Tony Dorrian Workers Party Representative commenting on the News That the BMA urged the Health Minister to “stop something else” to pay doctors’ salary uplift, meeting minutes show.
Mr Dorrian said there have been many health and social care industrial disputes over pay parity, and many days and weeks of negotiations and strikes, which the Workers Party supported by joining picket lines at hospitals and other health service facilities and centres. But never once did any of the other trade unions suggest cutting services to fund pay uplifts. Mr Dorrian says he finds this approach to bargaining most concerning and believes the BMA needs to be honest with patients, service users, and the public who are the taxpayers, just what services they were prepared to sacrifice.
Mr Dorrian said is was jaw dropping to see it in black and white that doctors in August last said “preference is that the minister stops something else in the health service pays the uplift and the BMA would back him. The meeting was between the minister and BMA’s Northern Ireland branch of practice committee chairs, who represent primary care and secondary care doctors working in the Northern Ireland health service.
Mr Dorrian said while the workers Party believes that all health service staff should have ringfenced funding for pay awards. But to suggest cutting parts of the health services which would be detrimental to patient care ,with these medical staff prepared to back the minister regardless of future clinical outcomes. It not only callus, but mercenary in the extreme.
Mr Dorrian finished by sayings the Workers Party has been pointing out for decades that all of the problems and the current crisis has been created by design, because ministers and senior managers have allowed vested interests to dictate what services should be delivered. This latest example further highlights they believe they are still in the driving seat.