Nesbitt ‘not confident’ he has budgeted enough to cover health worker pay rises

The Health Minister has expressed concern he has not allocated enough in his budget to cover salary increases recommended by independent pay bodies.

Mike Nesbitt told the Assembly his budget had factored in a 2.8% uplift for healthcare staff this year.

But he said he was “no longer confident” that would be enough to meet the recommendations when they are published.

The minister has already warned MLAs that the health sector in Northern Ireland is facing a £500 million funding gap in the current financial year.

The two bodies that make recommendations on health service pay have passed their proposals for 2025/26 to Health Secretary Wes Streeting in England.

Mr Streeting is expected to publish those in the near future and announce whether the Government intends to implement the recommended increases.

If the increases are higher than what health officials in England were budgeting for, the Government’s next move will have implications for Northern Ireland.

If new money is diverted to the sector to pay for the pay rises in England, then Stormont will also get extra funding through the Barnett formula.

However, if the Government asks the health sector in England to cover the additional pay increases by making cutbacks and efficiencies, then there will be no extra money flowing to Northern Ireland to help cover the bill.

Mr Nesbitt provided an update to the Assembly in response to a question from his Ulster Unionist colleague Alan Chambers.

“We currently await the pay recommendations coming out of London for doctors, dentists and allied health professionals. I think that is imminent,” said the minister.

“I have said before, all things being equal, I wish to enact those recommendations at speed.”

However, the minister warned that he may not have enough within his current funding envelope to cover the increase.

“What I would say in terms of the pay pressures is that we made an assumption – we had to make an assumption in working out our budget, and that was of a 2.8% pay rise,” he said.

“As I have said already, I think the two sets of recommendations – for allied health professionals on one hand and doctors and dentists on the other – have been received by the Department of Health and Social Care.

“So we await the publication of those figures and the response of the Secretary of State, Wes Streeting.

“I am no longer confident that we have budgeted a large enough percentage to meet what we are expecting to be published.”