Northumberland nurse says she went on strike after experiencing 10-hour wait herself in A&E

Angie Scott, who is also a Labour councillor representing the Prudhoe North ward on Northumberland County Council, waited 10 hours in the corridor of a hospital after her 17-year-old son, who has autism, became ill.

Coun Scott said the decision to go on strike wasn’t just about pay, but about patient safety and working conditions as well.

She said: “We were sitting in a corridor from 8pm until six in the morning. There were hundreds of ill people and there were no beds.

“It was a hard decision, but that did it for me, seeing it on the other side from a patient point of view. Nurses, doctors and porters were constantly apologising.

“It was horrendous. It has totally shown how the NHS needs to be looked at by government. We are striking about pay, but also about conditions and patient safety.”

Walkouts have taken place across the North East, including at the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital in Cramlington, Newcastle’s Freeman and Royal Victoria Infirmary hospitals, at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Gateshead and North Tyneside and Hexham general hospitals, with hundreds of nurses taking to picket lines.

It is the second day of action in the Royal College of Nursing’s first ever strike in more than 100 years, following a walkout last week. The RCN are calling for a pay rise of five per cent above inflation, though it has indicated it would accept a lower offer.

The government offer remains that nurses should get a pay rise of around £1,400.

Coun Scott added: “I love the NHS, I love my job and I love working for the NHS. I’ve worked at various trusts for over 20 years.

“I’ve never seen it on the other side like that – In A&E, with hundreds of ill people lying around corridors.

“We have loads of support from the public.”