Junior doctors in England voted in favour of going on strike in their dispute with the government over a new contract.

More than 37,700 members - over two-thirds of the workforce - took part in the British Medical Association ballot. Ninety-eight per cent voted in favour of a full strike.

The walkouts will be held on December 1, 8 and 16.

The action is likely to lead to the cancelling and rescheduling of routine appointments, tests and operations.

A spokesperson for Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust said: ‘We are developing a plan to maintain services where possible during the period of any industrial action and to ensure that we minimise inconvenience to patients.’

On the first day of action, from 8am on December 1 to 8am on December 2, junior doctors will still staff emergency care. On the other two dates, between 8am and 5pm, they will walk out in the knowledge there will be other medics – including consultants, staff doctors and locums - that can plug the gaps.

The vote was taken after thousands of junior doctors across the country have taken part in a series of protests in recent months during the contract dispute.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt made a last ditch attempt to persuade doctors to accept the new contracts.

But the BMA said there are insufficient safeguards to stop hospitals overworking doctors and they could lose out financially.

After the result of the ballot was announced, BMA leader Dr Mark Porter said: ‘We regret the inevitable disruption that this will cause but it is the government’s adamant insistence on imposing a contract that is unsafe for patients in the future, and unfair for doctors now and in the future, that has brought us to this point.’