Hunt said the new terms would bring “substantial improvements both to patient safety and doctor wellbeing”, and that this would mean the equivalent of a 13.5% increase in basic salary, up from the initial proposal of 11%.
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Britain’s health secretary has taken the unusual step of opting to impose a new contract on junior doctors after failing to strike a deal with thousands of medical professionals in England. However, it instead drew greater public opposition, and less enthusiasm from junior doctors – judging by NHS England’s data which showed that more of them turned up for work (43 per cent) than during last month’s industrial action (39 per cent). “I have therefore today made a decision to do that”. Jeremy Hunt told the house Thursday that talks had ended in stalemate, and the Government will now impose its new contract on junior doctors, after talks failed to reach agreement.
In a statement to the Commons the Health Secretary said he felt that with time the contracted would be accepted as a good thing, although he admitted the process had created “considerable dismay” among junior doctors.
But Mr Scott tweeted this afternoon that he did not support the imposition of contracts, but did support the offer from the Department of Health.
Mr Hunt admitted that the current situation had revealed deep-seated issues over doctors’ morale, wellbeing and quality of life and announced a review, led by Dame Sue Bailey, president of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, to examine the situation.
“What is most important for me overall, is for junior doctors to be working appropriate hours, appropriately remunerated and as importantly, to feel valued, motivated and excited by a career in the NHS”.
“If the government wants more seven-day services then, quite simply, it needs more doctors, nurses and diagnostic staff, and the extra investment needed to deliver it”.
As one senior NHS source told the Huffington Post: “Jeremy Hunt thinks he is Maggie Thatcher taking on the miners”.
But Mr Hunt said he had “no choice” but to impose the contracts after the union refused to compromise.
President of Coventry branch of the TUC, Darrall Cozens, who joined junior doctors on the picket line, said: “This is a declaration of war”.
The government wants to change this but the BMA rejects the idea that Saturday should be classed as a normal working day.
“We are doing this to save the NHS”.
Doctors working one in four or more Saturdays will receive a pay premium of 30%.
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However BMA junior doctors committee chair Dr Johann Malawana hit back at claims of a “best offer”.
