NURSES, midwives and hospital porters are in line for pay rises of up to 29 per cent over the next three years as Shona Robison pledged to match the uplifts agreed for NHS England.

The Health Secretary said frontline NHS staff in Scotland would be offered "at least as much" as their counterparts south of the Border.

She added that the pay hikes would also be backdated.

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It comes after trade unions and NHS employers recommended a £4.2 billion pay offer that will see wage rises of between 6.5 and 29 per cent over the next three years for over a million health staff in England.

The offer applies to all workers on the Agenda for Change contract, which includes all staff barring doctors, dentists and some senior managers.

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Under the Barnett formula, a corresponding sum would have to be passed to the devolved governments to reflect this increase in public expenditure in England.

Ms Robison said: “Following this announcement we’re now working with NHS Scotland staff representatives and health boards to quickly take forward pay discussions. We have been clear that we will ensure nurses, support staff, Allied Health Professionals, and all other staff groups covered by this agreement will be paid at least as much as their counterparts in other parts of the UK.

“We’ll be working to reach a Scottish agreement as soon as possible and pay uplifts will be paid at the earliest opportunity. This will include staff receiving retrospective payments to reflect the value of the uplift backdated to 1 April 2018.

“The Chancellor has previously committed to providing additional investment to fully fund an English settlement. It is my intention to use any Barnett consequentials that come here as a result of this pay deal to invest in a Scottish pay agreement.”

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Under the proposals for NHS England, the pay of the lowest-paid staff, such as porters and cleaners, will increase by 15 per cent, while nurses are being offered their biggest wage increase in a decade. Basic pay will increase over the three years by 22 per cent (£4,842) for a Band 5 nurse who started this year.

Midwives and physiotherapists are among the one per cent of staff in line for the biggest increase of 29 per cent.

Theresa Fyffe, Director RCN Scotland said: “The voice of nursing staff has been heard and we welcome the Scottish Government’s decision to open negotiations on NHS pay. Like them we want to move quickly and we will be working hard to secure the best deal for our members.”