THE TORY government issued a calculated insult to thousands of striking nurses yesterday as the Royal College of Nursing held national strike action for the second day in its over 100 years history, following its first ever strike last Thursday.
RCN leader Pat Cullen toured the picket lines, where she said she was left in no doubt of the overwhelming support of the mass of the people for the striking nurses.
Interviewed on one of the mass picket lines, Cullen said: ‘No government minister has spoken to the Royal College of Nursing and so they have left all of these nursing staff out in the cold and that’s not a good look for government and it’s certainly not a clever move.
‘So what I’m saying to the prime minister today is listen to the hundreds of thousands of nurses who have taken up the mandate within the college to take forward this industrial action.
‘Listen to them, get into a room with me and other leaders and let’s just talk.’
She was told by the interviewer: ‘If you look at his words, he seems pretty unlikely to budge and he is unlikely to take you up on that offer.’
Cullen replied: ‘Well he’s out of step with the nursing profession, he’s out of step with patients and he’s out of step with the public.
‘What I would suggest to the prime minister, he needs to come on a picket line and start to speak to these nurses and hear what it’s like for them every single day, trying to care for their patients, with 50,000 vacant nursing posts trying to make ends meet on a salary that they can’t survive on and then go away back to his office.
‘He cannot continue to ignore the voice of nursing because when he does he’s ignoring the voice of Britain.’
RCN nurses were on the picket line at Charing Cross Hospital in Hammersmith from 7.30am yesterday.
RCN rep Matthew Colman told News Line: ‘I have friends and colleagues who are struggling and going to food banks.
‘This is appalling for people who are saving lives to be treated like this, its now gone beyond money.
‘The government are showing they have no respect, we love our patients and everyone should be out on strike.’
RCN phlebotomist Jojo Forsythe said: ‘I have worked 19 years in the NHS. Sometimes we are working for 12 hours and until midnight and we are exhausted.
‘We are just not recognised by this government. Nurses are leaving because of low pay and understaffing.
‘We don’t want privatisation, it leads to more deaths. We need everyone on strike to support us.’
Pickets were out at the Royal Marsden Hospital in Chelsea, where RCN rep Roya Hejazi told News Line: ‘I have worked 30 years in the NHS and we are striking for patient safety.
‘There are 40,000 nursing vacancies, I have a daughter who is choosing not to work in the NHS because of lack of pay and lack of respect. We are here to save the NHS.’
There was a lively picket at the Royal Brompton Hospital, now part of Guy’s & St Thomas’ NHS Trust.
RCN rep Matt Smith said: ‘We are getting support from other trade unions and the TUC but we need a general strike. There are simply not enough staff. Ambulances are queuing up, there are not enough staff to deal with them.
‘We have had below-inflation pay increases for the last ten years.
‘The fact that health secretary Barclay refuses to negotiate on pay is disgraceful. That’s why we are seeing such staff shortages.’