NHS would welcome army help to support service during strikes, says health chief

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Emergency aid from the military to support the NHS during winter strikes would be 'incredibly welcome', a health service official has said.

Health and defense officials are drawing up a contingency plan as ambulance drivers have agreed to join nurses on picket lines in the coming weeks.

Saffron Cordery, chief executive acting NHS providers, said it would be an "incredible testing time" for the health service due to industrial action.

Asked about the possibility of military assistance, she said: "I think it would be extremely welcome for the military to play a role."

< p>Ms Cordery said: "I think it's probably clear that it will be a marginal role, for example, the military helped during the pandemic, but that was on issues such as helping with the vaccination campaign.

"I can't So what we need to remember is that we will really appreciate their support, but it will not play a central role in maintaining the ambulance service,” the health official added.

< p>Armed forces personnel could drive ambulances and replace frontline hospitals as part of contingency plans to deal with a possible winter of strikes.

As first reported by The Times the government could use the Military Assistance to Civil Authorities (MACA) protocol to keep key NHS services running during major walkouts from mid-December.

Unison announced on Tuesday that thousands of 999 call handlers, EMTs, paramedics and their colleagues working for ambulance services are set to strike for pay - likely before Christmas.

Ambulance response times will be "in "believably stretched out" when thousands of 999 call handlers, paramedics and other staff walk out, Ms Cordery said.

She said NHS trusts would do all they could to mitigate risk to patients, but the health service was already going through a difficult time.

The NHS provider leader said: "What we can say is that leaders trust the and across the country have tried and tested plans in place to mitigate the risk of these strikes, and they really understand the situation that NHS staff find themselves in, in terms of being paid below inflation."

Unison General Secretary Christina McAnea said, "The decision to take action and lose a day's pay is always a difficult decision...