London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Sep 03, 2025

Largest nursing strike in NHS history set to start

Largest nursing strike in NHS history set to start

Nurses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have started a nationwide strike in the largest action of its kind in NHS history.

Staff will continue to provide "life-preserving" and some urgent care but routine surgery and other planned treatment is likely to be disrupted.

The Royal College of Nursing said staff had been given no choice after ministers refused to reopen pay talks.

The UK government said the RCN's 19% pay rise demand was unaffordable.

RCN general secretary Pat Cullen has called on the government to "do the decent thing" and resolve the dispute before the year ends.

Ms Cullen told BBC Breakfast the strike marked "a tragic day in nursing".

"We need to stand up for our health service, we need to find a way of addressing those over seven million people that are sitting on waiting lists, and how are we going to do that? By making sure we have got the nurses to look after our patients, not with 50,000 vacant posts, and with it increasing day by day," she said.

Health Minister Maria Caulfield, a former nurse, accepted "it is difficult" living on a nurse's wage, but said that a 19% pay rise "is an unrealistic ask".

The action will involve nurses in around a quarter of hospitals and community teams in England, all health boards in Northern Ireland and all but one in Wales. Nurses are not striking in Scotland.

Under trade union laws, the RCN has to ensure life-preserving care continues during the 12-hour strike.

Chemotherapy and kidney dialysis should run as normal, along with intensive and critical care, children's accident and emergency and hospital neonatal units, which look after newborn babies.

Beyond that, it will be up to NHS boards and trusts to negotiate services on a local level, with discussions likely to come down to the circumstances of some individual patients.

The biggest impact is likely to be in pre-booked treatment such as hernia repair, hip replacements or outpatient clinics.

The NHS has said it is "vital" people continue to come forward for emergency care during the strikes and anyone not contacted to reschedule an appointment should attend as planned.

"There's no other option because the government isn't listening."
Lyndsay Thompson, nurse anaesthetist

"Nurses have had enough - we are underpaid and undervalued," nurse anaesthetist and local RCN steward Lyndsay Thompson, from Northern Ireland, says.

"Yes, this is a pay dispute but it's also very much about patient safety.

"The fact we cannot recruit enough nurses means patient safety is being put at risk."

Ms Thompson, who has worked as a registered nurse for 12 years, says her colleagues "absolutely do not want to strike" but feel the need to take action "to protect the NHS" after a period of below-inflation pay rises.

"We just feel we have no other option, because the government is not listening to us," she says.

The RCN balloted more than 300,000 nurses across individual NHS trusts and boards rather than in a single, national vote.

This means some nurses are not entitled to take industrial action, because the turnout in their local area was too low.

In England, the first round of strikes will go ahead in 51 of 219 hospitals, mental-health trusts and community services.

Strikes are also going ahead in all of Northern Ireland's health boards and all but one in Wales, the Aneurin Bevan.

Most GP services will be unaffected, as nurses working directly for practices were not entitled to take part in the vote, but the strike will include district nurses working in people's homes or community settings.

A second day of strike action will go ahead on 20 December, unless there is a breakthrough in talks.


How will patients be affected?


*  People who are seriously ill or injured, and whose life is at risk, should call 999 as usual, or call 111 for non-urgent care

*  Other services, such as some cancer treatments, mental health services or urgent testing, may be partially staffed

*  More routine care is likely to be badly affected, including planned operations such as knee and hip replacements, community nursing services and health visiting

*  Official advice is that anyone with an appointment which hasn't already been rearranged should turn up at their allotted time

*  GPs, community pharmacies and dentists will not be affected

In England and Wales, most NHS staff have already received a pay rise of roughly £1,400 this year - worth about 4% on average for nurses.

The political situation in Northern Ireland meant there was a delay in processing the increase - but nurses should receive backdated payments before the end of the year.

The RCN wants a larger rise, of 5% above the RPI inflation rate, which currently stands at 14%, saying its members have received years of below-inflation pay increases.


England's Health Secretary, Steve Barclay, said further pay rises would mean taking money away from other front-line services.

"I've been working across government and with medics outside the public sector to ensure safe staffing levels - but I do remain concerned about the risk that strikes pose to patients," he said.

Mr Barclay added that the government had followed the recommendation of the independent NHS Pay Review Body, which said in July NHS staff should receive the £1,400 increase, with slightly more for the most experienced nurses.

The body, made up mainly of economists and human-resources (HR) professionals, had been asked to base that recommendation on a range of factors, including:

*  the need to recruit staff

*  the funds available to the NHS

*  the government's 2% inflation target

Welsh ministers said they were unable to enter pay talks without extra funding from the UK government.

In Scotland, the RCN's strike action has been "paused", after ministers made a fresh offer worth just over £2,200 a year for most NHS staff. Nurses have been asked to vote on that deal, with results due next week.

"If lives are at risk... it feels wrong to strike."
David, heart patient


David was meant to have a pacemaker fitted on Thursday at a hospital in Wales.

Since he had major heart surgery five years ago, his NHS treatment has been "second to none", he says.

But being called and told Thursday's procedure had been postponed has left him "frustrated and disappointed" - and he has not yet been given a new date.

"If you're [working] in a profession where lives are at risk, I feel [it is] wrong to strike," David says.

"Particularly at Christmas and when other people are striking as well, it's not a good time."

Union bosses have offered to suspend strikes if the UK government agrees to reopen serious discussions over pay.

But a face-to-face meeting earlier this week broke down, with the RCN accusing Mr Barclay of "belligerence" and having "too little to say".

This will be only the second time RCN members have walked out in its 106-year history. Until 1995, the union had a formal no-strike policy in its rulebook.

In 2019, nurses in Northern Ireland went on strike over pay. And in 2014, those in England who were members of Unison walked out - also over pay.

This winter, a number of other major health unions, including Unison, the GMB, Unite the Union and the Royal College of Midwives, have also voted to strike in different parts of the UK, with a series of walkouts planned over Christmas and the new year.


Watch this video quiz to test your knowledge of nurses' pay


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
×