Yorkshire Ambulance Service

That this House expresses its gratitude and thanks to the hard-working and dedicated staff of the Yorkshire Ambulance Service, particularly during the trying period of the covid-19 outbreak; notes that the significant increase in calls answered by the service, from 42,000 to 72,000, between November 2020 and November 2021 has added further pressure on staff; further notes the high level of absences mainly due to covid-19 at a time of stress for ambulance staff; notes with concern the report that 9 out of 10 of leaders across the health service feel that the present situation is unsustainable and that patient care could be compromised; regrets the underfunding of our vital health services; further regrets the added pressure on the service as a result of nearly 200 GP practice closures in Yorkshire since 2010; regrets the fact that Category 1 incidents in Yorkshire at the end of 2021 have an average response time of 9 minutes 49 seconds, compared to a target of 7 minutes; and urges the Government to appropriately compensate hard-working staff by prioritising filling NHS vacancies and accepting health trade unions demands for pay awards that undo the impact of real terms pay cuts since 2010.