Warning that nursing strikes may continue until Christmas unless a pay deal is reached

Nursing strikes could continue until Christmas unless a pay deal is reached, union leaders have warned, as calls intensify for the Government to step up negotiations.
By Ruby Kitchen
Published 17th Apr 2023, 06:00 BST

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) announced on Friday that its members will walk out for 48 hours from 8pm on April 30 after rejecting the Government’s pay offer.

Health Secretary Steve Barclay has warned that fresh strikes would have a “deeply concerning” impact on emergency services and cancer care.

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But RCN leader Pat Cullen called for the Government to improve its offer as NHS Providers warned the situation is "not sustainable".

General Secretary of the trade unionist Royal College of Nursing Pat Cullen appearing on the BBC's "Sunday Morning" with journalist Laura Kuenssberg. - Nurses in Britain are prepared to strike until Christmas if they cannot reach a deal with the government on pay, the leader of the country's main nursing union said. (Photo by JEFF OVERS/BBC/AFP via Getty Images)General Secretary of the trade unionist Royal College of Nursing Pat Cullen appearing on the BBC's "Sunday Morning" with journalist Laura Kuenssberg. - Nurses in Britain are prepared to strike until Christmas if they cannot reach a deal with the government on pay, the leader of the country's main nursing union said. (Photo by JEFF OVERS/BBC/AFP via Getty Images)
General Secretary of the trade unionist Royal College of Nursing Pat Cullen appearing on the BBC's "Sunday Morning" with journalist Laura Kuenssberg. - Nurses in Britain are prepared to strike until Christmas if they cannot reach a deal with the government on pay, the leader of the country's main nursing union said. (Photo by JEFF OVERS/BBC/AFP via Getty Images)

When asked if the union will stop strike action, Ms Cullen told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg On Sunday programme: “No, our nurses will absolutely not do that.

“We have strike action for the end of this month and the beginning of May. Then we will move immediately to ballot our members.

“If that ballot is successful it will mean further strike action right up until Christmas.”

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The RCN's announcement came as around 47,000 junior doctors finished their 96-hour strike in a separate dispute over pay at 7am on Saturday.

The fresh strikes mean for the first time NHS nurses in emergency departments, intensive care and cancer wards will take industrial action, but Ms Cullen assured patients they would leave picket lines to deal with emergencies.

Strike action has intensified over recent months, with hundreds of staff at the Care Quality Commission (CQC) also to work to rule from next week.

NHS Providers deputy chief executive Saffron Cordery said the pay dispute was having a “massive impact” on patients. She told the programme that 330,000 procedures, operations and appointments have been cancelled so far – not including the impact from strikes in the past week.

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On Friday, Unison’s NHS members accepted the NHS pay offer of a 5 per cent pay rise this year and a cash payment for last year. However, 54 per cent of RCN members voted to reject the deal.

Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said that warnings over rolling strikes until Christmas must act as a "wake-up call" as she called on ministers to “get around the table” and find a solution, while Labour’s Wes Streeting appealed to the RCN to continue to protect emergency lifesaving care if it strikes again.

Tory Party chairman Greg Hands said more strikes by nurses would “clearly have an impact” as he declined to criticise them for deciding not to provide cover for emergencies.

Mr Hands told Sky News: “I think the public are very concerned, understandably, and we will do everything that we can, and I’m sure the management of the NHS will do everything that it can to make sure that the impact of the strike is kept under control. But I wouldn’t be being truthful if I didn’t say it will have an impact. Nurses going on strike will clearly have an impact.”

Related topics:BBCGovernmentRoyal College of Nursing