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PM hints at steps to avert more strikes by nurses

Remarks by Rishi Sunak provide first suggestion that government may be ready to soften its stance on refusing direct talks to resolve pay dispute
Prime minister Rishi Sunak speaking in London today

Remarks by Rishi Sunak provide first suggestion that government may be ready to soften its stance on refusing direct talks to resolve pay dispute

Prime minister Rishi Sunak speaking in London today
Prime minister Rishi Sunak speaking in London today Picture: Alamy

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has called for a ‘reasonable dialogue’ with unions ahead of planned NHS strike action this month.

In a speech in east London today Mr Sunak promised an update on the government’s next steps, the first hint that it may take steps to avert further industrial action.

Mr Sunak said: ‘We hugely value public sector workers like nurses. They do incredibly important work and that’s why we want a reasonable dialogue with the unions about what’s responsible and fair for our country. And in the coming days we will update you on the government’s next steps.’

PM’s remarks come against the backdrop of an NHS in crisis

The prime minister said he is open to holding conversations with nurses to avert further strike action, but said union demands for a 19% pay rise are ‘not affordable’.

‘We want to have good, two-way, open, honest conversations – those have to be rooted in what’s reasonable, what’s affordable, what’s responsible for the country. I’m keen to have those conversations,’ Mr Sunak said.

His remarks come against the backdrop of an NHS in crisis, with record numbers of patients waiting more than 12 hours in emergency departments, paramedics and nurses treating patients in ambulances outside hospitals, and 130,000 staff vacancies.

Nurses in England are set to strike again on 18 and 19 January, while paramedics will walk out on 11 and 23 January.

The RCN has called for a ‘renewed sense of urgency’ from the government on pay negotiations to avoid further strikes.

RCN’s Pat Cullen accuses PM of being ‘detached from the reality’ of what is happening in the NHS

RCN general secretary Pat Cullen, in a scathing letter to health and social care secretary Steve Barclay following Mr Sunak’s speech and in response to current emergency care pressures, said: ‘I am compelled to put on record that what is unfolding in England’s health service this week is far from ordinary “winter pressures”. Nor can COVID and flu be blamed for the current performance of the NHS.’

She accused Mr Sunak of being ‘detached from the reality’ of what is happening in the NHS and said his speech ‘focused on false promises and hollow boasts’ instead of practical measures to protect the health service.

Ms Cullen said a lack of workforce planning was a direct cause of the dire pressures in the health service.

‘The responsibility for equipping publicly funded NHS and social care services so that they can meet the needs of the population lies squarely with the UK government. It is disingenuous to insist that these services are adequately resourced, when the evidence clearly demonstrates that they are at the point of collapse,’ she wrote.

Mr Sunak reiterated that the challenges facing the NHS are in part the legacy of the COVID pandemic and the impact of the war in Ukraine, but said the government ‘needs to address these problems, not just talk about them’.

He promised to reduce NHS waiting times, partly by giving patients more choice over their care, but provided no details on addressing immediate emergency care pressures and workforce shortages.


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