Pay rise for Scottish doctors and dentists

Salaried doctors and dentists working in Scotland who earn less than £80,000 are to receive a three per cent increase in pay, the Scottish Government has announced.

Increases in pay for NHS salaried doctors and dentists earning more than £80,000 will be capped at £1,600.

Independent contractor GPs will also receive a three per cent increase in earnings, compared with GPs in England.

The increase in pay means that junior doctors will be paid at least £444 more than their counterparts in England.

However, BMA Scotland, which represents doctors, said the increase was not going far enough.

Chair Peter Bennie said: "We recognise the Scottish Government has not mirrored the completely unacceptable decisions made by the Westminster Government on doctors' pay in England, particularly by rightly applying the award across the whole financial year.

 "However, it is extremely disappointing and a cause of serious concern that consultants, who lead the front line delivery of medical care in hospitals, have been singled out for a significantly lower pay award.

“Indeed, apart from junior doctors, all sections of the profession have effectively received an award below the independent recommendations of the pay review body, which is simply not good enough.

“Everything possible should be being done to make doctors feel valued and ensure that working in Scotland is as attractive as possible across all stages of a doctor's career.”

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “Scotland’s health service is founded on the incredible contribution of its staff and this agreement recognises the role played by our doctors and dentists.

“This pay increase will be backdated to 1 April – something that is not happening in England.

“It follows our minimum nine per cent rise for NHS Agenda for Change employees over the next three years - which will give those 147,000 employees the best pay conditions in the UK.

“By offering fair pay increases we can help to support recruitment and retention of staff, encouraging health professionals to build their careers in Scotland’s NHS.”