Commenting on the publication today (Tuesday) of the Health Select Committee report on the government’s spending review, UNISON head of health Christina McAnea said:
“The NHS doesn’t have the cash to sustain it until the end of the decade. Ministers claim to be protecting health spending, but the reality is very different.
“The extra money the government conjured up last year won’t make up for cuts to public health and health education now underway.
“What’s worse, the government is storing up yet more problems for the future through its unrealistic approach to pay and ill-considered plans for training tomorrow’s nurses.
“Limiting annual pay increases across the health service to one per cent means the NHS will struggle to attract and keep the right number of staff. National living wage commitments mean many health workers will end up with even less.
“Scrapping the student bursary will lead to higher spending on agency staff with too few new recruits to plug existing gaps. Either way, the NHS will continue to be in dire financial straits unless the government changes tack.”
See UNISON website