Nurses call for implementation of 1% pay rise as fund of £26m now available

THE Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has led calls for the immediate implementation of a 1% pay rise for health workers in Northern Ireland after it was revealed that £26m to fund it is readily available.

Chancellor Philip Hammond awarded a 1% rise for all health service staff across the UK in last month’s budget.

However, as health is a devolved matter and the Assembly has broken down, the Northern Ireland Office said it would be best if a minister was in place to approve the rise.

Yesterday, the BBC’s Stephen Nolan show revealed that the Civil Service (NICS) chief David Sterling (inset) could release the finance, leading to a raft of demands for authorisation to be delivered immediately.

RCN deputy director Garrett Martin said: “We just want to see this paid whatever the reason for its delay. The RCN also urgently want to see it backdated to April.

“But we understand that even with a fair wind it will be the end of January at the earliest before it is processed.

“In all my time I have never experienced such anger and that is evidenced by the amount of nurses who are leaving the profession. That in itself is enough to say that this money should be paid and whoever has the ability to do should get on with it.”

TUV leader Jim Allister claimed the delay in awarding the pay rise was being used as political leverage in an attempt to restore Stormont. He said: “Now that we have had confirmation by the Northern Ireland Office that the Civil Service can release the money needed to fund a 1% pay increase for health service workers there should be no more delay.”

Unite union official Kevin McAdam added: “It may be the only way to resolve this is industrial action. We don’t want to take that course of action but we will go back to our members and see what they want to do.”

A spokesperson for the Executive Office said the NIO had been correct in saying that such decisions “should be rightly for a restored Executive to take forward”, and in the absence of ministers “the Department of Finance has been working with all government departments to ensure public services continue to be provided using the resources available”.

They added: “In the current circumstances, consideration is being given by the Department of Finance in conjunction with the NICS Board as to how issues such as pay awards can be resolved as soon as possible taking into account the relevant legal and financial issues.”

A Government spokeswoman said “spending decisions remained devolved”. But she added: “In the continued absence of an Executive, those decisions fall to the NI Civil Service.

“But we are clear that those decisions should rightly be for a restored Executive to take forward, and that is why securing the return of devolved, power-sharing government will remain our focus.”