SOUTH YORKSHIRE AMBULANCE SERVICE

That this House expresses its strongest possible opposition to the decision of the Chief Metropolitan Ambulance Officer for South Yorkshire to register initial interest in turning the Service into a National Health Service trust; deplores the fact that he announced his intention without consulting the workforce; congratulates the Service on the high standards maintained as presently organised; believes that the suggested change would inevitably result in a reduction in standards, the imposition of charges on patients, or both; and urges the Chief Officer not to proceed with an idea which will be strongly opposed by the residents of South Yorkshire