Ambulance staff are staging further strike action today in England and Wales as part of an ongoing dispute over pay.

The walk-outs by Unite and GMB workers will be followed by further action in Wales (21 and 22) and England (22).

Further action is planned by ambulance workers on 6 March and by nurses in England on 1-3 March.

This week’s strike action by ambulance workers affects non-life threatening calls only, although delays are expected for less urgent calls.

Ambulance workers in Wales joined their English counterparts today after rejecting a 5.5% pay rise and one-off 1.5% bonus from the Welsh government last week.

Health strikes in Scotland have been suspended after a an offer of a 14% rise over two years from the Scottish government.

Responding to today’s action in England, health and social care secretary Steve Barclay said: “Strikes are in nobody’s best interests and only cause further disruption for patients, despite contingency measures in place.

“It is time unions engaged constructively with the Pay Review Body process for 2023/24 and cancelled strikes so we can move forward and continue tackling the Covid backlog.

“I’ve been clear throughout that I remain keen to keep talking to unions about what is fair and affordable for the coming financial year, as well as wider concerns around conditions and workload so we can make the NHS a better place to work.”