People living in the UK were warned to avoid “unnecessary” car journeys today because an ambulance service strike would likely result in long waits to be transported to hospital if they were involved in an accident.
Health minister Will Quince told the BBC that the British public should try not to engage in “risky activity,” which he later explained during a different BBC interview could include driving and playing sports.
“If there is activity that people are undertaking [on December 21], whether it’s, for example, contact sport, they may want to review that,” Quince told BBC Radio 5 Live.
When asked if people should drive, the health minister replied: “If there are unnecessary journeys I would say, don’t. No.”
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Paramedics, control room staff and support workers from the three main ambulance unions – Unison, GMB and Unite – are taking part in their first ever strike on December 21 over pay. The striking workers want above-inflation pay rises, but the UK government says pay rises for ambulance workers and nurses (who went on strike on December 20) were decided by independent pay review bodies. The sticking point is that independent pay recommendation was set before inflation went stratospheric.
Life-threatening category one calls to the UK’s 999 emergency phone line, including heart attacks were still being dealt with by ambulance crews today, but category two calls, which are serious but not life-threatening, including strokes, might not be immediately attended to by emergency teams. As for category 3 calls, such as women in late-stage labor, well, you’ve got the Uber app on your phone, right?
Around 600 members of the armed forces have been drafted in to provide additional ambulance support, while a further 150 were brought in to offer logistical assistance during the strike, which will be repeated on December 28 unless a deal can be reached before then. Crucially, military drivers won’t be allowed to steam through red lights, break the speed limit or use their blue lights.
