The BMA council will meet on Thursday 28 June to discuss the effect of yesterday’s industrial action by doctors and whether to take any further steps over government plans to alter their pension scheme.

A council meeting will be held immediately after the BMA’s annual representatives meeting ends in Bournemouth on Thursday. The meeting’s first task is to elect a new chairman of the BMA council to replace Hamish Meldrum and then hold a special session on the pension dispute.

Further action that could be considered includes a repeat of this week’s industrial action, when doctors came to work but only saw patients if they needed urgent care and in which many routine and elective procedures were cancelled. The BMA could also decide to disengage …