Steve Barclay has been told to "stop the spin" and "start to speak" with nurses in a bid to avert the first ever nationwide nurses' strike.
The General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing Pat Cullen accused the Health Secretary of having "chosen strikes over speaking to me".
Labour leader Keir Starmer also pinned the blame for the industrial action on ministers - branding it a "badge of shame" for the Government.