Ambulance workers have indicated they would be prepared to take industrial action over a continuing pay and conditions row.

An informal ballot was carried out by Unison to gauge the views of Sussex Ambulance Service workers.

The response rate was 30 per cent. Of those who answered, 79 per cent said they would support action as a last resort.

And 78 per cent of respondents said they would also withdraw their cooperation with the proposals to merge Sussex, Surrey and Kent services into one regional service.

The merger could be in place by July 1. Those in favour say the changes will make services more efficient and save management costs.

However there are concerns about possible job losses and the impact on local services.

A Unison spokesman said: "This is not a ballot for industrial action it was just a general survey to see how people felt.

"We have heard from many of our members about how unhappy they are and we wanted to assess the depth of feeling."

The union says although the response rate was only around 30 per cent, it still showed there was a significant number who were not satisfied.

Unison called the consultation because of a row about the way negotiations have been handled for a new pay and conditions deal under the Agenda For Change NHS scheme.

Concerns include alleged interference by managers over what level of pay should be given to paramedics and ambulance technicians.

There are also worries about planned changes to meal breaks and rest times. Unison has about 670 members in the Sussex Ambulance Service.

Union leaders are meeting to consider their next step and plan to write to Surrey and Sussex Strategic Health Authority to raise their concerns.

Sussex Ambulance managers say most staff have now been assimilated into the new pay scheme but acknowledge there are still some issues up for discussion at a national level.

The last time unions took industrial action they refused to do voluntary overtime or paperwork.

They did not withdraw their labour because they did not intend the dispute to affect patient care.