Peter Lazenby
This is the last article you can read this month
You can read more article this month
You can read more articles this month
Sorry your limit is up for this month
Reset on:
Please help support the Morning Star by subscribing here
ALMOST two-thirds of the public support strike action by nurses, a new survey has shown.
The Royal College of Nurses (RCN), the nurses’ biggest union, commissioned the YouGov poll as the union prepares to ballot its 300,000 members on strike action over pay for the first time in its history.
The RCN said public support for strike action by nurses has risen to nearly 64 per cent, while 75 per cent believe the NHS does not have enough nursing staff to safely care for patients.
As reported in the Morning Star NHS nursing vacancy number have increased by 21 per cent since last year to a record 46,828.
The RCN poll also shows a 12 per cent fall in public confidence in the safety of NHS care in the last two months.
The strike ballot opening on September 15 covers the NHS in the whole of the UK.
RCN general secretary and chief executive Pat Cullen said: “Strike action is no-one’s first choice — especially nursing staff. We joined the profession to treat people, to advocate for our patients and the care they deserve — and through this vote we are saying they deserve better.
“If we are pushed to strike we will still be advocating for these patients and the future of the NHS they deserve.”
The union said nurses have suffered a decade of real-terms pay cuts, and that thousands are quitting the NHS.
In July the government announced a 3 per cent pay increase for nurses. Inflation currently stands at 10.1 per cent and is expected to rise further.
