The news that patients routinely have to wait up to two hours and thirty minutes for an ambulance is not only outrageous but dangerous. Stroke patients and those with cardiac problems should be responded to within eighteen minutes according to medical protocols and lack of early intervention can have life changing consequences for patients. Response time cannot be met when ambulances are sitting outside hospitals with patients and rendering treatment in the carpark. This is unacceptable not only for patients but for the ambulance crews. This is not the fault of the ambulance crews.

The Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service has openly recognised that ambulance handover delays create harm, saying once handover exceeds sixty minutes, harm is no longer exceptional for patients, it is expected, with very real human consequences for patients including deterioration in unmanaged pain, dehydration, pressure damage due to patients waiting on unsuitable trolleys, and ambulance handover delays. All of these are patient safety and dignity issues.

The fact the equivalent to thirty ambulance shifts per day have been lost because of delayed handovers is staggering, and must give pause for thought to those charged with the responsibility of managing our health and social care services.

The Workers Party in all our submissions to government policy consultations, have consistently flagged up the consequences of ill-conceived policy decisions.