Striking ambulance workers today urged the Government to give staff a pay rise and better working conditions, saying the service was at “breaking point”. On a picket line in Coventry, striking paramedics and union leaders accused the Government of “criminal negligence”, saying the Tories had "hollowed out" the NHS. Health Secretary Steve Barclay was also personally accused of "holding the country to ransom" by Unite leader Sharon Graham who joined the striking workers.