§ Mr. Wheelerasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will give, for the most recent 12-month period, the cost of the London Ambulance Service, the number of persons employed, and the division of these services between emergency and passenger transport; what is the source of the funding; and what is the average cost for passengers or incident of each journey.
§ Mr. John PattenTotal expenditure on the service in the year ending on 31 March 1984 was £35.4 million, and was apportioned as follows between the four regional health authorities concerned:
- North East Thames—32 per cent.
- North West Thames—29 per cent.
- South East Thames—21 per cent.
- South West Thames—18 per cent.
The number of people employed in the service during the year was 2,724.
The numbers of patient journeys by different types of transport in the year ending on 31 December 1983 were as follows:
Patient journeys Direct Ambulance Service Emergency 449,465 Non-Emergency 2,073,560 Other Transport used by Ambulance Service Hospital car 85,640 Rail 3,548 Air 15 Agency and other (including British Red Cross Society and St. John's Ambulance Brigade) 142,230 (A "patient journey" is defined as a journey by one patient in one direction only).
The average cost of a patient journey is estimated from the above figures as £12.85. It is not possible to give an exact figure as the financial and activity data are for different periods.
Source: London Ambulance Service.