Royal College of Anaesthetists responds to the 2021 Budget statement

Published: 03/03/2021

Responding to the 2021 Budget statement Professor Ravi Mahajan, President of the Royal College of Anaesthetists said:

“As the Chancellor rightly said today, the ‘NHS is deserving of immense praise’ for its efforts during the pandemic. Therefore, it is a disappointing to not hear any substantial announcements on health service or social care funding.

“Anaesthetists and other healthcare colleagues have been working front-and-centre during the pandemic to care for critically ill patients with and without COVID. It is these staff who are the driving force behind the NHS’s recovery efforts.

Reward

“The decision not to award a pay rise for NHS staff will be a blow to the many who have worked incredibly hard during the pandemic, often at huge personal cost. It is important for the Government to recognise and reward NHS clinical and non-clinical staff who have given so much during this pandemic. Although, we normally refrain from making comments on wages, on this occasion we encourage the Chancellor to fund an increase in wages after the NHS Pay Review in May, as without this, we risk an increasing workforce pressure due to potential exodus from an already stretched NHS.

“The budget’s freeze on the lifetime allowance for pensions is likely to only increase these workforce pressures. The consequences of the freeze could see some healthcare workers left with no choice but to reduce hours or take early retirement. With over 40 per cent of anaesthetists1 already planning to cut back on work and an eight per cent anaesthetic consultant workforce gap2, this could be disastrous for the post-COVID recovery of the NHS.

Tackling the backlog

“Government funding during the pandemic was very welcome. We now call to see the same determination going into the next big challenge – tackling the backlog of elective surgery across England and the devolved nations. In the short-term this will mean investment in wellbeing packages for staff and in the long-term a funded workforce strategy that not only works to fill the gaps now, but looks to future-proof the NHS.

“It is time for real change. The Government, the NHS and the clinicians within it, need to work together to deliver an adequately staffed, integrated health service, truly fit for the future.”

References:

  1. The RCoA Snap Survey, February 2021
  2. The RCoA’s Workforce Census (2020)