Thousands of NHS appointments cancelled as talks fail to avert nursing strike

The Independent's Morning Headlines email [View online]( December 13, 2022 [Morning Headlines]( 1 / [Thousands of NHS appointments cancelled as talks fail to avert nursing strike]( Thousands of [NHS]( operations and appointments are being cancelled across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, after last-ditch talks failed to avert [the first nursing strike in a generation](. Up to 100,000 members of the [Royal College of Nursing]( (RCN) are expected to walk out on Thursday, with just “life and limb” cover available and surgery being limited to cancer patients and emergencies. Ministers said they were “straining every sinew” to mitigate the impact of industrial action on the public, but Labour accused the government of “spoiling for a fight” with unions, after health secretary [Steve Barclay]( refused to discuss pay in talks with RCN chief executive Pat Cullen. Ahead of the meeting, Ms Cullen made clear that the RCN was ready to call off a stoppage planned for 21 December if ministers were willing to negotiate on its demand for a pay increase of 5 per cent above inflation. But emerging after an hour of talks, Ms Cullen said: “I needed to come out of this meeting with something serious to show nurses why they should not strike this week. Regrettably, they are not getting an extra penny. I expressed my deep disappointment at the belligerence – they have closed their books and walked away.”   2 / [Solihull: Boys ‘died trying to save friend who got stuck in ice’]( Three children died in tragedy on Babbs Mill Lake 3 / [‘They were happy to lie to protect my brother’: Prince Harry drops bombshell in new Netflix trailer]( The cryptic comments have aroused speculation on social media 4 / [Sam Bankman-Fried: FTX founder arrested in Bahamas as US debates fraud case]( Arrest comes after six weeks of financial chaos that took down world’s third-largest cryptocurrency exchange 5 / [Argentina ready to go the distance against World Cup’s comeback kings]( Croatia have conceded first in their last six knockout ties, and prevailed in five. They will not go away as Argentina bid to reach the World Cup final     The Big Question Is Gareth Southgate the right manager to turn exciting England into champions? As [Gareth Southgate]( boarded the flight from Doha on Sunday morning, he genuinely had no idea whether this was his last duty as England manager. He admitted in the immediate aftermath of the France defeat that [he is “conflicted”](. What was particularly striking was how he stated the boos at Molineux during the 4-0 defeat to Hungary earlier this year had got to him, and how he has found much of the last 18 months “difficult”. Some who know Southgate now firmly believe he will go, that his “energy” for the job is at its limit. It should be stressed that he did feel similar after Euro 2020, which he said still haunts him much more than [the 2-1 quarter-final elimination]( on Saturday. It is why he doesn’t want to make any decision over the next few days. Southgate knows that would be a mistake, and potentially lead to a “wrong call”. He instead wants to come back with a clear mind, and talk things through fully and rationally with the FA. There is one thoroughly logical reason to stay. This squad is young yet experienced, and could well be in its proper prime by Euro 2024. It is tantalising. Players like Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka and Jude Bellingham will be even more rounded than they are now, a tournament in Qatar where everyone among the England staff was so struck by the psychological leap they’d made since even Euro 2020. The team are now so close, which even this defeat illustrated. [For the full story click here >](   Enjoying this newsletter? Unlock unlimited, ad-free reading on the website and in The Independent app when you subscribe – plus, benefit from our [welcome offer when you join today](. Watch/ [Thieves steal mother’s homemade Coca-Cola truck from Christmas display](   NUMBER OF THE DAY £800bn The [Conservatives]( have been condemned by the UK’s official statistics watchdog for claiming that £800bn in “new” free trade deals had been secured since [Brexit](. [Read more here](   QUOTE OF THE DAY “They were happy to lie to protect my brother. They were never willing to tell the truth to protect us.” – A new trailer for part two of the [Netflix]( documentary series about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex has dropped, in which [Prince Harry]( takes aim at his brother [Prince William](. [Read more here](     Other stories you might like   [Snow prompts school closures, cancelled trains and motorway traffic](   [‘Cancer road’: A Ford factory dumped toxic sludge on tribal land. 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