Response from the Health Department:

The government has accepted the Pay Review Body recommendation of a 2.5% increase for nurses and other health care professionals including midwives, health visitors, allied health professionals and healthcare scientists.

However, to ensure consistency with the government’s inflation target, and inline with the rest of the public sector, the award will be staged with 1.5% paid from the 1st April and the remainder being paid from 1st November. By the end of the year nurses’ pay will have gone up by 2.5%.

I know that nurses will be disappointed that their award will not be paid in full from April. However as a result of this pay award, the government other NHS pay reforms and the opportunities for career progression, average earnings for nurses are expected to rise by 4.9% next year – above the national average.

Our decision means that the minimum starting pay for a basic grade, newly qualified nurse will be over 19,600 from 1st Nov – an increase of £479 on current rates and a 59% increase since Labour was elected in 1997.

Modern matrons will start on around £35,700 from 1st April, rising to £36,112 from 1st November, with the potential to earn up to around £43,000 a year. The average pay for a qualified nurse is currently £25,724 and this will rise to an estimated £28,360. It is also worth noting the average pay for a qualified nurse has risen on average by 24% over the past 5 years, which is faster than the private sector average of 21%.

I believe the government decision is sensible and fair, benefiting staff, the NHS and the wider economy. I know the government will be working with employers and the unions to implement these pay increases while