Escalating strike action by withdrawing protection for emergency hospital care will endanger patient safety, a NHS leader has warned as the government said a “full and final” pay offer had been made to nurses.
Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents trusts, also raised concerns over the possibility of nursing staff and junior doctors walking out at the same time in the dispute over pay.
NHS nurses in emergency departments, intensive care and cancer wards will also take industrial action for the first time.
Mr Taylor told Trevor Phillips on Sky’s Sophie Ridge On Sunday programme that removing derogations agreed by the unions – the measures they put in place to protect certain areas of care – would have an impact.
He said: “We are concerned about the speculation that the possibility of a combination of junior doctors’ and nurses’ action, so both of these things would be a significant escalation.
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“It’s very difficult to see how either of those things wouldn’t endanger patient safety and dignity.”
Meanwhile, Conservative Party chairman Greg Hands told Sky news a “full and final” pay offer had been made to nurses.
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He pointed out NHS members of Unison, the largest NHS union had accepted the deal of a 5% pay rise this year and a cash payment for last year.
Mr Hands said: “We think that we’ve made a fair and reasonable offer.
“It is a full and final offer. But we are waiting for the other results to come in from the other unions.
“It’s only reasonable for us during the middle of the balloting process to wait to see those further results and we’ll be laying out a response.
“We’ll obviously be meeting with the NHS staff unions as well to make sure that we can take that forward.”
He added: “Steve Barclay is always willing to talk so long as there aren’t preconditions attached, and so long as there isn’t the threat of strikes going on at the moment.”
A 43-year-old woman has been arrested on suspicion of murder after the death of two children in Stafford.
Police were called to a home on Corporation Street at around 7.30am on Sunday by West Midlands Ambulance Service.
Two children were pronounced dead at the scene, StaffordshirePolice said.
Detective Inspector Kirsty Oldfield said: “We are working hard to understand more about what happened leading up to these two children tragically losing their lives.
“We ask that people do not speculate at this stage as it is distressing for family and friends and could hinder our inquiries.
“We understand that this incident may cause concern in the local community. We don’t believe there is wider threat to the public at this time.”
The 43-year-old woman, who is from the Stafford area, remains in custody.
The force has not confirmed the ages of the two children. Their next of kin have been informed and are being supported by specially-trained officers, police said.
A man has been charged with stalking and possession of a flick knife after allegedly targeting Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey and his family.
Inigo Rowland, 58, of Surbiton, south London, was arrested last Monday, but it was only made public on Sunday.
He appeared at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday and was remanded in custody, the Met Police said.
The offences are alleged to have taken place between June and October.
Sir Ed, the MP for Kingston and Surbiton, lives in southwest London with his wife, Emily, their 17-year-old son John, and his younger sister Ellie.
A spokesperson for the Met Police said: “Inigo Rowland, 58, of Surbiton has been charged with stalking and possession of a flick knife.
“He appeared at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 7 October and was remanded into custody. He will next appear at the same court on Tuesday, 14 October.
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“He was arrested on Monday, 6 October in relation to the offences, which are alleged to have taken place between June and October.”
A Lib Dem spokesperson said: “We cannot provide any details at this time, Ed’s number one priority is the safety of his family.”
Paedophile Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins has died after being attacked in prison.
Watkins, 48, was serving a 29-year jail term for multiple sexual offences, including serious crimes against young children and babies at HMP Wakefield, in West Yorkshire.
He was attacked with a knife by another inmate on Saturday morning, sources have confirmed.
West Yorkshire Police said two men, aged 25 and 43, have been arrested on suspicion of murder.
Image: A police van outside Wakefield prison. Pic: YappApp
Watkins was pronounced dead at the scene after prison staff reported the assault to police.
The prison went into lockdown in the immediate aftermath of the incident, sources added.
A Prison Service spokesperson said they could not comment while the police investigate.
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Watkins was previously stabbed in an incident at the same prison in 2023, suffering non life-threatening injuries after he was reportedly taken hostage by three other inmates before being freed by prison officers six hours later.
He was sentenced in December 2013to 29 years in prison, with a further six years on licence, after admitting 13 sex offences, including the attempted rape of a fan’s baby.
He also encouraged a second fan to abuse her child during a webcam chat and secretly stashed child sexual abuse videos, some of which he had made himself.
At the time, police described him as a “committed, organised paedophile”.
Having found fame in Welsh rock band Lostprophets, Watkins was arrested after his Pontypridd home was searched on orders of a drug warrant in September 2012.
A large number of computers, mobile phones and storage devices were seized during the search.
When sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court, the singer was told he was being given an extended sentence – and a judge said his crimes “plumbed new depths of depravity”.