Midwives went on strike on Monday to protest the Government's decision not to give them a recommended 1% pay rise - and Edwina Currie thinks they're disgraceful.
The former MP 's comments drew stinging criticism from many on Twitter, who said the NHS staff were standing up for fair pay.
The dispute involves over 400,000 NHS staff, who have been hit by pay freezes or below inflation rises since the coalition came to power in 2010.
Unite said a poll it commissioned showed public support for the industrial action, as well as backing for a decent pay rise.
Story continues after slideshow...
Health workers strike
Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London(01 of37)
DENMARK HILL, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - 2014/10/13: Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London stage a four-hour strike protest on the lack of wage increase for over 4 years now. British Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt had earlier agreed to implement the 1-percent salary increase, but 45 percent of workers did not receive the said incremental. (Photo by Pierre Alozie/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images) (credit:Pacific Press via Getty Images)
Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London(02 of37)
DENMARK HILL, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - 2014/10/13: Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London stage a four-hour strike protest on the lack of wage increase for over 4 years now. British Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt had earlier agreed to implement the 1-percent salary increase, but 45 percent of workers did not receive the said incremental. (Photo by Pierre Alozie/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images) (credit:Pacific Press via Getty Images)
Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London(03 of37)
DENMARK HILL, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - 2014/10/13: Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London stage a four-hour strike protest on the lack of wage increase for over 4 years now. British Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt had earlier agreed to implement the 1-percent salary increase, but 45 percent of workers did not receive the said incremental. (Photo by Pierre Alozie/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images) (credit:Pacific Press via Getty Images)
Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London(04 of37)
DENMARK HILL, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - 2014/10/13: Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London stage a four-hour strike protest on the lack of wage increase for over 4 years now. British Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt had earlier agreed to implement the 1-percent salary increase, but 45 percent of workers did not receive the said incremental. (Photo by Pierre Alozie/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images) (credit:Pacific Press via Getty Images)
Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London(05 of37)
DENMARK HILL, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - 2014/10/13: Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London stage a four-hour strike protest on the lack of wage increase for over 4 years now. British Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt had earlier agreed to implement the 1-percent salary increase, but 45 percent of workers did not receive the said incremental. (Photo by Pierre Alozie/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images) (credit:Pacific Press via Getty Images)
Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London(06 of37)
DENMARK HILL, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - 2014/10/13: Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London stage a four-hour strike protest on the lack of wage increase for over 4 years now. British Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt had earlier agreed to implement the 1-percent salary increase, but 45 percent of workers did not receive the said incremental. (Photo by Pierre Alozie/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images) (credit:Pacific Press via Getty Images)
Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London(07 of37)
DENMARK HILL, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - 2014/10/13: Workers of the NHS Kings College Hospital in South London stage a four-hour strike protest on the lack of wage increase for over 4 years now. British Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt had earlier agreed to implement the 1-percent salary increase, but 45 percent of workers did not receive the said incremental. (Photo by Pierre Alozie/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images) (credit:Pacific Press via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-HEALTH-STRIKE(08 of37)
A member of military and a paramedic wheel a patient into the Royal Liverpool Hospital in Liverpool, north west England on October 13, 2014. Workers in England's state-run National Health Service went on strike on Monday for the first time since 1982 following a government refusal to hike their pay. NHS staff including nurses, ambulance crews and midwives stopped working between 7:00 am and 11:00 am (0600 GMT and 1000 GMT). The move is intended to pile pressure on Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who rejected the recommendations of an independent panel for a one-percent wage increase for all health service staff. AFP PHOTO/PAUL ELLIS (Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:PAUL ELLIS via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-HEALTH-STRIKE(09 of37)
A member of the military returns to an ambulance with a paramedic outside the Royal Liverpool Hospital in Liverpool, north west England on October 13, 2014. Workers in England's state-run National Health Service went on strike on Monday for the first time since 1982 following a government refusal to hike their pay. NHS staff including nurses, ambulance crews and midwives stopped working between 7:00 am and 11:00 am (0600 GMT and 1000 GMT). The move is intended to pile pressure on Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who rejected the recommendations of an independent panel for a one-percent wage increase for all health service staff. AFP PHOTO/PAUL ELLIS (Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:PAUL ELLIS via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-HEALTH-STRIKE(10 of37)
A member of military and paramedics wheel a patient into the Royal Liverpool Hospital in Liverpool, north west England on October 13, 2014. Workers in England's state-run National Health Service went on strike on Monday for the first time since 1982 following a government refusal to hike their pay. NHS staff including nurses, ambulance crews and midwives stopped working between 7:00 am and 11:00 am (0600 GMT and 1000 GMT). The move is intended to pile pressure on Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who rejected the recommendations of an independent panel for a one-percent wage increase for all health service staff. AFP PHOTO/PAUL ELLIS (Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:PAUL ELLIS via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-HEALTH-STRIKE(11 of37)
Midwives take part in a strike at the Liverpool Women's Hospital in Liverpool, north west England on October 13, 2014. Workers in England's state-run National Health Service went on strike on Monday for the first time since 1982 following a government refusal to hike their pay. NHS staff including nurses, ambulance crews and midwives stopped working between 7:00 am and 11:00 am (0600 GMT and 1000 GMT). Among the unions taking industrial action, the Royal College of Midwives is going on strike for the first time in its 133-year existence. The move is intended to pile pressure on Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who rejected the recommendations of an independent panel for a one-percent wage increase for all health service staff. AFP PHOTO/PAUL ELLIS (Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:PAUL ELLIS via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-HEALTH-STRIKE(12 of37)
Midwives take part in a strike at the Liverpool Women's Hospital in Liverpool, north west England on October 13, 2014. Workers in England's state-run National Health Service went on strike on Monday for the first time since 1982 following a government refusal to hike their pay. NHS staff including nurses, ambulance crews and midwives stopped working between 7:00 am and 11:00 am (0600 GMT and 1000 GMT). Among the unions taking industrial action, the Royal College of Midwives is going on strike for the first time in its 133-year existence. The move is intended to pile pressure on Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who rejected the recommendations of an independent panel for a one-percent wage increase for all health service staff. AFP PHOTO/PAUL ELLIS (Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:PAUL ELLIS via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-HEALTH-STRIKE(13 of37)
Midwives take part in a strike at the Liverpool Women's Hospital in Liverpool, north west England on October 13, 2014. Workers in England's state-run National Health Service went on strike on Monday for the first time since 1982 following a government refusal to hike their pay. NHS staff including nurses, ambulance crews and midwives stopped working between 7:00 am and 11:00 am (0600 GMT and 1000 GMT). Among the unions taking industrial action, the Royal College of Midwives is going on strike for the first time in its 133-year existence. The move is intended to pile pressure on Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who rejected the recommendations of an independent panel for a one-percent wage increase for all health service staff. AFP PHOTO/PAUL ELLIS (Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:PAUL ELLIS via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-HEALTH-STRIKE(14 of37)
Midwives take part in a strike at the Liverpool Women's Hospital in Liverpool, north west England on October 13, 2014. Workers in England's state-run National Health Service went on strike on Monday for the first time since 1982 following a government refusal to hike their pay. NHS staff including nurses, ambulance crews and midwives stopped working between 7:00 am and 11:00 am (0600 GMT and 1000 GMT). Among the unions taking industrial action, the Royal College of Midwives is going on strike for the first time in its 133-year existence. The move is intended to pile pressure on Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who rejected the recommendations of an independent panel for a one-percent wage increase for all health service staff. AFP PHOTO/PAUL ELLIS (Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:PAUL ELLIS via Getty Images)
BRITAIN-HEALTH-STRIKE(15 of37)
Strikers protest outside Royal Liverpool Hospital in Liverpool, north west England on October 13, 2014. Workers in England's state-run National Health Service went on strike on Monday for the first time since 1982 following a government refusal to hike their pay. NHS staff including nurses, ambulance crews and midwives stopped working between 7:00 am and 11:00 am (0600 GMT and 1000 GMT). The move is intended to pile pressure on Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who rejected the recommendations of an independent panel for a one-percent wage increase for all health service staff. AFP PHOTO/PAUL ELLIS (Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:PAUL ELLIS via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(16 of37)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: (EDITORS NOTE: The patient's identity has been hidden in this image). Soldiers assist a National Health Service (NHS) ambulance worker(R) with an emergency admission too St Thomas' Hospital on October 13, 2014 in London, England. NHS workers are holding a four hour strike over pay. Unions are seeking a 1% rise for all workers, but the government are saying that it would cost too much. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images) (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(17 of37)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: A soldier wears a National Health Service (NHS) high visability jacket as he steps down from an ambulance at St Thomas' Hospital on October 13, 2014 in London, England. NHS workers are holding a four hour strike over pay. Unions are seeking a 1% rise for all workers, but the government are saying that it would cost too much. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images) (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(18 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside Southmead Hospital on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(19 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside the Bristol Royal Infirmary on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(20 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside the St Michael's Hospital on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(21 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside the Bristol Royal Infirmary on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(22 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside the Bristol Royal Infirmary on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(23 of37)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: National Health Service (NHS) workers gather outside St Thomas' Hospital on October 13, 2014 in London, England. NHS workers are holding a four hour strike over pay. Unions are seeking a 1% rise for all workers, but the government are saying that it would cost too much. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images) (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(24 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside the Bristol Royal Infirmary on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(25 of37)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: National Health Service (NHS) workers gather outside St Thomas' Hospital on October 13, 2014 in London, England. NHS workers are holding a four hour strike over pay. Unions are seeking a 1% rise for all workers, but the government are saying that it would cost too much. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images) (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(26 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside Southmead Hospital on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(27 of37)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: A doctor applauds National Health Service (NHS) workers who are gathered outside St Thomas' Hospital on October 13, 2014 in London, England. NHS workers are holding a four hour strike over pay. Unions are seeking a 1% rise for all workers, but the government are saying that it would cost too much. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images) (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(28 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside Southmead Hospital on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(29 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside the Bristol Royal Infirmary on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(30 of37)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: National Health Service (NHS) workers gather outside St Thomas' Hospital on October 13, 2014 in London, England. NHS workers are holding a four hour strike over pay. Unions are seeking a 1% rise for all workers, but the government are saying that it would cost too much. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images) (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(31 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: A general view of Southmead Hospital on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
NHS Stage First Strike Over Pay For 30 Years(32 of37)
BRISTOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: NHS staff gather at a picket line outside the St Michael's Hospital on October 13, 2014 in Bristol, England. Thousands of NHS workers, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have begun a four-hour strike - the first strike by NHS staff over pay in more than 30 years. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
Health workers strike(33 of37)
NHS workers protest outside the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading as hundreds of thousands of health workers have walked out on strike, many for the first time in their lives, in protest at the Government's decision not to give them a recommended 1\% pay rise. (credit:Andrew Matthews/PA Wire)
Health workers strike(34 of37)
NHS workers protest outside the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading as hundreds of thousands of health workers have walked out on strike, many for the first time in their lives, in protest at the Government's decision not to give them a recommended 1\% pay rise. (credit:Andrew Matthews/PA Wire)
Health workers strike(35 of37)
An NHS health worker holds a UNISON placard outside the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading as hundreds of thousands of health workers have walked out on strike, many for the first time in their lives, in protest at the Government's decision not to give them a recommended 1\% pay rise. (credit:Andrew Matthews/PA Wire)
Health workers strike(36 of37)
NHS health workers including Midwives protest outside the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading as hundreds of thousands of health workers have walked out on strike, many for the first time in their lives, in protest at the Government's decision not to give them a recommended 1\% pay rise. (credit:Andrew Matthews/PA Wire)
Health workers strike(37 of37)
NHS workers protest outside the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading as hundreds of thousands of health workers have walked out on strike, many for the first time in their lives, in protest at the Government's decision not to give them a recommended 1\% pay rise. (credit:Andrew Matthews/PA Wire)
Currie questioned the validity of the strike.
And then many questioned the validity of her statement.
Undeterred Currie went on to highlight the level of pay midwives already receive.
Which didn't go down well.
Then she had a pop at senior midwives who are slightly better off.
Inevitably, 'The Egg Incident' came up.
And the the floodgates opened...