A local Member of the Senedd (MS) responded to the Chancellor’s budget announcement calling the 1% NHS pay rise “an insult to valued health workers.”
Siân Gwenllian MS, the Member of the Senedd for Arfon responded, criticising the UK Government’s 1% pay offer to nurses.
“The UK Government needs to urgently re-think its paltry and insulting 1% pay rise offered to NHS workers.
“To some, the proposal is in effect a pay cut. Newly qualified nurses would face a real-terms cut of £307 over the next two years.
“Our nurses will rightly see the 1% offer as a kick in the teeth.
“Months of dealing with the pandemic is taking its toll on the workforce. Over the coming months, their wellbeing should be of paramount importance. The Conservative Government’s insulting offer will leave many feeling dejected and neglected.”
A recent poll reveals that 72% of the public believe the pay deal should be more generous.
Siân Gwenllian MS claimed that her party would “invest in the NHS workforce, including parity of treatment for care staff.”
She added: “To truly get to grips with pressures on the workforce, historic long waiting times and backlog on diagnosis and treatments, we need to build a robust and resilient national health and care service – embarking on the training and recruiting of 1,000 new doctors and 5,000 new nurses and other health professionals.
“The past year just goes to show that we are all deeply thankful to health and care workers for their sacrifices. But things can’t be allowed to go back to how they were before.
“We need more than empty gestures and clapping
“That’s why many of us are appalled by the 1% offer and will be demanding a fair settlement for health and care staff, many of whom are going way beyond the proverbial extra mile as they care for our loved ones.”
