I wrote about the parliamentary NHS awards last week and have already received a number of inspiring nominations from local people praising local medics. Thank You!
To that, I have spent more time at the hospital this last week than in all the years I can remember. I’ve seen the dedication of NHS staff first hand; alongside that, the very real vulnerability of patients in their care.
In this light, the strike action this week by junior doctors is particularly painful. My lowest moment was learning that even neo-natal care hadn’t been protected by their union. Industrial action on this scale will have exposed patients to undoubted risk.
On pay disputes, a way forward was found with other health unions representing over a million NHS workers including nurses and paramedics, but the doctors want a 35% pay rise or up to an additional £20,000 which the country cannot afford.
Junior doctors’ basic starting salaries are not high, but they do have a pay structure and career ladder where they will command ever higher earnings. Rightly so, their skills, the responsibility and experience should be properly recognised.
Negotiations should continue but the government is right to seek the suspension of strike action to prioritise patient safety. Opinion polls are mixed but from those directly affected, my inbox speaks of patients’ dismay and distress at cancelled treatment. A heartfelt thank you to those who remain at their post and those stepping up to cover.
The cost of living which sits at the heart of pay disputes is felt by all, private as well as public sector workers, and most keenly by those on fixed incomes. I am pleased to say that from now, just over 26 thousand pensioners across Eastbourne & Willingdon will see a 10.1% uplift in their pensions, honouring a commitment to the triple lock.
And I’m visiting one of our Holiday Activity and Food Programmes today. This provision for young people on free school meals represents another important way the government is supporting low-income families with the cost of living.
Despite all the challenges we face, there are good things happening and brighter days ahead.
