Statement
I am responding on behalf of my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister to the 33rd Report of the NHS Pay review Body (NHSPRB). The report has been laid before Parliament today (Cm260). Copies of the report are available to hon Members from the Vote Office and to noble Lords from the Printed Paper Office.
As this is the third and final year of the three-year Agenda for Change pay and contract reform deal (2018/2019 to 2020/2021), the NHSPRB did not make any pay recommendations for 2020/2021.
This multi-year deal has delivered year on year pay increases for our much-valued NHS staff and as part of this we have increased the starting salary for a newly qualified nurse by over 12% and increased the lowest starting salary within the NHS by over 16%.
The Government welcomes the 33rd report of the NHSPRB and is grateful to the Chair and members for all their work and helpful observations at what is a challenging time for our NHS. The report rightly recognises the hard work and dedication of our NHS staff in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, makes helpful observations on effective workforce planning and how best to support the development of the NHS workforce.
The upcoming People Plan will seek to address many of the observations made by the NHSPRB and the Government remain committed to delivering on its manifesto commitment to deliver 50,000 more nurses in the NHS by 2025.
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This statement has also been made in the House of Lords