• The Department of Health and Social Care have announced that pension rules for senior clinicians are to be changed to allow them to take on extra shifts without losing out financially.
• The new rules will allow high-earning clinicians to scale down their pension contributions without losing out on employer contributions.
• The department will shortly publish a new consultation document proposing wide-ranging national flexibilities to the NHS pension scheme.
• Alongside these changes, the Treasury will review how the annual allowance taper operates to support the delivery of public services such as the NHS.
  
  

Responding to today’s announcement on NHS pensions, the chief executive of NHS Providers, Chris Hopson said:

“We welcome the government’s commitment to fixing an NHS pensions issue that frontline leaders say is having a significant and direct negative impact on patient care. The new government is bringing a welcome pace and focus to this issue that was previously lacking.

These proposals are helpful next steps. But we won’t enable key staff to work the extra hours needed and put off ideas of early retirement until we have a clear, definitive, solution fully in place.

“These proposals are helpful next steps. But we won’t enable key staff to work the extra hours needed and put off ideas of early retirement until we have a clear, definitive, solution fully in place. So we have to move fast.

“The welcome new consultation on extra flexibility around pensions contributions and chancellor’s review of the annual allowance taper both need to be completed quickly. The government needs to listen carefully to the views of those affected – for example, there is a strong argument that income for extra work beyond normal contracted issues should not be counted in annual allowance taper calculations. It’s also important that government recognises these issues don’t just affect doctors – nurses and managers are impacted too, and any solution must cover them.

It’s also important that government recognises these issues don’t just affect doctors – nurses and managers are impacted too, and any solution must cover them.

“Frontline leaders have rightly taken a number of immediate steps to manage the impact of this problem so their trusts continue providing safe, high quality, care. They will welcome the government’s recognition that these local flexibilities are a legitimate option in the short term.”