a row is erupting after the government
suggested a 1
pay rise for most nhs workers in england
the proposal was submitted to the pay
review body for the health service
unions have warned ministers that they
face a backlash
if they go ahead with the idea with one
saying it's the worst kind of insult the
government could give health workers
after the past year fighting the
pandemic
a one percent pay rise would be below
the rate of inflation forecast in the
budget for next year
our deputy political editor vicky young
reports
staff in the nhs are used to pressure
but for the last year they've been
working flat out under the toughest of
circumstances
nurses porters paramedics just some of
those on the front line of a global
pandemic
their current pay deal is coming to an
end and today the government recommended
a one percent pay rise there's been a
furious
reaction and i'm just disgusted if
anybody wants
something extra in the pay packets for
cover nobody wants that we just want
something
that reflects that the work that we do
that we want a fair wage and
i don't think the government understands
at all what the nursing workforce does
when the government says look the
economy's taken
a massive hit and basically there isn't
any money what do you say to that
i understand it's a very difficult year
for the the whole world
absolutely i agree with that and but i
think this is a political decision
health department officials say the
kobit pandemic has placed a huge
strain on nhs finances and tonight the
business secretary highlighted the
difficulties facing
all parts of the economy no one is
doubting that
the nhs has been absolutely first class
uh in this whole
uh pandemic what i am uh suggesting is
that the whole economy
has been under huge pressure when i look
to people in the hospitality sector in
aviation in retail
many of them are very very worried that
they won't even be in a job in two or
three months
tonight in a statement the government
said pay rises in the rest of the public
sector
will be paused this year due to the
challenging economic environment
but we will continue to provide pay
rises for nhs workers
officials also say that over a million
nhs staff continue to benefit
from multi-year deals agreed with the
unions
it's meant rises of more than 12 percent
for newly qualified nurses
but labour say that's no consolation
it's an absolute kick in the teeth for
our nhs staff
they've been working so hard in this
crisis putting their
lives on the line many of them have died
and for rishi soon actor
offer them what could turn out to be a
cut
is an absolute disgrace
unions have contrasted the chancellor's
response with scotland and wales where
health and social care workers received
bonuses last year
they say clapping for the nhs isn't
enough
all this for the government really
couldn't be worse after the year that
nhs workers have had many of them
had all their leave cancelled morale
pretty
low it's no wonder really the unions
have reacted as they have tonight some
of them calling it
an absolute insult now the government's
talking about having to have
fair and affordable pay rises they say
that the economy has taken a hit many
other public sector workers are having
no
pay rise at all now this is a
recommendation it goes to an
independent pay review body they will
report back in may and ministers will
then make a final decision but i think
it is a real
sign of the competing pressures that the
chancellor
has to deal with with everyone having a
claim and wanting
pay going their way vicky thank you
so just 24 hours after the budget
pressure is already mounting on the
government to spend
more and pay more in certain parts of
the public sector
labour is accusing the chancellor of
hiding a funding cut for nhs running
costs like wages and medicines
one independent expert has warned that
more needs to be done to address the
huge pressure on public services once
the pandemic is over
our economics editor faisal islam has
been picking through the small print
for months the chancellor has been happy
to sign off billions in rescue funds
autographing his spending plans on
social media videos
you guys giving me the opportunity but
real public sector pay freezes and
bumper tax rises
are a far more difficult sale on the
latter at least he says
he's willing to assume the same personal
responsibility
i want to be upfront with people about
the challenges the shock that coronavast
has done to our economy has been
significant
and as i as i said yesterday i'll say
again today this won't be fixed
overnight it will it will be the work of
of many years decades and governments to
fully pay all that money back
but yesterday's was the biggest tax
raising budget
in over a quarter of a century eclipsing
george osborne's austerity vad rise
and the two highest gordon brown tax
raises including a hefty
national insurance hike just a little
smaller though than
norman lamont's crisis budget of 1993
so big tax rises and possibly more to
come and even then
lots of gaps if he really is to slash
borrowing
he may well have to increase taxes
further because the
spending cuts that he's penciled in
really don't look
terribly plausible he wants to spend
less going forward
than he was planning pre-pandemic
one important example may come more
quickly even after the extension of a 20
pound increase
in weekly universal credit until october
recipients such as esther de roy
say that it'll have to be extended again
it's been mentally very draining and
there have definitely been times where
um i've gone through um quite severe
burnout just trying to deal with it all
and the opposition honed in on 30
billion pounds lower
overall health spending implied in the
budget from next year
the result of less one-off pandemic
funding
i think a lot of people be pretty
astonished to know that the day-to-day
funding for the nhs
is being cut in yesterday's budget
hidden in that budget
was that cut i'm here at the royal derby
hospital
they're still struggling with covid
cases we're not through the pandemic yet
and of course what's coming next is the
backlog of cases
four and a half million people on
waiting lists
while core nhs spending is up and there
is a further year of significance but
lower pandemic health spending
other experts did point to nothing in
the budget to deal with
ongoing post-pandemic pressures for
example massive nhs waiting lists
from next year much of that will be
dealt with in the autumn spending review
the big picture though is that the
chancellor did not tie his hands
over the nation's debts if push comes to
shove
borrowing could still take the strain in
the future
visiting the tease with the pm both
downing street residents stressing the
recovery reaching addresses
across the nation including this newly
designated freeport
the arguments over tax spend and
borrowing far from over
faisal islam bbc news