• Labour has received new FOI responses from police forces in England and Wales that record 999 response times. These figures are for Grade 1 emergencies (highest level) at night.
• Of the 21 forces who replied (half of all forces in England and Wales) – 14 showed increases over the last two years, 2 forces in just the last year, while a further 2 remained the same.
• In these emergency calls, seconds count, but these figures show extraordinary rises in forces. Response units have been heavily cut back by the Tories.

Yvette Cooper MP, Labour’s Shadow Home Secretary, said:

“When people call 999 in an emergency they need to know help will be there fast. But instead victims are waiting longer and longer for help.

“Two thirds of the police forces responding to this survey have shown big increases in average response times for the most serious calls. In some of these cases, seconds matter.

“David Cameron and Theresa May said the frontline would be protected but the reality is that vital response units have been heavily cut back.

“The Home Secretary needs to stop blaming the police for her decisions and start working with the police to get victims the response they need.“