Steve Barclay confronts mother of sick daughter over ‘terrible damage’ done to NHS
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Hospitals in the West Midlands have said A&E patients are being turned away as emergency departments at Worcestershire and Redditch Health System declared a critical incident.
Declaring a critical incident means trusts can focus their resources on patients who need it most and highlights the pressure services are under.
Urgent and emergency services across the country have experienced the highest levels of demand and delays ever seen over the past 48 hours.
It comes as eight out of 10 ambulance services in England declared critical incidents as NHS services across the country face “unprecedented” pressure, ahead of planned strike action by thousands of paramedics
Nurses are on strike for a second day on Tuesday, while paramedics are due to walk out on Wednesday.
North East Ambulance Service, South East Coast Ambulance Service, East of England Ambulance Service, South Central Ambulance Service and Yorkshire have moved into the state as staff work to respond to calls.
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ICYMI: Heart attack and stroke patients could be denied ambulances during the strike
People suffering heart attacks or strokes at home may not be able to get an ambulance home when staff strike on Wednesday, NHS officials have said.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay will meet union officials on Tuesday to insist that both category 1 calls, the most immediate life-threatening cases, and category 2 calls, including heart attacks and strokes, are answered.
Members of the GMB, Unison and Unite unions will attack ambulance services in England and Wales, but there are growing fears that emergency provision is patchy in many parts of the country.
Read the full story below:
Thomas Kingsley December 20, 2022 10:00 p.m
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Nurses’ strike after Christmas is ‘highly likely’, warns the head of the Royal College of Nursing
Nurses are “highly likely” to strike again after Christmas if the Welsh Government maintains its “silence”, the head of the Royal College of Nursing has warned.
Nicky Hughes, associate director of nursing at RCN Wales, said Health Minister Eluned Morgan had rejected all calls from the union to enter into pay negotiations with them up until and during the strike day on Tuesday.
Ms Hughes said nurses were prepared to “continue the fight” if no deal was reached, but said discussions were still ongoing about what the union’s next steps would be.
“We’ve seen such a huge impact on the day with many of our members on the picket lines and members of the public have been so generous and supportive throughout the day, I think we’ve got the public behind us and that’s really important.” said Mrs. Hughes.
“But we have had absolute silence from the Welsh Government. The Minister of Health last asked us to attend a meeting as a union on the 12th and once again nothing was on the table in terms of meaningful pay.
“We have constantly asked them to come back and open negotiations, we even asked Prime Minister Mark Drakeford yesterday to come to the table and prevent today’s strike, but there was only silence.
“The Welsh Government says it is because of the Westminster Government but, in Wales, health is a devolved matter and it is up to the Welsh Government to properly manage and fund the NHS in Wales.
“Unless they do, we will continue to bleed nurses. As it is, the NHS is about to.”
Of the future strike, Ms Hughes said: “If the silence continues, it is very likely. However, discussions are taking place and nothing has been decided on that yet.”
Aisha Rimi December 20, 2022 9:40 p.m
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All UK strike dates confirmed for January 2023
Britain’s ‘winter of discontent’ looks set to loom into the new year after a month of aggressive strikes in December paralyzed the country and put Christmas at risk for many.
From nurses and rail staff to postal workers and driving examiners, thousands of workers have walked out in recent weeks as disputes between their employers and unions over pay and working conditions reverberate at a time in which the United Kingdom remains mired in economic crisis.
Furthermore, few of these disputes have been resolved, leading many unions to threaten further industrial action in January.
Joe Sommerlad brings you the full list of planned strikes across the UK in January:
Aisha Rimi December 20, 2022 9:10 p.m
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Public warned of ‘risky activity’ as ambulance strikes send NHS into crisis
Britons have been warned not to take risks, including drinking, driving or playing certain sports, as ambulance services were thrown into chaos hours before a planned strike.
At least seven out of 10 ambulance trusts declared “critical incidents” amid “unprecedented” pressure on services, while NHS leaders warned they could not guarantee patient safety during Wednesday’s walkout in England and Wales.
Health Minister Will Quince warned the public to avoid unnecessary car travel, contact sports and any other “risky activities”, while health chiefs urged people to “drink responsibly”.
Aisha Rimi December 20, 2022 8:50 p.m
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UK Border Force strikes: Which airports are affected?
Border Force staff are set to strike over the Christmas period, affecting some of the UK’s biggest airports.
The strikes have been announced by the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, due to an ongoing dispute over pay, jobs and working conditions.
This action could affect many people’s Christmas travel plans, with the threat of both long airport queues and flight cancellations.
Find out which airports will be affected by the Border Force strikes:
Aisha Rimi December 20, 2022 8:30 p.m
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Welsh health minister warns public not to ‘put extra strain’ on ambulance crews ahead of strikes
Welsh Health Minister Eluned Morgan has urged the public not to “put extra pressure” on the ambulance service on strike day, warning that teams will only be able to respond to “the most urgent calls”.
Mrs Morgan said: “There is no doubt that the two days of industrial action, following action by nurses which has caused delays in the treatment of thousands of patients in Wales, will put huge pressure on services ambulance
“Ambulances will only be available to attend to the most urgent calls on strike days.
“Please do not put extra pressure on services these days and consider carefully what activities you will be participating in tomorrow and on the 28th.
“It is important to call 999 if you are in immediate danger, but we all need to consider very carefully how we use ambulance services these days.
“It is vital that all of us, as users of our NHS, do everything we can to minimize the pressure on our health service during industrial action.”
Aisha Rimi December 20, 2022 8:10 p.m
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The railway will be paralyzed for a week in January while the union goes on strike again
Train drivers are due to strike again in the first week of January, threatening a full week of rail chaos as Britons return to work after the bank holiday break.
Members of the train drivers’ union Aslef from 15 train companies will walk out on Thursday, January 5.
It comes on top of existing strikes by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union at Network Rail and 14 train operators on January 3 and 4 and January 6 and 7, which means services will they will stop for a week.
Read the full story below:
Thomas Kingsley December 20, 2022 7:55 p.m
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Only 1 in 10 people blame nurses for the NHS strike
Just one in 10 people blame nurses for NHS strike as pressure mounts on government to negotiate.
A new survey released on Tuesday, as the effects of the strike bite, shows that net support for nurses has increased by 7% since the strikes were announced in November.
The Savanta poll found that a majority of the public, 54 percent, blames the government for resisting nurses’ wage demands.
Jon Stone has the full story:
Aisha Rimi December 20, 2022 6:58 p.m
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The Prime Minister is under pressure to negotiate the pay of health workers
Rishi Sunak is under increasing pressure from Tory backbenchers to back down and negotiate pay with striking health workers as disruption is set to increase with ambulance walkouts.
Adding his name to a list of Tories calling for better talks, Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown told BBC Radio 4’s PM programme: “In my view, both sides need to offer some flexibility.
“Nurses with a 19 percent wage demand is completely unrealistic, the government just writing the ‘salary review’ lines is also unrealistic.
“These things have to be resolved through negotiation, both of them have to get around the table and see what can be done in the interest of the people of this country.
“People who are desperately likely to need this service over Christmas, it’s a very worrying time if you have a heart attack or something like that.”
Aisha Rimi December 20, 2022 6:39 p.m
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In pictures: Nurses march on strike in London
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Aisha Rimi December 20, 2022 6:15 p.m