I am writing to protest in the strongest terms about the derisory 1% pay rise for NHS staff who have risked their lives for us -- and sometimes died for it -- during the pandemic. 

I am particularly concerned that this seems to be merely a symptom of overall right-wing disdain for the service, demonstrated in the appalling report by the Institute of Economic Affairs which denigrated the NHS as ‘nothing special’. Given the links between this think tank and Government ministers, especially Hancock, it is hard to escape the conclusions that a) this is the real view of the Government and b) the report was a deliberate attempt to denigrate the NHS just before the Budget so that the public might be more willing to accept the 1% pay rise. (https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/feb/09/thinktank-critical-of-nhs-covid-response-has-links-to-hancock)

Moreover, the whole thing looks suspiciously like an attempt to drive one more nail in the NHS coffin -- the Tories have already succeeded in driving staff figures down by withdrawing nurses’ bursaries (they now offer a maintenance grant only), by making things unnecessarily difficult for the foreigners who make up 14% of NHS staff, by burdening the NHS with crippling payments under the private finance initiative -- some trusts are having to spend as much as one-sixth of their entire budget on repaying PFI debts. (https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/sep/12/nhs-hospital-trusts-to-pay-out-further-55bn-under-pfi-scheme)

If staff do go out on strike -- or indeed leave altogether, as the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is threatening will happen -- the NHS will be pushed even further to the brink of collapse and the Tories will have further ammunition for the argument that the NHS is unaffordable and unsustainable.

However, the Tories have severely misjudged public support for the NHS, particularly after the last 12 months. A poll for the Observer has found that 72% of the public believe the pay deal should be more generous. Even 58% of Conservatives believe the increase is too low. (https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/mar/06/ministers-face-public-backlash-over-1-pay-offer-to-nurses)

Your party needs to realise that the NHS is sacrosanct, and if they wish to be re-elected in local or national government they need to give it their whole-hearted support.