Nurses to get free travel in pay deal, says Milburn

Nurses are to be given free bus and train travel passes, Alan Milburn, the Health Secretary, said yesterday. They will form part of a package of pay and benefits measures due to be announced next April.

Pay negotiations between unions and the Government are also likely to see regional differences with health trusts given greater autonomy on how they reward their staff.

Nurses in London and the South-east are expected to benefit most from the changes. They have been among the public-sector workers hit hardest by soaring house prices.

Speaking at Westminster, Mr Milburn pledged greater access to subsidised housing including "rent-to-buy" schemes. He said the framework of pay should recognise that there are different labour markets.

Meanwhile, David Lammy, the new Health minister, will tell the ambulance conference in Harrogate today that the police and Crown Prosecution Service will be told for the first time to prosecute people who call out ambulances they do not require.