Health Secretary Steve Barclay has criticised junior doctors, accusing them of “walking away” from talks over pay and conditions.
The British Medical Association (BMA) – the union representing many from the profession – has called a five-day strike in July and is demanding a rise of 35% to restore their wages to 2008 levels.
It has also accused the government of refusing to get around the table to negotiate a deal.
But Mr Barclay told Sky News that junior doctors had “refused to move” during three weeks of talks earlier this year, adding: “It was the junior doctors sadly who walked away from the discussions and called a further strike.”
Politics live: Striking doctors ‘walked away’ from talks, says Barclay
Junior doctors went on strike for three days in June, following a four-day walk-out in April and three days in March.
The BMA claims pay has decreased by more than a quarter since 2008 when inflation was taken into account, so the 5% offer on the table was far below what was needed.
And it said many doctors were burnt out from an increasing workload.
But Mr Barclay said the 35% pay restoration demand was not “affordable in the context of inflation and the other pressures” on the economy.
Speaking to Sky News’ Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme, the health secretary said the upcoming strikes were “hugely concerning”, with thousands of appointments and pre-planned operations set to be disrupted.
But he put the blame at the door of junior doctors and the BMA, saying they were the ones refusing to negotiate.
“We have [talked to them], we had three weeks of talks… the department agreed to bring in an intermediary,” he said. “But not withstanding [the intermediary’s] excellent work, the discussions that we had with the junior doctors to date, they have refused to move from a 35% demand.
“I don’t think that in the context of the wider economy, [with] the need to get inflation down, that is a fair demand.”
Mr Barclay conceded that “both sides need to move” to reach an agreement, and claimed the government was “willing to do so”.
But he said that without the strikes being called off, there was little room for negotiation.
“We have been consistent, not just in health but in all departments, that if people suspend the strikes then we can get round the table and have talks, but at the moment the junior doctors have walked away from the talks,” said the health secretary.
“We were in middle of discussions with them. There were a range of other factors that they have raised with me in terms of annual leave that is often cancelled at short notice, rotas that are changed, some of the wellbeing issues around circumstances in hospitals.
“We are happy to discuss [those issues].”
Dr Vivek Trivedi, co-chair of the BMA Junior Doctors Committee, dismissed Mr Barclay’s criticism, saying: “We have always been willing to continue talking.
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“It was the government who cancelled our remaining meetings after we called for strike action, but we have made it clear that we will call strikes off if [Rishi] Sunak makes a credible offer.
“A 5% offer, when inflation is in double digits is yet another real terms pay cut, and would only worsen the already 26% real terms pay cut we’ve endured prior that.”
Pay review proposals
Sophy Ridge also quizzed Mr Barclay on whether the government would accept recommendations from public sector pay review bodies for wages rises next year after speculation Prime Minister Rishi Sunak planned to block them in an attempt to tackle inflation.
Pay review bodies – or PRBs – take evidence from across sectors like the NHS and education each year, as well as submissions from government, before saying what wage rises should be introduced for the following 12 months – and they are expected to say healthcare staff should have a 6% uplift.
Amid anger from unions about the figures failing to match inflation last year, the health secretary insisted it was right for ministers to “continue to defer to that process to ensure decisions balance the needs of staff and the wider economy”.
Read more:
Junior doctors to strike ‘in longest single walkout in NHS history’
Nurses’ strikes in England to end – as union boss vows ‘fight for fair pay is far from over’
But this morning, he refused to confirm if ministers would accept the PRB proposals, instead they would look at them “in the round”.
The BMA’s Dr Trivedi accused Mr Barclay of “negotiating in bad faith” and said the government had “totally discredited the supposed independence of the pay review body”.
Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson was also asked by Sophy Ridge if Labour would accept PRB recommendations if it was in power – with a 6.5% expected bump for teachers.
However, she would not commit to the figure either, saying it was a “complicated” issue due to the Conservatives “crashing the economy”.
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‘Would you accept a 6.5% pay rise for teachers?’
“I would see that as the starting point for negotiation,” she said. “We can’t get anywhere unless we’re prepared to negotiate.
“I’m not going to come on this programme and commit to a figure, I wouldn’t expect the secretary of state to do that either, that is what will happen during the course of a negotiation.”
A man has been found dead among the debris following an explosion at a house in Nottinghamshire.
Emergency services were called to John Street, Worksop, on Saturday evening after reports that a house had collapsed in the blast, and a major incident was declared.
Nottinghamshire Police said on Sunday afternoon that the body of a man in his 50s was later recovered in the wreckage and, despite the best efforts of emergency services, he died at the scene.
The explosion destroyed a terraced property in John Street. Pic: PA
Nearby homes were evacuated following the blast. Pic:: PA
Firefighters from the town were joined at the scene by crews from Warsop and Mansfield, and Clowne in Derbyshire, after the incident happened at 7.39pm.
The terraced property was “partially destroyed” and neighbouring homes suffered “significant damage”, Nottinghamshire Police said, with people evacuated from multiple properties.
Videos posted on social media showed the front of a terraced house blown out and the roof collapsed, while neighbouring houses suffered damage to windows.
A Facebook user reported a “huge” bang that shook the surrounding properties, while another described “a terrific bang, like a very loud firework”.
Chief Inspector Clive Collings, from Nottinghamshire Police, described it as “an extremely serious incident that has led to a man’s untimely death”.
Nearby houses were evacuated
Pic: YappApp
He said the incident “will have come as a shock to the community in Worksop” and specially trained officers are supporting the man’s family, who have been told of his death.
“Anyone who may have been in the area at the time is now accounted for,” he added.
Chief Inspector Collings said the cordon and road closures will probably remain in place for some time while investigations continue.
Multiple residents from in and around John Street were asked to leave, he said, and are being supported by Nottinghamshire County Council staff.
He warned people against using drones as flying a drone over or near an ongoing emergency response without permission is an offence.
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An emergency bill to save British Steel’s Scunthorpe blast furnaces has become law.
The urgent legislation gives ministers the power to instruct British Steel to keep the plant open.
The bill was rushed through the House of Commons and House of Lords in one day, with MPs and peers being recalled from recess to take part in a Saturday sitting for the first time in over 40 years.
Emergency bill becomes law – follow the latest reaction here
An emergency bill to save British Steel’s Scunthorpe blast furnaces has passed. Pic: Reuters
After passing through both houses of parliament, the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Bill was granted royal assent by the King.
The bill gives the government the power to take control of British Steel – or any other steel asset – “using force if necessary”, order materials for steelmaking and instruct that workers be paid. It also authorises a jail sentence of up to two years for anyone breaching this law.
Sir Keir Starmer hailed the legislation for “turning the page on a decade of decline”, adding “all options are on the table to secure the future of the industry”.
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What is the future of British Steel?
It will mean the steel plant in Scunthorpe will continue to operate as the government decides on a long-term strategy, and steelmaking in the UK more broadly.
Officials from the Department for Business and Trade arrived at the site before the bill had even passed, Sky News understands.
Earlier, staff from the plant’s ousted Chinese owners Jingye were denied access, with police called over a “suspected breach of peace” – though officers found “no concerns”.
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The role of steel in the UK economy
Ministers took the unusual step of recalling parliament from its recess to sit on Saturday after negotiations with Jingye appeared to break down.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the measures within the bill were “proportionate and necessary” to keep the Scunthorpe blast furnaces open and protect both the UK’s primary steelmaking capacity and the 3,500 jobs involved.
The emergency legislation stops short of full nationalisation of British Steel, but Mr Reynolds told MPs that public ownership remained the “likely option” for the future.
Read more:
British Steel employees express fears over plant’s future
Why the hot spring weather is sliding away
During the debate, several Conservative MPs, Reform UK’s deputy leader Richard Tice and the Liberal Democrats’ deputy leader Daisy Cooper all spoke in favour of nationalisation.
MPs had broken up for the Easter holidays on Tuesday and had not been due to return until Tuesday 22 April.
The business secretary accused Jingye of failing to negotiate “in good faith” after it decided to stop buying enough raw materials to keep the blast furnaces at Scunthorpe going.
But the Conservatives said the government should have acted sooner, with shadow leader of the house Alex Burghart accusing ministers of making “a total pig’s breakfast” of the situation regarding British Steel.
The government was also criticised for acting to save the Scunthorpe plant but not taking the same action when the Tata Steel works in Port Talbot were threatened with closure.
A major incident has been declared in Nottinghamshire after a gas explosion caused a house to collapse.
There is still a “substantial emergency service presence” in place after the explosion in John Street, Worksop just after 7.30pm on Saturday.
Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS) declared it a “major incident” and said “multiple houses in and around John Street have been evacuated”. Nearby Crown Place Community Centre has been opened as a “place of safety”, the service said. Around 20 people have sought refuge there, Sky News camera operator James Evans-Jones said from the scene.
Videos posted on social media showed the front of a terraced house blown out with the roof collapsed, while neighbouring houses had their windows damaged.
NFRS said in a statement late on Saturday: “This has now been declared a major incident, and we are likely to be on scene throughout the night and even into Sunday morning.”
The fire service said it was called to the scene at 7.39pm.
The back of the property where the explosion happened in Worksop. Pic: YappApp
Pic: YappApp
“This is a gas explosion involving a house that has been significantly damaged,” the service said in a previous statement.
One person posted on Facebook that they heard “a terrific bang, like a very loud firework” as they turned into Gladstone Street from Gateford Road.
“I thought the back end had blown off my car,” they said. “A house in John Street has had, presumably, a gas explosion!”
Emergency services at the scene on Saturday. Pic: YappApp
NFRS said it was also called to a separate incident shortly afterwards but does not believe the two are connected.
Ten fire engines were sent to the scene of the industrial fire in nearby Holgate Road in The Meadows, Nottingham.
“The building has been severely damaged but there are no reports of any injuries,” NFRS said.
Having been called to the incident at 8.11pm, NFRS said at around 10.30pm that it was scaling its response down with the flames “now under control”.
NFRS’s group manager Leigh Holmes said from the scene just after 11pm: “We will begin to relax the cordon in the next hour as we continue to scale down this incident.”
A damaged building at The Meadows in Nottingham. Pic: NFRS
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