GMB has demanded free staff parking and a flat £1.50 pay rise — equivalent to 13 per cent for the lowest paid — as part of the 2024/25 pay deal for its ambulance and NHS worker members.

Research by the union found NHS trusts trousered £46 million from staff parking in 2022-23.

It is also refusing to engage with the NHS Pay Review Body until it is reformed — questioning the body’s independence from the government — making its claim directly to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).