Health minister hits back at claim government no longer talking to unions on pay – UK politics live

Maria Caulfield urges Royal College of Nursing to call off action as NHS in England faces worst strike this winter

Good morning. Scotland and Wales have had devolved governments for more than 20 years, but it probably was not until Covid that people realised the extent to which, when it comes to health policy, the UK government is just an England government. Today England is seeing what is being described as the worst day of disruption in health this winter, with nurses and ambulance staff both on strike. But health workers are not on strike in Scotland, and there is only a limited ambulance strike in Wales by members of the Unite union. England is different because the Scottish and Welsh governments have made improved pay offers, but the UK England government is not doing the same.

Yesterday Sharon Graham, the Unite general secretary, said UK government ministers were lying when they said pay talks with unions were still taking place.

What I would say … to the RCN, as [is] happening in Scotland, they’ve called off the strikes to dicuss the forthcoming year’s pay settlment from April, which is just a few weeks away – do the same in England.

The secretary state’s been meeting in January, almost on a weekly basis, with a range of health care unions. So the door is firmly open. And I would ask the RCN and the ambulance unions to get back round the table.