24th March 2023
Nurses seek no confidence vote over pay deal
Nursing staff are attempting to trigger a vote of no confidence in their union, it requires 1000 signatures. They would receive a one-off bonus and a rise of 5% in 2023/24. The rate of inflation is currently 10.4%.
“The offer does not boost pay significantly”
Normal pay increases are consolidated, which means they carry forward into succeeding years and apply to the pensions paid out at retirement. By contrast, “bonus payments” do not carry forward and do not contribute to pension. Failure to resolve the pay crisis will do nothing to retain staff or end the staff shortages.
Pay offer: “no new money…out of exisiting budgets”
Tory minister says: “…I am confident that we can find it, either within the NHS budget or wider government spending”. So more NHS underfunding is on its way.
Tax break for the wealthy
There are fairer and better ways to deal with that problem than simply handing over a billion pounds of taxpayers’ money to fund a tax cut for the wealthiest 1%, 84% of whom aren’t doctors. The £4 billion tax giveaway will benefit the wealthiest people by dramatically increasing how much they can stash away in pensions while enjoying the full tax benefits.
Six billion unwanted masks, gloves and aprons
“‘Something has gone wrong” claims a Government procurement veteran. “Something has gone horribly wrong”. “When supplies arrived staff found stickers covering expired use-by dates. One box of gowns was opened to reveal an infestation of insects. Treasury minutes show that, of the 37.9 billion pieces of PPE – aprons, gloves, visors, masks, gowns, goggles and the like – that were acquired at a cost of £13.1 billion.
We are the least likely to see a GP
An international study finds that people in the UK are the least likely to get an appointment with a GP.