Behind the protective shield, Rishi Sunak’s Conservative government has decided for ostensibly technical and neutral reasons to wage a long – largely ideological – battle against unions and NHS workers. English). More than 100,000 nurses staged another 12-hour strike on Tuesday. And the next day, this Wednesday, the paramedics – some 10,000 employees – go on strike with the minimum obligation to participate only in emergency life and death care. The Prime Minister is aware he will face months of strikes but has rejected calls to roll up his sleeves and begin serious negotiations with the strikers. Some MPs from his party are concerned that public opinion is increasingly turning against him. The NHS board has also urged the government to sit up and speak up, sounding the alarm that it cannot protect patients. “We never want to alarm people, but we have now reached a level where it is necessary to say publicly that we can no longer avoid certain risks if these attacks occur,” said Matthew Taylor, CEO of the BBC. in which the autonomous health centers converge that together form the public health network.
“Our door is always open for discussion and we want to be constructive when it comes to the future. But what I would most like to see is an NHS that reduces congestion and waiting lists. [de pacientes], thus improving the quality of patient care,” Sunak made clear this Tuesday when he appeared before the chairmen of the main parliamentary committees. “The best way to help [a los trabajadores del NHS] and to help all citizens, we must contain and reduce inflation as quickly as possible. We have to make sure that the decisions we make don’t make things worse.”
Sunak and his ministers follow the recommendations of the Pay Review Bodies (Pay Review Bodies, as they were originally called), a group of independent experts affiliated with various public bodies, who annually review the wage situation in the sector and make their recommendations for the household. For the period 2022-2023, the General Directorate of Health recommended a net salary increase of approximately 1,600 euros per year per employee. This is a far cry from the 19.2% increase requested by the Royal Nursing Corps or the target for ambulance drivers to raise their wages above current inflation (0.7%). And the truth is, as the government knows, the experts’ recommendations are not binding. In fact, in previous years Downing Street rejected almost non-existent inflation increases proposed by various organizations.
“Royal College of Nursing requests are prohibitively expensive in the difficult times we live in and they would be taking money from other services. [sanitarios] on the front lines still recovering from the effects of the pandemic,” warned Health Secretary Steve Barclay, admitting to discussing only patient safety issues and minimal benefits.
According to calculations by the NHS itself, there are almost 47,000 healthcare openings across the country. Low wages, the fear of EU workers triggering a devastating pandemic that has pushed them to the brink, coupled with a Brexit that has prevented new recruits from arriving in the UK and rising demand for services have pushed UK public health to the limit driven population. Sunak is obsessed with reducing inflation, but the problem he faces in the long run is a completely overworked and inept NHS.
ambulance and army
Secretary Barclay on Tuesday unleashed the fury of unions by convening a last-minute meeting for the start of the first of two strikes – on December 21 and 28 – which paramedics had called for. “I am deeply concerned that some union representatives are still unable to ensure that their departments are answering all emergency calls.” Workers’ representatives accuse the minister of creating “a smoke screen” with doubts about the minimal benefits for their unwillingness to negotiate to cover it up. “Harmony [la central sindical] has shown incredible responsibility in the way it handles this conflict. The range of the ambulance attack has been significantly reduced to 12 hours. There is clearly room for escalation,” warned Sara Gorton, the union’s representative for public health.
The nervousness conveyed to the population also contributed to the government advising citizens to “avoid dangerous activities this Wednesday,” Health Minister Will Quince himself told the BBC. The NHS board came to ask Britons “not to drink alcohol during the Christmas parties planned for the next few hours”, as it is more than certain that there will be no emergency services to deal with accidents related to possible drunkenness.
In recent weeks, the government has trained some 600 soldiers from the three armies to operate ambulances in areas with the highest number of 911 calls. Strict orders basically prevent this extraordinary reinforcement from producing a lifelong response. These are non-emergency departures related to the transfer of patients who need to travel to the center where they receive routine treatment.
Source: La Neta Neta
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
