Ambulance staff say they feel ‘demonised’ by Government - 'Stop attacking us!'

Ambulance staff say they feel ‘demonised’ by Government - 'Stop attacking us!'
lettice bromovsky breakfast ambulance strikes
Carl Bennett

By Carl Bennett


Published: 14/01/2023

- 07:07

Updated: 14/02/2023

- 10:22

The GMB union say they feel 'utterly betrayed' by Rishi Sunak's Government

Striking ambulance staff have said they feel “demonised” by the Government’s attempts to paint them as “uncaring about safety standards”.

In an open letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, the GMB union urges the Government to “talk to us and stop attacking us”.


File photo dated 22/12/22 of ambulances outside Waterloo Ambulance Station, south London. Ambulance response times and A&E waits are the worst on record, though the number of people on the NHS waiting list has fallen slightly, new figures show. The data from NHS England shows the average response time in December for ambulances dealing with the most urgent incidents, defined as calls from people with life-threatening illnesses or injuries, was 10 minutes and 57 seconds. Issue date: Thursday January 12, 2023.
James Manning

It comes after Mr Sunak described the widespread industrial action as “terrifying” as the Government introduced the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill to Parliament, which would set minimum service levels for health, fire, education, transport, nuclear decommissioning and border security services.

He told the Commons on Wednesday: “What is terrifying is that right now people do not know whether, when they call 999, they will get the treatment they need.”

Writing to Mr Sunak on behalf of the GMB Ambulance Committee, Steven Rice accused ministers of trying to “remove our right to strike”.

“We feel utterly betrayed by the way your Government has singled out ambulance workers as part of a crude attempt to remove our right to strike,” he wrote.

“You and your ministers should be ashamed of the way you have tried to paint us as uncaring about safety standards – nothing could be further from the truth.

“We want a constructive relationship with government – to talk about pay and seriously improve conditions throughout the ambulance service. But you are making us and our ambulance colleagues feel demonised.”

Ambulance workers on the picket line outside Gorse Hill Ambulance station in Leicester, as members of Unison and GMB unions take strike action over pay and conditions that will affect non-life threatening calls. Picture date: Wednesday January 11, 2023.
Jacob King

Downing St told the BBC the Health Secretary is open to talks with unions and it has accepted the independent pay review body’s recommendation to give one million NHS workers a pay rise of at least £1,400 this year.

A spokesperson added: “However, we must keep the public safe, which is why we are introducing minimum service and safety levels across a range of sectors to ensure that lives and livelihoods are not lost.”

On Friday, Mr Sunak said he hopes to “find a way through” the deadlock with unions to avert further industrial action.

He told broadcasters during a trip to Scotland: “I think with strikes it’s important that we remain in strong dialogue with the unions, that’s why the Government invited all union leaders in to have those discussions.

“The discussions are ongoing and hopefully we can find a way through.”

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