The emergency item, which was put forward by RCN Council, was debated this afternoon.
Addressing Congress, which is taking place in Glasgow, RCN Council member and Chair of the RCN Northern Ireland Board, Fiona Devlin said: “As most of you are aware, once again we meet for RCN Congress at a time when there is no functioning government in Northern Ireland. The reasons for this, we believe, are widely known.
“What we would say is that no priority is more important than the health and well-being of the people of Northern Ireland. What nursing staff are concerned about is the impact of the lack of political leadership and accountability for the health and social care system in Northern Ireland.
“We need a fully-functioning Executive and Assembly to make the decisions we all know are desperately needed to address the escalating crisis with which we are now confronted, not least in relation to safe staffing, service transformation and fair pay. Currently, none of these issues can be addressed.
“The much-needed multi-year health budget that was agreed earlier this year meant that, at last, some degree of long-term planning could take place to address these issues, rather than fire-fighting on a year-by-year basis. That budget has been lost and we’re left with an emergency budget that will barely keep the system ticking over for a few months.
“With no Executive, and a Minister for Health unable to make key decisions, there is also a real danger that our members will receive no pay award for 2022-2023. This would take Northern Ireland nursing staff out of pay parity with England and Wales once again, precisely the circumstances that led to strike action over two years ago.”
