Thank you for contacting me regarding nurses and their right to strike.
I note your concerns about the Government's plan to have minimum service levels for hospitals during industrial action. However, the last 12 months have seen significant disruption to patient care from industrial action, with more than 1 million appointments being rescheduled since December 2022. This is really difficult for patients, who are my top priority.
Hospitals will be expected to provide the same level of care for patients requiring urgent or emergency treatment during a period of industrial action as on a non-strike day. The types of treatment this would include would be urgent cancer treatment, dialysis, or organ transplants where a potential donor match has been identified.
The government consulted on this measure, as they have done so for other emergency and critical services. The response is set out online - https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/655249db6a650f000dbf48d5/Code_of_Practice_Consultation_Response.pdf.
Minimum Service Levels legislation will allow the Government, NHS, the public and other services to plan properly for the running of services in times of strike – and ensure that striking workers are not inadvertently putting the public at risk. This package of measures will see the UK align with many countries across the world such as France and Spain that already have minimum service agreements in place, to prevent large swathes of their economies being ground to a halt by industrial action.