• Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP has told MPs the cap on pay rises for NHS staff has been scrapped but any change would be tied to a deal on productivity.
• He said that pay restraint had been necessary to allow the NHS to recruit thousands of additional doctors and nurses but accepted that it could not continue.
  

Responding to confirmation by the health secretary that the NHS pay cap has been scrapped, the director of policy and strategy at NHS Providers, Saffron Cordery, said: “We were one of the first organisations to call for an end to the NHS pay cap so we welcome the health secretary’s comments.

Pay has become one of several key factors affecting recruitment and retention in the NHS. Others include intolerable pressures at work and uncertainty surrounding Brexit.

“Pay has become one of several key factors affecting recruitment and retention in the NHS. Others include intolerable pressures at work and uncertainty surrounding Brexit. For year after year we have asked staff to do more for less. That situation has become unsustainable.

“However, we need a clear plan for the end to pay restraint. Pay accounts for up to 70 per cent of costs for NHS trusts. At a time when NHS finances are already overstretched, it is vital that any additional pay awards are fully funded, however that is done.”

We have carried out further analysis of workforce issues the sector faces as part of our strategic workforce project, the initial findings of which are available to download.