NHSpay deals attract widespread criticism

The increases mean that the Government has accepted all of the Pay Review Body recommendations for NHS staff pay uplifts, although consultants will receive a 1% pay increase until November 2006 when they will receive a further increase of 1.2%. Other increases include 2.5% for nurses and other healthcare professionals, 2.2% for junior doctors, 2.4% for salaried dentists and 3% for general dentists.

The announcement follows intensive lobbying from the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), which on behalf of its members described the initially proposed 2% pay award as “simply not enough”. Janet Davies, director for service delivery at RCN responded to the improved 2.5% figure by stating that while the award meant Government recognises nurses’ strength of feeling by meeting the Pay Review Body recommendation in full, it is not “the substantial increase that nurses deserve”.

Consultants’ groups also responded to their staged pay increase by describing themselves as “singled out for a vindictive award”. In response Patricia Hewitt said: “We understand consultants will be disappointed, but this works out that we are on average asking them to sacrifice less than £80 per month for seven months.
The pay review recommendation will then be paid in full. “Taken together, these decisions are both fair but affordable and they send a clear signal to the NHS that we are serious about the need to restore financial balance while we continue to improve patient care.”