Hospitals brace themselves for ‘exceptionally low’ staff numbers as nurses prepare to strike over bank holiday
Hospitals are bracing themselves for “exceptionally low” staff numbers in some regions as nurses prepare to go on strike over the bank holiday weekend, NHS England has warned.
The latest walkout comes as the health service warns that, due to nearly six months of strike action, the number of rescheduled appointments is set to hit half a million next week.
The bank holiday strike by members of the Royal College of Nursing union will take place from 8pm on Sunday to 11.59pm on Monday.
It will be the latest action by nurses in a long-running dispute over pay and conditions.
Nurses make up a quarter of NHS staff and are the biggest proportion of the health service workforce. They are seeking a pay rise that is 5% above inflation.
The RCN says nurses’ salaries have consistently fallen below inflation – with the consequences now worsened by the cost of living crisis.
During the strike action, the union said it will not agree to derogations (areas of care where unions agree to provide staffing during industrial action), meaning nurses in intensive care, A&E and cancer care will be on the picket line.
However, in a new development, the RCN has agreed with NHS England that nurses may offer “safety critical mitigations” in some emergencies to “maintain safe patient care”.
NHS England said the health service and RCN “are seeking to agree mitigations on an organisation by organisation basis if there is a critical risk to patient safety”.
But it warned that staffing levels for some areas of the country will be “exceptionally low, lower than on previous strike days”.
Meanwhile, Great Ormond Street Hospital’s chief executive Mat Shaw has said he is “incredibly grateful” to staff and the RCN for “granting safety exemptions” during the strike.
The world-renowned children’s hospital had earlier declared a business continuity incident due to “serious concerns over safely staffing the hospital” throughout the walkout.
It said on its website some children may need to be sent home in order to care for those who remain to be safe.
Read more:
More teacher strikes loom
GMB votes to accept NHS pay offer after Unite rejection
Hundreds of Heathrow staff to strike in May
Original strike plan deemed unlawful
Nurses are set to strike this weekend after a High Court judge ruled on Thursday it would be unlawful for the strike to continue into Tuesday as originally planned.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay secured the court’s interim declaration after bringing legal action against part of the trade union’s proposed walkout.
Meanwhile, NHS England is urging the public to use the health service wisely as hospitals prepare to cope with the bank holiday weekend.
It said emergency and urgent care would remain the priority, with people asked to use other services such as pharmacies and 111 where possible.
Unions encouraged to accept pay offer
The latest action comes as health unions are split over whether to accept a 5% pay offer from the government.
The NHS Staff Council – made up of health unions, employers and government representatives – is meeting on Tuesday to discuss the offer.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
From Thursday 27 April: RCN general secretary says government has ‘lost nursing’
The government ‘has lost nursing’ says RCN general secretary
Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation which represents organisations that commission and provide services for the health service, told Sky News: “There is a danger, there is a concern that unions who haven’t accepted the deal might split off.
“We would very much encourage them not to do so. I think it’s extremely important for NHS staff to stick together.”
He continued: “We hope that if the staff council accepts this (pay offer), then all the unions will accept it.
“But I think it’s really important to say that that doesn’t mean that we as leaders of the health service don’t recognise the real concerns amongst staff that their pay has fallen.
“I talk to NHS all the time and many of them say to me they’ve never known at a time when they’re more concerned about staff morale, we see it’s very hard to retain staff in the health service.
“We recruit staff reasonably well, but too many of them leave because they find the pressures of the job very difficult. So the issues that lie behind the strike, issues of recruitment, of retention, of motivation, they will continue to be there and we need to address those questions.”
A 53-year-old man has been charged after a car was driven into a crowd at Liverpool FC’s trophy parade.
Paul Doyle, from the West Derby area of Liverpool, has been charged with seven offences, Merseyside Police said.
The businessman, who is a father-of-three, is accused of two counts of unlawful and malicious wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and two counts of causing unlawful and malicious grievous bodily harm with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Paul Doyle
Doyle is also accused of two counts of attempted unlawful and malicious grievous bodily harm with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and one count of dangerous driving.
He is due to appear before Liverpool Magistrates Court on Friday.
The charges relate to six people, including two children. A wounding charge and an attempted grievous bodily harm charge relate to a child.
A police car was outside Doyle’s four-bedroom detached family home in the West Derby area on Thursday morning.
According to his social media, he has travelled extensively including Japan, Fiji, India and Australia. Doyle has posted pictures of himself competing in triathlons, and climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
New Liverpool incident footage
Thousands of fans were gathered in Liverpool city centre on Monday to celebrate the Premier League champions’ title win when a car struck a crowd on Water Street.
Police said a total of 79 people were injured in the incident, with the youngest aged nine, and the oldest being a 78-year-old.
Seven people remain in hospital in a stable condition.
Forensic officers at the scene in Water Street. Pic: PA
‘Huge volume of evidence’
Chief crown prosecutor for the CPS Mersey-Cheshire, Sarah Hammond, told a news conference on Thursday that the investigation was at an early stage and a “huge volume of evidence” was being reviewed.
“This includes multiple pieces of video footage and numerous witness statements. It is important to ensure that every victim gets the justice they deserve.
“The charges will be kept under review as the investigation progresses.”
Police ‘working tirelessly’
Also at the briefing where the charges were announced was Assistant Chief Constable of Merseyside Police, Jenny Sims, who said: “I fully understand how this incident has left us all shocked and saddened, and I know many will continue to have concerns and questions.
“Our detectives are working tirelessly, with diligence and professionalism, to seek the answer to all of those questions. When we are able to, we will provide further information.”
The youngest victim injured in the Liverpool parade crash on Monday is nine years old, police have said.
They added that the oldest is 78, with all 79 people injured understood to be British. Seven remain in hospital in a stable condition.
Merseyside Police declined to say what drug the 53-year-old man arrested over the incident is alleged to have taken.
“We wouldn’t go into this detail at this stage of the investigation,” the force said.
Police at the scene in Liverpool. Pic: AP
Forensic officers in Water Street. Pic: PA
Police are still questioning the driver and were granted further time to do so on Wednesday.
Officers have until Thursday evening to question the man from West Derby.
He is in custody on suspicion of attempted murder, dangerous driving and drug driving.
Police believe the car which struck pedestrians was able to follow an ambulance crew attending to someone suffering a heart attack after a road block was temporarily lifted.
Hundreds of thousands of Liverpool fans had turned out to celebrate their team’s Premier League title when the incident unfolded on Water Street just after 6pm on Monday.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘My boy in his pram, got bounced’
‘The best day of my life turned into worst’
Sky News interviewed a lifelong Liverpool fan who said his five-month-old son was “bounced” 15ft (4.6m) in his pram after they were hit by the vehicle.
The child was not counted in the police’s injury tally.
Daniel Eveson, 36, also said his partner had been driven over.
“The best day of my life turned into [the] worst,” Mr Eveson said.
He added: “Me and my partner were flat on the roof, on the bonnet… we were just both trying to hold on for dear life with Ted next to us.
“And my partner went under the wheels of the car, of the front of the car, and it rolled over her leg, and I just bounced off to the side, but my boy and his pram got bounced totally in the opposite direction – about 15ft down the road.”
Read more:
How the parade crash unfolded
Police given more time to question Liverpool suspect
Why police released ‘unprecedented’ details
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer travelled to Liverpool to meet with police chiefs and the local metro mayor.
He said he was being kept informed of developments, adding: “The scenes on Monday were just awful, to see how incredible joy at an amazing achievement turned to horror in a moment.”
Messages of support have been sent to the people of Liverpool, including from the King who said: “I know that the strength of community spirit for which your city is renowned will be a comfort and support to those in need.”
The Prince and Princess of Wales said they were “deeply saddened” by the incident.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business3 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway