London: Nurses in the UK are set to go on the biggest-ever strike over the salary issue. The nurses’ strike is likely to go ahead as the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is scheduled to release the results of the strike votes in the next few days, which ended last week.

The final results are being counted but RCN sources said that a majority of nurses have voted in favour of action over salaries.

The RCN has recommended a walkout of its nearly 300,000 members, with non-essential services being affected if these strikes occur but emergency care not.

“A large number of staff-veterans and new recruits are both deciding that they cannot see a future in a nursing profession that is not valued or treated fairly,” said Pat Cullen, general secretary and chief executive of the RCN.

Cabinet minister Oliver Dowden said essential services would be given priority.

He said thar he had demanded an increase of 5% above the inflation rate which is currently above 12%, but no country in the UK has offered close to it.

In England and Wales, NHS staff, including nurses, have been given an average of 4.75% more, in Scotland, NHS staff were initially offered 5%, but this has been changed to a flat rate of just over £2,200, which works just over 8% for a newly qualified nurse.  In Northern Ireland, nurses have not yet received a salary increase.

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London: The government is on track to meet its manifesto commitment to deliver 50,000 more nurses in the NHS by 2024, with over 27,000 more nurses now working across the NHS.

A progress report published today shows that overall total nurse numbers now stand at 327,907, as of December 2021, compared to 300,904 in September 2019. By March 2024, there are set to be around 351,000 full-time equivalent nurses to provide world-class care across the health service. The new report also sets out the government’s plans for reaching the target.

The government is focused on recruiting and retaining nurses to compensate for those retiring, reducing their hours or leaving the NHS.

The report is published ahead of a speech this week from the Health and Social Secretary on his plans for long-term healthcare reform to support the NHS to recover and tackle the COVID backlogs.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said, “It’s fantastic to see the progress we have made towards our manifesto commitment of delivering 50,000 more nurses by 2024. There are now over 27,000 more nurses providing exceptional care and treatment for patients across the country every day.”

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