Responding to the BMA announcement of a new 96-hour walkout by junior doctors in England on 11-15 April, Saffron Cordery, deputy chief executive at NHS Providers said:

"The prospect of a 96-hour strike by junior doctors will ring alarm bells for trust leaders up and down the country.

"It would immediately follow a four-day bank holiday weekend, meaning demand will have piled up before the strike even begins on 11 April. There will also be no exemptions.

"This threatens the biggest disruption from NHS walkouts so far. There should be no doubt about the scale of the impact on patients, staff and the NHS. No one wants this.

"It's hugely disappointing that talks between the government and the doctors' unions have broken down.

"Trust leaders understand why junior doctors feel they've been pushed to this point, but it's incumbent on all involved to urgently re-enter talks in good faith."