Government confirms 1% pay rise for nurses

The Department of Health (DH) has agreed to a 1% pay rise for NHS nurses in England from April this year.

The 2016-17 increase will apply to all NHS staff on Agenda for Change contracts, in line with a recommendation from the NHS Pay Review Body (RB).

Chancellor George Osborne said last year that the government could only fund public sector pay increases to an average of 1% annually until 2020.

A DH spokesperson said: ‘It is thanks to the care, quality and dedication of NHS staff that we are beginning to deliver a safer seven-day NHS for patients. And in line with the rest of the public sector, we are pleased to announce that all NHS staff will receive a 1% pay increase.’

But Unison head of health Christina McAnea said it was disappointing that the RB had stuck to the 'artificial 1% freeze imposed by the chancellor', adding that the union would be consulting its members about the increase.

She said the pay rise fell ‘way below what health workers need and deserve after years of pay cuts’.

NHS Employers chief executive Danny Mortimer said employers will welcome the acceptance of the RB recommendation, but acknowledged that continued pay restraint across the public sector was a cause of concern for staff.