HC Deb 11 March 1996 vol 273 cc485-6W
Mr. Barron

To ask the Secretary of State for Health which NHS ambulance trusts are deemed to be rural services; which of these contain significantly sized urban areas; and, in each case, what is the latest percentage of emergency calls reached within(a) eight minutes, (b) 14 minutes and (c) 19 minutes, for (i) the trust as a whole, (ii) the urban areas and (iii) the rural areas. [19564]

Mr. Horam

Information on rural services and their response times can be found in "Statistical Bulletin on Patient Transport Services in England: 1994–95," copies of which have been placed in the Library.

Information on areas and response times within ambulance services is not available centrally, but may be available from local health authorities and ambulance services.

Mr. Barron

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many vehicles were in service with each NHS ambulance trust in each of the last three years; and, of these, how many were(a) emergency vehicles and (b) vehicles for non-emergency purposes; [19560]

(2) how many vehicles and of what type are (i) owned and (ii) leased by each NHS ambulance trust; and, for each type, how many are (a) less than one year old, (b) between one and three years old, (c) between four and seven years old and (d) eight or more years old. [19511]

Mr. Horam

This information is not available centrally.

Mr. Barron

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of criterion-based dispatch systems for the prioritisation of emergency calls. [19512]

Mr. Horam

We are still awaiting the final report of a research study commissioned from Sheffield university.