News Release

14th December 2005

STAFFORDSHIRE AMBULANCE SERVICE:
MEETING WITH HEALTH SECRETARY

Michael Fabricant - along with 10 other Staffordshire MPs - met with Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Health, at 12.30pm today (Wednesday 14th December 2005) to voice his concern at the plans to merge the Staffordshire Ambulance Service into a greater West Midlands regional service.

Michael told Patricia Hewitt that the Staffordshire Ambulance Service has the fastest response times in Europe and the ambulancemen and women are trained paramedics - not first-aiders. He told Mrs Hewitt of people he knows in Lichfield and Burntwood who are alive today because of this and would probably be dead now if they lived in the West Midlands area because of slower response times.

Charlotte Atkins, the Labour MP for Staffordshire Moorlands spoke about how difficult it would be to merge the successful operating system used by the innovative Staffordshire Ambulance Service with the different systems used elsewhere. And Paul Farrelly, the Labour MP for Newcastle under Lyme, gave a graphic example of how quickly the ambulance service had responded in Staffordshire compared with a recent incident involving a close relative in London where he called London Ambulance 3 times and still they did not respond.

Health Secretary, Patricia Hewitt responded by assuring the Staffordshire MPs that no decision has yet been made. The consultation period will last until 22nd March 2006 when a final decision will be made. She did explain, however, that there is a move to regional emergency services nationally to take into account 'the increased threat of terrorism'.