Newly qualified nurses should start their careers on band 6 of the Agenda for Change pay scale instead of band 5, RCN general secretary Nicola Ranger has told the Sunday Times. The message comes after RCN members in England voted to reject the 5.5% pay rise for nursing staff awarded by the government. The RCN chief says that paying nurses more than £37,000 would attract ‘brilliance’ and modernise the profession.