Context
The NHS Confederation and NHS Providers warned about potential service cuts, appointment losses, and delayed operations due to the BMA's industrial action. Constituents are concerned about the impact on patient safety and wellbeing.
Question
After warnings from the NHS Confederation and NHS Providers, my constituents are still rightly concerned that services may yet be cut, appointments lost and operations delayed as a direct result of the BMA’s industrial action. These strikes did not need to happen. What will the Secretary of State do to reassure patients in Bognor Regis and Littlehampton that their safety and wellbeing is a priority for this Government, who have no timetable and no plan, and who have made no progress towards ending these damaging rolling strikes?
Answer from The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Wes Streeting)
I must say that a bout of collective amnesia has swept the Opposition Benches, because the Conservatives seem to have forgotten the absolute calamity of bad industrial relations over which they presided. The difference between Members on this side of the House and the Conservatives is that we have never closed the door to talks; we have always been willing to engage with resident doctors in good faith. Unlike under that party, resident doctors have received a 28.9% pay rise from this Labour Government. It is a reminder to resident doctors across the land that the grass is not greener on the other side, and that they should work with a Labour Government who want to work with them.
Not addressed: The Secretary of State did not provide specific reassurances about patient safety and wellbeing or address concerns about ongoing industrial action directly. Instead, he criticized the opposition's record on industrial relations and highlighted the pay rise given by his government.
How: Criticizing The Opposition
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