AMBULANCE bosses have defended data which shows the number of vehicles without a paramedic onboard, saying South Lakeland is one of the best served areas in the country.
MP Tim Farron has hailed the figures - which he uncovered using the Freedom of Information Act - as “incredibly dangerous” because they show 30 North West Ambulance Service shifts were not fully staffed in December.
The NWAS information also shows up to 16 per cent of ambulances covering Sedbergh didn’t have fully-qualified paramedics onboard last year.
But a spokesman for the trust said coverage in the Morecambe Bay area was “consistently high” - and even among the best in the country. He urged the public to "consider the bigger picture", adding that over the past two years an average of just five per cent of shifts were not covered by a paramedic - well above the industry average.
For the full story see The Westmorland Gazette.
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