Sturgeon hits out at ‘miserly’ NHS pay offer
Nicola Sturgeon has condemned the "miserly" pay deal being offered to NHS workers in England - as she insisted the SNP in Scotland will "build a country fit for the heroes" of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Thescottishgovernmenthas announced plans to offer more than 154,000 NHS staff north of the border a pay rise of at least 4 per cent.
The deal, which could benefit workers such as nurses, paramedics and hospital porters, was revealed as the Scottishparliamentwentintorecess ahead of May's election.
First Minister Ms Sturgeon, speaking as campaigning began ahead of the poll, said: "Politics is about choices, and the SNP chooses to back our NHS.
"In this election we can build a country fit for the heroes who have kept us going every day through the pandemic.
"Wehavetodomorethanclap for the people who look after us - we should give them fair pay for the work they do. That starts with a fair deal for our NHS staff."
The pay offer from the Scottish Government - which has been backdated to December 2020 - would see those on salaries below £25,000 receiving increases of more than £1,000.
It comes on top of the £500 "thank-you payment" to health andcareworkersinrecognition of their efforts during the pandemic.
Ms Sturgeon said: "This pandemic has shown us that every member of NHS staff is vital to the delivery of the service - we value our porters and cleaners just as we value our nurses and doctors. That's why we believe all Agenda for Change staff should get a fair pay rise to recognise the enormous contribution they have made to keeping us safe in the last year.
"The Tories' miserly 1 per cent pay offer south of the border
showsthattheyhavethewrong priorities - people will no doubt wonder how they can find the money to massively increase theirstockpileofnuclearweapons or build a bridge to Northern Ireland but refuse to find
the money to properly reward those who were at the frontline of the pandemic."
Jackie Mitchell, of the Royal College of Midwives, said: "This offer of a 4 per cent pay rise for our hardworking members in
Scotland is good news. Midwives and all maternity staff thoroughly deserve a decent pay rise, as do all NHS staff across the UK.”