Lessons from the past should be learned and investment levels in frontline services sustained, according to Dr Peter Carter, chief executive and general secretary of the RCN.
He added: ‘The fear in the health service is that we will get a re-run of 2006 when the NHS faced severe deficits. On the back of this a brutal approach was taken with tens of thousands of posts cut, including a significant proportion of frontline clinical jobs. We are calling for sustained investment to keep frontline clinical services intact.'