AMBULANCE response times in Shropshire increased again in December, according to new figures.

West Midlands Ambulance Service took an average eight minutes and 19 seconds to respond to Category One callouts – an increase of six seconds on November, and seven seconds on October.

There was also an increase from 39:25 in November to 48:19 in December for Category Two callouts.

The statistics, released by NHS England, show that in a month, average wait times for serious incidents worsened with every region in England failing to meet both the Category One and Category Two callout times.

The NHS target for Category One calls requiring an immediate response to a life-threatening condition, such as cardiac or respiratory arrest, is seven minutes and for 90 per cent to be responded to within 15 minutes, while the Category Two target is 18 minutes.

Responding to the new figures, Helen Morgan MP for North Shropshire, who is calling on the Government to commission an investigation by the Care Quality Commission, said: “This is frankly disastrous. Our local NHS services are under more pressure than ever before. I am working with our teams on the ground to fight for real investment in our area.

“The Government have taken Shropshire for granted for decades and now we’re seeing local patients and families pay the price – the service has been run into the ground.

“Health service wait times across the board are struggling, our local health staff are under immense pressure and it looks like things are getting even worse.

“It is clear that the Prime Minister and his Health Secretary do not have a grip of this crisis. We must commission a Care Quality Commission investigation without further delay and provide services with the support they need.”