There is “no point” in nurses going on strike, a Cabinet minister has said, as the Royal College of Nursing prepared to announce the results of a ballot of its 300,000 members.
Education Secretary Gillian Keegan claimed that offering nurses a bigger pay rise would “fuel inflation” and force the Government to “raise a lot more money”.
NHS trusts are bracing for the results of the strike ballot to be released on Wednesday afternoon, amid fears that patients could face disruption to operations and appointments.
Members have been balloted at a hospital level and each trust must clear a 50 per cent turnout to participate, meaning that strike action and service levels could vary greatly according to region.
The RCN has claimed that the Government’s offer of a £1,400 pay rise is insufficient for nurses coping with a huge surge in energy bills and rent hikes. The union has demanded a pay rise of 5 per cent above inflation, which is currently at 10.1 per cent.
Speaking ahead of the results, Ms Keegan told Sky News: “I don’t think there’s any point in going on strike.
“I would urge the nurses to continue those discussions, but the reality is if we gave massive above-inflation rises, not only would we have to raise a lot more money, but it would actually fuel inflation.
“This is the problem. We really have to tackle inflation.”
Asked about nurses using food banks, she suggested that most were doing so because of a broken “relationship or boiler”.
Ms Keegan told Sky News: “Quite often when you go to food banks, something will have happened, you know, something will have broken down – either a relationship or boiler or anything.
“Usually they’re in an emergency situation.”
Recent analysis conducted for the union by London Economic showed that an experienced nurse’s salary has fallen by 20 per cent in real-terms since 2010. Last month, nurses in London told the standard they had reached the “point of desperation”.
An RCN spokesperson said: “Our strike action will be as much for patients as it is for nurses - we have their support in doing this.
"As we begin action, politicians in every part of the UK will be challenged to back their nursing staff and understand the strength of public support.”
Health workers in other unions, including ambulance staff, hospital porters and cleaners, are also voting on industrial action over pay.
On Sunday, Cabinet Office minister Oliver Dowden said that the NHS would prioritise essential services in the event of strike action.
“We have well-oiled contingencies in place and the Department of Health is across how we would deal with a scenario like this should it arise,” he told Sky News.
“We will make sure we prioritise the most essential services – emergency services and so on. But of course there would be an impact as a result of a strike like that.”The union which represents close to half a million nurses across the UK is expected to announce its first UK-wide strike action in its 106-year history.
“I would continue to urge nurses and others to resist going out on strike even if they have voted to do so. We have already agreed quite considerable support for nurses.
“Of course, if you are in the situation where you have a large number of nurses going out on strike, of course that is going to have an impact for example on some elective surgery and other activities.”
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We value the hard work of NHS staff including nurses, and are working hard to support them – including by giving over one million NHS workers a pay rise of at least £1,400 this year as recommended by the independent NHS Pay Review Body, on top of 3% last year when pay was frozen in the wider public sector.
“Industrial action is a matter for unions, and we urge them to carefully consider the potential impacts on patients.”
