Hammond: NHS must save to fund pay rise

PHILIP HAMMOND has told Jeremy Hunt he will not provide extra money for a pay rise for doctors and nurses unless the NHS becomes more efficient.

Mr Hunt, the Health Secretary, said the Chancellor had made it clear that, “if we can have a negotiation and look at some of the ways that we could improve productivity” then he will be “willing to have a discussion” about the possibility of handing over more money. Mr Hunt announced earlier this month that the public-sector pay cap, which has limited increases to one per cent, will be abolished for the NHS. However, he would not say whether boosts to basic pay would come from cuts elsewhere in the NHS.

Speaking on the Andrew Marr Show on BBC One yesterday, Mr Hunt said that the size of any pay award would be left up to the independent pay review body but that he understood the “frustration” of staff at the small increases in recent years.

When asked how much it would cost to deliver a three per cent increase, enough to keep up with inflation, he said: “Something of that order probably would cost a billion pounds.

“The Chancellor has said that if we can have a negotiation and look at some of the ways that we could improve productivity at the same time, then he is willing to have a discussion with me about whether extra resources can be found.”

Mr Hunt said there was “no doubt that we are going to need to find more money for the NHS” in the years ahead.

Mr Hammond is due to deliver his Budget on Nov 22.