Re: NHS workforce plan: Doctors will be able to halve pension contributions to ease tax burden
Hitherto the NHS pension provided one of the most profound incentives for staff morale and retention within the NHS. This incentive has gradually dwindled over the past few years.
It is commendable that the government is flexible in bridging the gap of the unintended consequences of recent changes in the scheme that have affected the morale of some of the senior medical staff enrolled with the scheme. The NHS is at a critical stage in its existence when it can ill afford to lose experienced hands to steer the ship. It behoves the leaders in the sector to continue to innovate around this issue to safeguard the workings of a highly cherished institution.
The BMA should also be commended for its persistence, enlightenment and support of affected staff in this regard. It must continue to remain vigilant and collect data to help government shape and form solutions around this issue in order to give succour to doctors who just desperately want to give their best to the NHS rather than being burdened and bogged down by real threats of the financial disincentive engineered by the tapered annual allowance. ‘A stitch in time saves nine’
Competing interests:
No competing interests
04 June 2019
Olu Akintade
Consultant Physician
North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust
Peterborough City Hospital Edith Cavell Campus Bretton
Rapid Response:
Re: NHS workforce plan: Doctors will be able to halve pension contributions to ease tax burden
Hitherto the NHS pension provided one of the most profound incentives for staff morale and retention within the NHS. This incentive has gradually dwindled over the past few years.
It is commendable that the government is flexible in bridging the gap of the unintended consequences of recent changes in the scheme that have affected the morale of some of the senior medical staff enrolled with the scheme. The NHS is at a critical stage in its existence when it can ill afford to lose experienced hands to steer the ship. It behoves the leaders in the sector to continue to innovate around this issue to safeguard the workings of a highly cherished institution.
The BMA should also be commended for its persistence, enlightenment and support of affected staff in this regard. It must continue to remain vigilant and collect data to help government shape and form solutions around this issue in order to give succour to doctors who just desperately want to give their best to the NHS rather than being burdened and bogged down by real threats of the financial disincentive engineered by the tapered annual allowance. ‘A stitch in time saves nine’
Competing interests: No competing interests