Sir Keir Starmer’s Plan to Address NHS Staff Weekend Working

Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of the Labour Party, has unveiled a plan to incentivize doctors and nurses to volunteer for weekend work in a bid to reduce waiting lists in NHS England. His proposal involves allocating £1.1 billion annually for higher overtime payments. To fund this initiative, the plan calls for the elimination of the non-dom tax status. This approach depends on healthcare professionals voluntarily taking on extra shifts, although Sir Keir argues that it is in their best interest to do so. The proposal includes NHS staff in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, where healthcare decisions are devolved, bringing the total cost to £1.5 billion.

It’s important to note that the overtime payments offered by the Labour Party in England would not match the salaries that doctors and nurses can command in the private sector for weekend work. Nevertheless, Sir Keir is confident that staff organizations will support his plan, as it offers a long-term solution to alleviate pressure on NHS workers. He asserts that a new pay deal with NHS staff is unnecessary, as the plan would provide competitive compensation for out-of-hours work.

The British Medical Association (BMA), which has previously organized strikes by junior doctors and consultants demanding a 35% pay rise, responded to Sir Keir’s proposal. Professor Philip Banfield, BMA council chair, stated that while the plan may motivate further overtime, it is not a substitute for restoring wages to their rightful levels. He emphasized that paying doctors properly for overtime is both ethical and cost-effective.

Unison general secretary Christina McAnea, representing some nurses and other NHS staff, viewed the plan as a suitable stop-gap measure. She acknowledged that healthcare workers are already stretched thin, but a voluntary scheme with fair compensation, without relying on costly agencies, makes sense in the short term.

Professor Nicola Ranger, Chief Nurse at the Royal College of Nursing, noted that the NHS heavily depends on the goodwill of its staff. Nursing professionals routinely work overtime that often goes unpaid. A cultural shift is needed to address this, and the long-term solution involves increasing the overall number of healthcare staff.

In addition to the weekend work plan, Labour has committed to training 7,500 more doctors and 10,000 more nurses annually, with funding derived from the government’s NHS England workforce plan. The weekend overtime initiative is something that a future Labour government could implement promptly to address waiting lists.

Sir Keir emphasized that his plan, estimated to create two million hospital appointments annually, is vital for his mission to stimulate the UK’s economic growth. Labour’s goal is to make the UK the fastest-growing economy within the G7 group of leading industrial nations. He expressed confidence in achieving this objective, with results visible within months of implementing various policies, such as planning reforms and strategies to attract investment.

Although the UK’s economy has shown robust growth since late 2019 and is no longer the weakest performer among G7 nations, it still lags behind the United States, Canada, Japan, Italy, and France.

Labour has outlined several policies funded by scrapping the non-dom tax status, which they believe will generate nearly £2 billion annually. These proposals include doubling the number of CT scanners in NHS hospitals, enhancing dentistry services, and providing free breakfast clubs in primary schools.

Under Labour’s NHS waiting list plan, neighboring hospitals would be encouraged to share staff and waiting lists. Patients would have the option to seek treatment in nearby hospitals during evenings or weekends to reduce waiting times.

In June, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced a significant NHS England workforce plan to recruit and train additional doctors, nurses, and support staff. Sir Keir’s plan for weekend overtime is considered a short-term solution that an incoming Labour government could implement immediately to address the pressing issue of NHS waiting lists.