PRIVATE ambulance spending has risen by more than 50 per cent when it comes to ferrying patients from Lancashire and beyond to the region’s hospitals, according to new figures.

North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) bosses say they have experienced a spike in 999 calls demand but ambulance service leaders including the College of Paramedics, say more funding should be given directly to the NHS to train and recruit its own staff to plug the gap.

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A Freedom of Information Act request shows spending on non-NHS emergency ambulances has increased from £1.88million to £2.86million, with St John’s Ambulance taking on the bulk of the work.

Ged Blezard, the NWAS interim operations director, said the number of 999 calls over the past two years had risen by around 30 per cent, resulting in extra money being provided by commissioners.

He said: “However purchasing new ambulances can take up to 12 months and recruiting enough new staff can take up to three years.

“In order to fill that gap in the meantime, the trust increased its use of private and volunteer ambulance services and organisations.

“We hope to see that figure decrease once we have sufficient resources for the demands placed upon us.”

Mr Blezard has insisted that private ambulances are only sent to ‘non-life threatening incidents’. He also cited a national shortage of paramedics.

Richard Webber, director of the College of Paramedics, said: “In the long term, we should not be using private providers in the way we are, but we do need to provide a safe and effective service to the public.” “We should employ more people, training and supporting them effectively and providing that as part of the NHS.

Alan Lofthouse of Unison, said the Government had been “shortsighted” in failing to train and recruit enough paramedics, leading to private companies stepping in.

He added: “There has been warnings about the level of demand and 999 calls. They are stretched beyond their ability to cope. We are asking the government to invest in more proper training to bring in a new generation of paramedics.” A Department of Health spokesman said: “We have employed 2,000 more paramedics since 2010 and are training an extra 1,900 over the next five years.”