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’.

Michael now says: "I fear this is a done deal and that it is Government
policy to force a West Midlands Ambulance service through after the
consultation has been completed. I believe that if something ain’t
broke, don’t fix it. I oppose any merger of the Staffordshire Ambulance
Service. As I and so many of my fellow Conservative and Labour
Staffordshire MPs have said: ‘Any merger is bound to reduce the service
provided to the people of Staffordshire’. I believe the ultimate toll
will be in lives lost".