Senior female doctors earning less than male colleagues

A BBC investigation has revealed that senior NHS female doctors are earning less than their male counterparts, with only five women in the top 100 earning consultants in England.

This is despite more than a third of the workforce being female. Senior female doctors have described the findings as ‘disappointing’, arguing that more needs to be done to tackle the gender pay gap in medicine.

With the top-paid man earning £739,460, which is two-and-a-half times that of the top woman (£281,616), the investigation also showed that there was a 12 per cent pay gap in the earnings of male and female consultants, which translates to nearly £14,000 a year.

NHS Employers has said that the consultants' contract allows high premiums to be charged for overtime and creates a bonus system that is skewed.

Dr Anthea Mowat, of the British Medical Association, said: “With women making up the majority of medical graduates in recent years, it's vitally important that we address the root causes of the gender pay gap, and develop a wider programme of work to eliminate it across the medical workforce.”