Key to survival

SPEED is of the essence when someone suffers a cardiac arrest.

The quicker they receive treatment to restart their heart, the more likely they are to survive.

That is why this paper is campaigning for defibrillators to be available in all public buildings. As a first step, the Government had vowed to put the life-saving equipment in all state schools in England by next Summer.

That promise is now in doubt because of a shortage of batteries and components. Ministers must do everything in their power to source the necessary supplies.

Lives will be lost if they fail to deliver.