Who’s to blame?

BEDFORDSHIRE Police has been blamed for being one of three forces which, for more than two hours, failed to attend to a motorcyclist who had skidded off his bike into a ditch on the boundary of the three counties.

This breakdown of cross-border protocols as the incident was passed around three police forces and two ambulance trusts is inexcusable.

The policing aspect has rightly been referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission by the force for which I am responsible. We’re fortunate it was not more serious.

But if I were injured and in need of help, I would hope for an ambulance to arrive rather than a police car. I’m wondering why Bedfordshire Police ended up doing the work of another emergency service by ferrying the injured man to hospital.

When police attended, two hours after the initial call for an ambulance, the officers could still not be told when an ambulance might arrive. Was there any reason the police should have been there at all? Was there a crime? No other vehicle was involved. Was there a hazard to other road users? Apparently not.

Bedfordshire Police is a small, underfunded force which has lost almost 200 officers since 2010 and has 27 per cent fewer officers than its chief constable says it needs.

Nonetheless, the force is introducing a new operating model designed to optimise its resources. But Bedfordshire Police will still be operating at the limits of its capacity.

The reality of emergency service provision in 2015 seems to be next-tono ambulances available for non-life threatening injuries and barely enough police units to attend incidents that require our involvement, let alone those that do not. OLLY MARTINS, Police and Crime Commissioner for Bedfordshire.