Jeremy Hunt’s claim to have the backing of 20 NHS bosses for his decision to impose new contracts on junior doctors unravelled overnight as three-quarters of the names on the list said they had never agreed to support forcing the deal.

A letter from the chief negotiator in the dispute, Sir David Dalton, calling on the government to do “whatever it deems necessary” to break the deadlock, and listing the 20 names, was cited by Hunt in announcing his decision to force through changes to pay and conditions.

Out of the 20 bosses, which include Dalton, 14 NHS chief excutives have now said they do not support imposition.

Claire Murdoch, the chief executive of the Central and North West London NHS trust, said she had no idea she had even been associated with the letter until it was published, and had asked for her name to be removed.

“I became aware that my name was on the letter at the point at which it was published,” she said in a statement. “When I contacted Sir David Dalton he had it removed immediately, which is reflective of the straightforward way he has sought to deal with a very challenging negotiation.



“It is clear to me that the current situation is not sustainable and needs to be resolved for the sake of all involved. The contract must be fair: fair pay, fair hours and excellent training and it must hold at its heart the needs of the patient in a 24/7 NHS. This has to be deliverable.”

Andrew Foster, the chief executive of the Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS foundation trust, said the letter that he and 19 other NHS leaders backed was not the one that advised the government to do “whatever it deems necessary”.

@cpeedell I have not supported contract imposition. I have supported the view that the offer made is reasonable. — Andrew Foster (@andrewkfoster) February 11, 2016

“That is not the paragraph that I agreed to. I did not agree with imposition,” he said. “The letter we supported was a different one to that published today.”

Dalton denied on Thursday that the chief executives listed on the letter had been asked to give their support to imposed contracts.

He told the Health Service Journal: “The statement that they agreed to was confirming that the best and final position was considered fair and reasonable, and that they believed the NHS needed certainty and not continuation of the stalemate.

“If anyone wants to make an inference [from this that they supported] imposition then that is their inference, [but] that is not what [the signatories] have committed their names to. I neither want to say they do or that they don’t. There is a variety of opinion on this.”

Many of the signatories used Twitter to clarify their positions. Prof Dr Stephen Dunn, the chief executive of West Suffolk NHS trust, said: “Not supporting imposition. Supporting fact that David came up with a better offer than the one on the table.”

Miles Scott, head of St George’s university hospitals trust said: “To be clear, I supported the contract offer but not imposition.”

@nigelclark22 @RoshanaMN @GL650_LynneG @WestSuffolkNHS I do not support imposition. Never have supported imposition. I do think David helped — Prof Dr Stephen Dunn (@Stephen_P_Dunn) February 11, 2016

To be clear, I supported the contract offer but not imposition. — Miles Scott (@StGeorgesCEO) February 11, 2016

Sir Andrew Cash, the head of Sheffield teaching hospitals, also tweeted that he had not supported imposition of the contract, but did support the deal Dalton had secured.

“I support the improved offer made this week as fair and reasonable, but I do not support imposition” Sir Andrew Cash on #juniorcontract — Sheffield Hospitals (@SheffieldHosp) February 11, 2016

Peter Homa, of Nottingham University hospitals NHS foundation trust, said: “I hugely value the contribution of junior doctors and hoped for agreement. I view the offer as safe, fair and reasonable but don’t support imposition.”

David Sloman, of the Royal Free London NHS trust, said: “I am profoundly disappointed that the national negotiations have failed to reach an agreement with the BMA on a new contract for doctors in training.

“I have the utmost respect for junior doctors, know how hard they work to deliver patient care and want to enjoy working with them for many years to come. I do believe that the contract is reasonable, however I do not support contract imposition. My view is that the best way to reach resolution is negotiation.”

Prof Joe Harrison, the chief executive of Milton Keynes NHS foundation trust, said he felt Dalton’s final offer was “reasonable”.

But he added: “The decision to impose the contract was the secretary of state’s to make. An imposed contract is certainly something I hoped I would not see at the end of this process, and personally I feel it is deeply regrettable.”

According to the HSJ, Dr Peter Miller, the head of Leicestershire partnership NHS trust, also distanced himself from imposed contracts, saying: “I support the current offer as safe, reasonable and fair, protecting both junior doctors and patients.

“I have not been asked to support an imposition, nor do I. As a doctor, it saddens me that we have got to this position. We need to work together to build the morale of all staff in the NHS.”

David Loughton, of the Royal Wolverhampton trust, also said he did not support imposition.

Susan Acott, the chief executive of Dartford and Gravesham NHS trust, said: “No I don’t agree with imposition.”



She told HSJ: “We all supported the fact that there was an improved offer and better than what was at Christmas but we did not call for imposition.”

Matthew Kershaw, chief executive of East Kent University hospitals, said he “wasn’t asked” about imposition before his name was added to the letter, but said he hadn’t asked for his name to be removed from the list because he supported the offer as “better than anything that has gone before”.

Sonia Swart, the chief executive of Northampton general hospital NHS trust, said she had asked for her name to be removed. “I confirmed to him [Dalton] that I considered the final package on offer was safe, fair and reasonable. I do not support imposition of the contract, though if it proceeds I recognise this brings new challenges for us all.”

Royal United Bath NHS foundation trust’s James Scott said he did not support the imposition either, but said it was “really important we have certainty over the working arrangements for new junior doctors starting with us on August 1”.

Others distanced themselves from the letter and expressed regret about imposition but did not say they explicitly opposed it. John Adler, of Leicester hospitals, said the decision about imposing contracts was “one for the government”, while Heather Tierney-Moore, the chief executive at Lancashire care NHS trust, said any imposition would “only be seen as failure”.