28.03.14
Nurses and midwives angry over planned NMC fee rise
Plans to increase registration fees by £20 to the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) have sparked angry reactions from the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and Unison.
The NMC is consulting on the fee rise to £120, with a decision expected on 1 October.
It added: “We fully appreciate that the possibility of a fee increase comes at a bad time for nurses and midwives. It is in the interests of nurses and midwives that their regulator has the appropriate resources needed to take swift and fair action against those who fall short of the high standards expected of the professions.
“The fee is our principal source of income and without sufficient funds we won’t be able to adequately protect the public.”
Dr Peter Carter, chief executive and general secretary of the RCN, said this was “another blow to nurses and midwives” still reeling from the government’s decision to deny them a small pay uplift for next year.
“It is important that nursing has an effective regulator, and this is in the best interests of nurses as well as patients,” he said. “However, the NMC simply cannot expect to use hard working nurses as a quick-fix for its ongoing financial problems.”
Last year the NMC registration fee rose from £76 to £100, and RCN and UNISON have said they will be requesting an urgent meeting about the new potential fee rise with the minister responsible, Dan Poulter MP.
Christine McAnea, Unison head of health, added: “It beggars belief that the NMC should even consider asking nursing staff to pay such a massive increase in fees. The family budgets of many nurses and midwives are under severe financial pressure and one more bill to pay can all too easily tip them over the edge – especially as it comes on the back of last week’s pay announcement.”
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