Doctors in the Isle of Man are to be balloted for industrial action, the BMA has announced.

The doctors, who are employed by Manx Care, are asking for a 7.9% uplift in pay for the 2026-27 year.

They say that their real pay has fallen 29% since 2008.

The ballot opens on Friday June 12 and closes on Thursday July 2.

Last year, doctors called off industrial action, which would have been the first doctors strike in the island’s history, after they voted to accept a new pay deal.

But they warned then that future action would be likely if future pay deals did not bring them closer to pay restoration.

Chair of the Isle of Man Medical Society, Dr Prakash Thiagarajan said: ‘Doctors on the Isle of Man deserve to be paid fairly for the work they do, and the pay cuts we have faced over the last decade are unfair and untenable.

‘No doctor wants to go on strike, but without an acceptable offer from Manx Care, this is a very real possibility. Manx Care can prevent any strikes by addressing the severe real terms pay cuts that Isle of Man doctors have endured.’

Deputy chair of council Dr Emma Runswick said: ‘Isle of Man doctors have been undervalued for far too long.

‘As a result of organising in the BMA and the threat of strike action last year, doctors won a significant step towards reversing real terms pay cuts, but the fight for fair pay is not over. Manx doctors in the BMA, like on mainland, stand ready to fight for recognition of their skills and expertise.’

Noble's Hospital was placed under its highest alert level last month following an abnormally high number of admissions.

Elective procedures were suspended after bed occupancy reached 98.9%.

Manx Care's chief executive officer Teresa Cope and chairman Wendy Reid both announced in May that they would be stepping down later this year.

The latest annual Culture of Care Barometer survey, released in February, found that less than a quarter of doctors at Manx Care say they’d recommend it as place to work.