I, and my fellow Norfolk MPs, were deeply shocked to hear the allegations that were made against the East of England Ambulance Service Trust earlier this year – concerning patient deaths due to delays.

It is absolutely vital that public trust is maintained in the services that we all rely on and cherish, and that’s why we have been in regular contact with the Ambulance Trust and other NHS bodies to closely monitor the efforts being undertaken to bring about improvements.

Having seen the Ambulance Trust receive a ‘requires improvement’ rating from the CQC (which means there has been no improvement in the rating over the last two years), today, Richard Bacon, Norman Lamb and I have called for a change of leadership at the Trust.

While there are many dedicated and hardworking staff at the Trust, the lack of real leadership and the continuing failures of the people in management cannot go on. They are paid a lot of money to manage the service, and they are letting patients and frontline staff down.

It is imperative that standards improve and I remain firmly committed to working with my fellow MPs in the East to ensure that this happens.

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