartel”, “reckless”, “out of touch” and “moaning Minnies”, Mr Streeting has not only attached the organisation’s policies but also its legitimacy, professional standing and integrity.’

DAUK co-chair Dr Ellen Welch said: ‘The attacks made by the health secretary on a number of occasions aren’t what the public expect from their MPs, and certainly not from a secretary of state. His comments are unnecessarily unpleasant and hostile.

‘The BMA is a democratic organisation and its representatives have been voted for by its membership.

‘Therefore attacks on the BMA, such as accusing it of juvenile delinquency, are attacks on its membership of highly-trained, highly-skilled, and highly-motivated doctors.

‘We support the calls for the Prime Minister to investigate whether they constitute a breach of the code of conduct.’

Pulse has contacted NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care for comment.

Last week, hundreds of grassroots GPs signed letters to health secretary Wes Streeting demanding ‘mutual respect’ amid the current row between the Government and the BMA.

DAUK GP co-lead Dr Steve Taylor said: ‘We wanted to make it clear that the BMA is the correct and legally-established organisation to negotiate the GP contract.

‘It is best placed to ensure the contract is workable for GPs and delivers safe, high-quality care for patients.’

Pulse has recently looked into the reasons and timeline of the breakdown in relationship between the BMA and the Government.