The following motion was moved by Deputy Billy Kelleher on Tuesday, 15 April 2014:That Dáil Éireann:acknowledging the:— selfless dedication to their work, of the paramedics in our ambulance service; — high quality of care that they provide; and — uniquely pressurised nature of the work they undertake;recognises that:— there is nationwide concern and disquiet about the provision of ambulance services; — this situation can be exacerbated by delays in accident and emergency wards; — in 2013 only one in every three people with life-threatening conditions were responded to within the target time; — delays in ambulance response times far exceed both national and international accepted norms; — large areas of the population right across the country are regularly left without any local ambulance cover; — the Health Service Executive lowered the ambulance response time targets to 80 per cent in 2012 and 70 per cent in 2013; and — the centralisation of control and dispatch has led to concerns about a lack of local knowledge and the impact that can have;notes that:— the Republic of Ireland, with a population of 4.6 million, has an ambulance service that employs less than 1,600 staff and an annual budget of €137.4 million; — Northern Ireland, with a population of 1.7 million, has an ambulance service that employs just fewer than 1,200 staff with an annual budget of £62 million (€78 million); and — Scotland, with a population of 5.3 million, has an ambulance service that employs over 4,500 staff with an annual budget of £203.5 million (€258 million);believes that:— while paramedics do their utmost to provide a service to the highest international standards, this is impossible with current budgets; — it is essential that paramedics be properly resourced to carry out their work; and — such resources are not currently forthcoming from the Government; andcalls for the ambulance service to be appropriately resourced so as to ensure a safe and efficient service nationwide.

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