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Cutting nurse jobs will cost lives, Royal College of Nursing warns

Press Release 09/05/2025

Responding to the NHS Providers survey showing cuts to clinical jobs and services to save money, RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive Professor Nicola Ranger said:

“This is NHS leaders themselves coming clean about the perilous state of the NHS. With just weeks until the biggest government spending review in years, this cannot go ignored.

“Cutting nurse jobs costs lives and Wes Streeting will need to decide if this is acceptable on his watch. Reducing clinical jobs and patient services is different from any argument on NHS waste and efficiency. Patient needs go unmet, hospitals become overcrowded and waiting lists grow.

“Ministers must realise that in the drive for savings it is patients who are paying the price. Far from cutting or freezing staff roles, we need to increase investment across all nursing roles. That’s how you transform care and improve outcomes for all.”

Ends

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