Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent progress has been made on reaching a pay agreement for NHS staff.

After constructive talks with health unions on 16 March, the Government put forward a best and final offer for more than one million National Health Service staff on the Agenda for Change contract. We are pleased that the Royal College of Nursing, UNISON, GMB, the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy and the British Dietetic Association unions have said they will recommend the offer to their members.

We are disappointed that the British Medical Association (BMA) have announced further strike action.  Further strikes will risk patient safety and cause further disruption. The BMA have made the Government making a commitment to delivering a 35% pay increase a pre-condition of them entering into talks on pay. This is unreasonable. Our door remains open to constructive conversations, as we have had with other health unions, to find a realistic way forward which balances rewarding doctors and dentists in training for their hard work while being fair to the taxpayer.