IT IS hard to argue with South Central Ambulance Service chief executive Will Hancock that the response target time for reaching urgent cases is near-impossible to meet in rural areas.

Indeed, we said the same in this column in June.

But the service still needs to improve its performance when it receives 999 calls from West Oxfordshire.

Last December, paramedics reached just over half the most serious life-threatening incidents in the district within the eight-minute target set by the Government and this average hides more worrying figures.

Between April last year and this February, ambulances failed to reach West Oxfordshire patients whose lives were in immediate danger within 30 minutes on 15 occasions, eating up half of the so-called “golden hour” in which appropriate treatment can save many lives.

We echo Prime Minister and Witney MP David Cameron’s hope that the five extra ambulances taking to the roads in Oxfordshire this month – despite the financial constraints the service must work within – will deliver a clear improvement in response times in more isolated areas over the coming months, and, most importantly, give patients the best possible chance of survival thanks to skilled paramedics.

Just because people choose to live in rural areas does not mean that they should receive a second-class service.