Sunak tells striking doctors to withdraw 'unreasonable' pay demand

The Independent's Morning Headlines email [The Independent]( April 12, 2023 [View online](   [Morning Headlines]( 1 / [Sunak tells striking doctors: Withdraw your ‘unreasonable’ 35% pay demand if you want a deal]( Rishi Sunak has urged junior doctors to call off their strike and withdraw an “unreasonable” 35 per cent pay demand as a former health minister said their demand for a wage hike was “bonkers”. Downing Street insisted there would be no talks with the [British Medical Association]( until the group abandoned their starting position, saying the request was “completely out of step” with other pay settlements in the public sector. It came as former Tory health minister Lord Bethell told The Independent that junior doctors are behaving like the Socialist Workers Party and that the demand is “not a reasonable place for grown-ups to begin a conversation”.   2 / [Nicola Bulley: Police divers return to River Wyre six weeks after body of missing mother found]( The mother of two went missing on 27 January prompting a three week search 3 / [Queen Elizabeth ‘wanted William and Harry to go to war’]( ‘My grandsons have taken my shilling, therefore they must do their duty,’ late monarch claimed to have said 4 / [Hospital of horrors: 1,643 ‘sexual safety incidents’ in a single 59-bed children’s unit]( Investigation: Shocking figures reveal thousands of sexual incidents in the country’s 209 children’s mental health units since 2019 5 / [UK weather: Snow and heavy rainfall to follow 70mph gusts as forecasters warn of ‘unsettled’ week]( Potential for power outages and large waves in coastal areas across the south and west The Big Question [What are Joe Biden’s Irish roots?]( J[oe Biden]( arrived in Belfast, [Northern Ireland](, on Tuesday evening to mark the 25-year anniversary of the [Good Friday Agreement](. For an American president with deep Irish roots, it won’t be a typical trip to the ancestral homeland. Mr Biden is expected to meet representatives from five Northern Irish political parties at a time when the [Democratic Unionist Party]( (DUP) is continuing to boycott the devolved power-sharing government in Stormont in protest at post-[Brexit]( trading rules that treat the province differently to the rest of the UK. US national security spokesman [John Kirby]( said Mr Biden would not attempt to pressure the DUP into returning to the assembly, commenting: “The president will have the opportunity to engage with the political parties of Northern Ireland before his speech [at Ulster University], and as we’ve said, he looks forward to continuing to engage them as we work to improve the lives and livelihoods of all communities there.” Mr Biden has, however, been fiercely critical of former British prime minister [Boris Johnson]( in the past over his threat to scrap the Northern Ireland Protocol of Britain’s EU withdrawal agreement, a move that risked jeopardising the hard-won peace secured by the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, which drew a line under three decades of deadly sectarian violence during the Troubles. [For the full story click here]( £99 £20 for 1 year ✓ Full access to Premium news analysis ✓ Advert-free reading across web and app ✓ The Independent Daily Edition newspaper ✓ Puzzles, virtual event tickets and more [SUBSCRIBE NOW](   WATCH / [Why are Junior Doctors striking? | You Ask The Questions]( NUMBER OF THE DAY 35% – Rishi Sunak has urged junior doctors to call off their strike and withdraw an “unreasonable” 35 per cent pay demand as a former health minister said their demand for a wage hike was “bonkers”. Read more here]( Quote of the day “Lucy, I have a choice: I could lament over the next 25 years of marriage that I’ve lost, but I actually feel blessed to have had 25 years of a beautiful marriage with you.” – Rabbi Leo Dee, speaking at the funeral of his wife, [British-Israeli woman]( Lucy Dee, who [died]( three days after a [West Bank]( shooting which also [killed two of their daughters](. [Read more here](   Other stories you might like [Elon Musk reveals when Twitter’s legacy blue ticks will be removed]( [Widow of BBC presenter who died after Covid jab says ‘no alternative’ but to sue AstraZeneca]( [Tory MP announces he won’t be standing in Boris Johnson’s old Oxfordshire seat](   Articles available exclusively to subscribers Simon Calder - [Does the raised threat level in Northern Ireland mean extra checks for travellers?](   OTHER NEWSLETTERS YOU MIGHT LIKE [The Race Report]( The Race Report Fortnightly Written by Nadine White [Join now]( [The View from Westminster ]( The View from Westminster Every weekday Written by John Rentoul [Join now]( If you can spare a minute we’d love your [feedback]( on our newsletters. [The Independent]( Join the conversation or follow us [Facebook]( [Twitter]( Download the free Independent app Please do not reply directly to this email You are currently registered to receive The Independent's Morning Headlines newsletter. Add us to your safe list of senders. If you do not want to receive The Independent's Morning Headlines newsletter, please [unsubscribe](list_name=IND_Headlines_Masterlist_CDP). If you no longer wish to receive any newsletters or promotional emails from The Independent, you can unsubscribe [here](. This e-mail was sent by Independent Digital News and Media Ltd, 14-18 Finsbury Square, London EC2A 1AH. Registered in England and Wales with company number 07320345. Read our [privacy notice]( and [cookie policy](.