Over 100 thousand sign petition for air ambulances to be Government funded

Tens of thousands of people have signed a government e-petition calling for air ambulances across the UK to be Government funded.

The petition, which was started by Bethany Billington, has over 100 thousand signatures. That means it now has to be debated in the parliament.

In her petition Ms. Billington said: “The air ambulances that operate around the UK cost £12,000 per day to run and maintain, and are mainly funded through charity organisations.”

Air ambulances across England, Wales and Northern Ireland are operated by charities, while Scotland has one charity service and four NHS-funded air ambulances.

After the petition reached 10,000 signatures, the government gave a response on its website.

The Department of Health and Social Care said: “NHS ambulance services provide clinical staff and equipment to air ambulance charities. A charitable model gives charities independence to deliver specialised, specific services to each locality.”

The air ambulance charities raise money through donations, sponsorships, lotteries and trusts.

The rising costs of running air ambulances make it more difficult for charities to be able to raise the needed funds to operate the air ambulances.

However, The Air Ambulance Service charity spokesperson said: “We have not so far had any difficulty raising funds.”

Since April 2002, the NHS has been providing some staff and funding to a number of air ambulance services. The Government has also allocated funds in this year and the previous budgets to ensure air ambulances are always ready to save patients in emergency.

The government has also invited the air ambulance charities to bid for a share of £10 million to invest in new equipment and facilities to deliver services to patients in England.