The government will return to the negotiating table today in an effort to resolve their long-running dispute over contracts for junior doctors.
The British Medical Association will hold fresh talks after Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt agreed to a five-day pause in the imposition of the new contracts.
Dr Johann Malawana, chairman of the BMA's junior doctors committee, said he hoped "real progress can now be made to ending this dispute".
A Labour peer has welcomed news of a "pause" in a stand-off between the government and junior doctors - but condemned the government's "cack-handed" approach to tackling the dispute.
It comes after Lord David Prior announced the government was willing to "pause" the imposition of new contracts - with a corresponding agreement from the British Medical Association (BMA) not to discuss further strike action - provided the BMA agreed to discuss "outstanding" issues such as Saturday pay.
Lord Philip Hunt of Kings Heath said the government's handling of the dispute had been "cack-handed", and said he believed the pause proposal should have been accepted without setting "new conditions".
"Obviously we hope the outcome of this will be successful and it will be resolved," he added.
He asked how junior doctors would be brought "back into the fold and given the support they so richly deserve" after being "disengaged from the service" by the ongoing disagreement.
The chairman of the Junior Doctors' Committee said he hoped "real progress can be made to ending this dispute".
Senior medical staff have urged junior doctors and the Government to break the deadlock over the medics' long-running contract dispute.