Government plan to tackle NHS staff shortages shelved amid Treasury row

As reported by The Independent, a flagship government plan to tackle NHS staff shortages has been shelved amid government ‘uncertainty’ and a row over funding with the Treasury

Healthcare leaders have raised concerns over the delay, warning it will “compound” the already severe staffing shortages and call for Ms Coffey to include workforce announcements within her speech tomorrow.

NHS Employers chief executive Danny Mortimer said: “One of the single most important actions the health secretary can announce this week is the immediate investment in a national minimum wage for care workers which will help maintain desperately needed capacity in social care.”

It comes as medica royal college leaders released a report on Wednesday warning failure to invest in workforce planning has led to the NHS’ current crisis.

It said: “Open discussion and a full debate about the state of the NHS and social care are currently being avoided.”

One source said the treasury is a “massive hurdle” but that the former health secretary Mr Javid was “up for a fight”.

The news comes as Ms Coffey is set to make announcements on Thursday over an ’emergency’ NHS plan. On Saturday The Independent revealed the DHSC was in discussions with Number 10 over signing off new A&E targets.

Concerns over delays to the workforce plan include that NHS will miss key points in doctors’ and nurses’ academic cycle. Under current training schedules for clinicians planning for 2024 intake will need to happen in early 2023.

Miriam Deakin, interim deputy chief executive for NHS Providers warned: “A delay in producing a workforce plan will only compound existing severe staff shortages and lead to more ‘burnout’ as the NHS works flat out to reduce care backlogs. Trusts need the government to commit to tackling this serious problem.”

She said: “Support from the secretary of state to develop a long-term workforce plan for the NHS is vital.  With more than 132,000 vacant NHS jobs, the need to plan further ahead to train, recruit and retain staff in the right numbers is critical.

That is why we have called consistently for a national, fully costed and fully funded workforce plan. Trust leaders are doing everything they can to recruit and retain staff in a challenging context and as the cost of living rises.”

Mr Mortimer, chief executive of NHS Employers, part of the NHS Confederation said: “NHS leaders have welcomed the engagement led by NHS England and Health Education England in the development of a comprehensive workforce plan.

“However, they will be concerned to hear that the government has extended its deadline for this vital work. The government must act now to invest in the health and social care workforce. We know where the risks lie and there are steps the government can take now to support training pipelines for increasing staff numbers in community services and mental health and learning disability services in healthcare as a starting point.

In 2021 former health secretary Sajid Javid announced the NHS and education authority Health Education England would create a 15-year strategy for the health and care workforce.

The 15-year plan has been developed in two parts, one was set to be published over the summer and the second published by autumn.

The document warns investment in NHS workforce budgets has not kept up with increases in spending on services.

According to the document 16 per cent of the NHS’ workforce is made up of international recruitment.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We are boosting NHS recruitment with almost 4,100 more doctors and over 9,600 more nurses working across the NHS compared to last year, and we are on track to meet our manifesto commitment to recruit 50,000 nurses by 2024.

“We have also commissioned NHS England to develop a long term workforce plan to recruit and retain more NHS staff. We have launched a taskforce to drive up the recruitment of international staff into critical roles across the system this winter.”