Liz Truss will officially become the UK’s new Prime Minister, after winning the Conservative leadership race.
Following the announcement, Alec Collie, Head of Medical at Wesleyan Group, reacted to the news - and looked at what her premiership might mean for doctors and GPs:
“Liz Truss faces an NHS that is grappling with severe workload and workforce challenges. She’s said that slashing backlogs will be one of her top priorities, and all eyes will be on what concrete steps she now takes to deliver real change.
“One rumoured action she has on her ‘to-do’ list is to fix the pension tax rules that we know are stopping doctors from taking on extra work, and even forcing some to leave the NHS altogether. Changes to the lifetime allowance have been mentioned, but addressing issues arising from the annual allowance will be essential too.
“This is particularly important now. Because of inflation, many more clinicians could now receive an annual allowance tax charge for last year’s pension growth – something many may simply not have realised. More could receive one for this year too if, as expected, inflation continues its dizzying climb.
“We simply can’t afford to lose any more skilled, dedicated professionals from our hospitals and GP surgeries. Anything that penalises them for continuing to go above and beyond for their patients is simply unacceptable.”
You can read more about NHS pensions and the annual allowance here.