Dr Luke Evans, the Member of Parliament for Bosworth, has welcomed pension changes and a subsequent uptick in doctors cancelling retirement after years of lobbying for removal of NHS red tape.
The GP turned MP sat for three years on the Health and Social Care Select Committee, alongside Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, and called for changes to pension tax which were penalising senior and experienced doctors from taking on extra work and causing many to take early retirement.
During the Spring Budget statement on March 15th, the Chancellor announced an increase in the annual pension allowance from £40,000 to £60,000 and revealed that the Government would be scrapping the Lifetime Allowance.
On Tuesday 21st March MPs across the House voted on these measures. The vote passed, despite opposition from the Labour Party and abstention by the 14 Liberal Democrat MPs.
Following the vote, news emerged that Labour Leader, Sir Kier Starmer, had benefitted from a “tax-unregistered” pension scheme under a Statutory Instrument entitled ‘The Pensions Increase (Pension Scheme for Keir Starmer QC) Regulations 2013’.
This is despite him having voted against the same policy applying to all workers, including doctors, headteachers, police officers and Armed Forces personnel.
Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Bosworth, said “These changes will help to lift the significant red tape that was seriously disincentivising doctors and effectively punishing them for taking on extra work.
“During my three years on the Health Select Committee and in my experience of speaking to fellow doctors, I have heard countless times how these pension rules were pushing senior doctors into early retirement. We know we have a massive NHS backlog post-pandemic, and it is crazy that red tape is stopping the most experienced doctors from taking on extra work, at a time when we need them the most!
“It is only fair to change this for all, so that the likes of senior scientists, air traffic controllers, police chiefs, headteachers and doctors – all at the top of their field and needed now more than ever – have this burdensome red tape and disincentive removed.
“I’m absolutely delighted to have played my part in securing these changes and to hear from the British Medical Association that doctors are – already! – cancelling their retirement and are going back to work for the NHS to help cut the waiting lists.”
Dr Vishal Sharma, Chair of the British Medical Association Pension Committee, said “We have been losing doctors ever since pension laws started to be tinkered with. Over the last 10-12 years the number of hospital consultants taking early retirement has tripled and for GPs it has been nearly four-times.
“We were really heading towards a precipice where huge numbers were going to go unless things changed. So, it is really welcome the Chancellor has listened to our concerns.
“We have already had lots of people contacting [The British Medical Association] saying they want to cancel their retirements, we’ve had people who have already retired contact us and say they want to come back.”
Jeremy Hunt MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer, said “Few people know as much about this issue as the Member for Bosworth, given his background in the NHS. He is right [that pension rules were restrictive for the likes of doctors].”
