A nursing union chief has raised the prospect that strike action could go on for six months, as she appealed for Health Secretary Steve Barclay to hold last ditch talks to avert Tuesday’s walk out.
Patricia Marquis, Director of England for the Royal College of Nursing, said the union has a mandate for strikes to run to May next year although she insisted she “did not want it to last that long”.
The threat of protracted industrial action comes as nurses prepare for the second of two days of strike action before Christmas and ambulance staff prepare to walk out in a separate dispute over pay and conditions on Wednesday.
Speaking on Sunday evening, Mr Barclay called on trade unions to honour commitments to cover “life-threatening responses and emergency responses”. A Government source said that while his door remained open for talks, ministers will not budge on pay.
The RCN has demanded a pay rise of around 19 per cent but with 24 hours until the nurses walk out again, the source said there were not talks planned between Mr Barclay and the nurses or with Unison, which represents the majority of ambulance workers.
The Government’s emergency Cobra committee was set to meet on Monday to discuss contingency plans for the health strikes with hundreds of military personnel on standby to provide emergency support.
Ms Marquis told Times Radio that nurses wanted a “swift resolution” but that negotiations were entrenched because “we’ve got no one to talk to”.
On the threat of six months of action, Ms Marquis said: “That’s how long our mandate lasts. We do not want it to last that long. Not at all. What we want is a really swift resolution as quickly as possible to avoid nurses having to lose pay, to take strike action, to be on picket lines.
“The only reason we’re entrenched is because we’ve got no one to talk to about what the issue is. Sadly if there is no resolution, then our members have taken and voted to take strike action and the mandate for that lasts for six months.
“I really hope and I pray that that is not what happens. We do not want to see protracted strikes, nor do we want to see further disruption to the NHS and to the services that patients need.”
Unions and health services are under pressure to clarify what conditions they will cover during Wednesday’s walk out by ambulance workers.
While crews are expected to cover emergency Category One incidents during the strikes, which include life-threatening injuries, illnesses and cardiac arrests where the patient has stopped breathing and does not have a pulse, it is not clear whether they will cover all emergency Category Two conditions, which can include heart attacks, strokes, epilepsy and burns.
Speaking on a visit to Chelmsford Ambulance Operations Centre on Sunday night, Mr Barclay said: “It’s important that the trade unions honour the commitment they’ve given to safeguard both life-threatening responses and emergency responses.
“We haven’t actually had that confirmed in the practical arrangements that the unions put in place at each trust.
“I’m calling on them to do so. I’m very keen to continue working with them because all of us should be focused on patient safety.
“But if the trade unions insist on only answering calls from the picket line then that in turn creates a delay which can have an impact on patient safety.
“So I’m keen to continue the dialogue with them because it is important that everyone prioritises patient safety.”
No RCN or Unison meetings planned for today
Jason Killens, Chief Executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service, said discussions are continuing with union bosses on Monday over what exact services will be provided during strike days.
He said about 15 per cent of calls at his trust are deemed immediately life threatening and unions have agreed to cover those. All services would “remobilise” if there was a major incident, such as a terrorist attack.
However patients with conditions such as a broken leg would likely have to make their own way to hospital, he said.
“There is no doubt there will be disruption to services,“ Mr Killen told BBC Radio 4.
“My clear message is there will be disruption, there will be patients who will be waiting much longer than we would like and many will probably not receive a response at all.”
