Striking nurses will march with supporters to Downing Street as further mass walkouts of NHS were announced for the coming weeks.
In a message to the prime minister, nursing leaders said: “If you want to continue to have strikes … that’s exactly what you will get.”
Nurses and ambulance workers are set to strike on the same day next month as the pay dispute with the government shows no signs of reaching a resolution.
The escalation comes as thousands of nurses walkout today and tomorrow at more than 55 NHS trusts in England.
Earlier, Steve Barclay, the health secretary, claimed that patients would pay the price if nurses got a pay hike.
Writing exclusively for The Independent, Mr Barclay said any boost to wages would “take billions of pounds away from where we need it most”.
He wrote: “Unaffordable pay hikes will mean cutting patient care and stoking the inflation that would make us all poorer.”
Health secretary told on the the picket line: ‘Every day is a challenge’
A senior nurse told the health secretary “every day is a challenge” and A&E is “always short of staff” as he visited a hospital during the nursing strike.
Alicia Borja said Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow is facing difficulties because “so many ambulances come here” covering a wide area.
She told Steve Barclay during his visit to the emergency department: “We have so many ambulances coming here. We cover a very big area and we are always short of staff, that’s another challenge, but we try to pull together and we have a very good team.
“We have hard work here and all the nurses are doing the hard work and management are doing their best. Every day is a challenge.”
Mr Barclay said that “part of why I’m here today” is to hear about “the hard work that’s being done”.
NHS to be hit by coordinated nurse and paramedic strike
Thousands of ambulance workers and nurses will go on strike on the same day next month as the pay dispute with the government shows no signs of reaching a resolution.
The GMB union said more than 10,000 ambulance workers, including paramedics, emergency care assistants and call handlers, will stage strikes on 6 February, 20 February, 6 March and 20 March.
Nurses are also due to strike on 6 February – meaning mass disruption can be expected across the NHS on that day. Nurses will also strike the following day, 7 February.
Nurses at 55 NHS trusts across England today and tomorrow.
Nurses strike outside James Cook Hospital in Middlesbrough
” height=”726″ width=”982″ layout=”responsive” class=”i-amphtml-layout-responsive i-amphtml-layout-size-defined” i-amphtml-layout=”responsive”> Nurses strike outside James Cook Hospital in Middlesbrough
George Eustice is the latest Tory MP to announce exit strategy
Former Cabinet minister George Eustice has become the latest Conservative to announce plans to stand down as an MP at the next general election (Adam Forrest writes).
Mr Eustice, 51, said he will not be challenging to retain the seat of Camborne and Redruth, in Cornwall, so he can pursue a “final career outside politics”.
Having served as environment secretary under Boris Johnson, he follows a string of senior Tories and rising stars in announcing their exit plans from the House of Commons.
Their moves come as Rishi Sunak struggles to recover from dire polling for the Tories which currently puts Labour 24 points clear.
Tory minister defends ex-chancellor Nadhim Zahawi over his tax affairs
A Home Office minister has insisted no evidence has emerged of “inappropriate behaviour” by former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi after he reportedly paid millions in tax to settle a dispute.
Questions have swirled around the Tory party chairman since the Sun on Sunday first reported that he agreed to pay a “seven-figure sum” to settle a dispute with HMRC.
Adam Forrest has more below:
Tory minister backs efforts to strip rapist David Carrick of his police pension
A Home Office minister Robert Jenrick has said Rishi Sunak’s government will backs efforts by London mayor Sadiq Khan to strip serial rapist police officer David Carrick of his pension.
Mr Khan has said efforts will be made to remove the police pension because Carrick’s crimes were committed in connection with his job – but the current rules state he will still keep at least 35 per cent.
Our politics correspondent Adam Forrest reports:
‘He always breaks his promises’
Sunak responds saying that his government is delivering on the “people’s priorities”.
He claims Starmer will say anything “if the politics suit him”.
“It’s as simple as that”, he adds before saying that Starmer always breaks his promises.
He then lists a number of leadership pledges Starmer has ditched since becoming Labour leader.
Starmer: will he apologise?
Responding, Starmer again accuses the PM of deflecting his questions.
He says PM won’t say when he plans to deliver the “basic minimum service levels people need”.
Starmer says that, on average, some 700 people will call an ambulance over a 40 minute period – the length of a typical PMQs session.
Some of them will “wait and wait,” he says before asking Sunak: will he apologise for the “lethal chaos” in the NHS.
‘Political games’
Of course Stephanie’s case is a “tragedy”, PM says.
He accuses Starmer of playing “political games”…the Labour leader is a “living example” of a political game player, he adds.
Sunak asks Starmer if he’s confident there aren’t similar cases in Wales.
‘This isn’t hypothetical…this is real life’
Starmer refers to the chest pains patient again, saying “this isn’t hypothetical…this is real life.”
He cites the real-life case of a woman named Stephanie, 26, from Plymouth who collapsed at home while battling cancer.
He said the woman’s mother rang 999 “desperate for help”.
She died waiting for the ambulance, Starmer says. Starmer adds, on behalf of Stephanies’s family, “will he stop the excuses”.
Rishi Sunak government has inflicted ‘lethal chaos’ on NHS, says Keir Starmer
Sir Keir Starmer has called on Rishi Sunak to apologise for the “lethal chaos” inflicted on the NHS under the Conservative government.
The Labour leader used a feisty exchange at PMQs to accuse the prime minister of seeking to “blame others” for record waiting times for ambulances, emergency and elective care.
Our politics correspondent Adam Forrest reports:
