The waiting time for an ambulance in Powys has been branded “unacceptable” and “dangerous” after it was revealed the county had one of the worst response times in Wales.

A report published on January 21 shows that only 43% of "red" calls – the most urgent – were reached within the first eight minutes, the target time for arrivals.

The number is significantly lower than more urban areas such as Cardiff which were reported to have 65.3% of red calls reached within the first eight minutes, and lower than the Welsh average overall which sits at 51%.

The data was recorded from over 30,000 calls.

More than 3,000 of those calls were classified as red, meaning they are deemed immediately life threatening and require an emergency response.

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds said: “These figures are a tragedy. Targets aren’t even close to being met and ambulance response times have gotten worse.

“While we all understand the severe pressure the pandemic has placed on NHS, these problems are not new.

"What really stands out is the huge variance in performance across Wales. Here in Powys, we have some of the worst response times in the country. We absolutely cannot continue with a postcode lottery when it comes to life saving services and rural regions cannot continue to be neglected.

“If we are to reduce pressures on our ambulance services and A&Es, we must invest more in community healthcare and GPs.

“If people could get a GP appointment in reasonable time there would be far less pressure on emergency services. For too many people in Mid Wales this just isn’t happening and rural Wales continues to suffer from a shortage of GPs.

“We also need action on social care, both to prevent high numbers entering emergency departments and to ensure people have safe environments to be discharged to following any emergency treatment.

“This situation cannot continue. The Labour and Plaid Cymru administration must do more to tackle this issue.”

Plaid Cymru MS Cefin Campbell added: "These figures sadly reflect a growing trend I’m regularly seeing in my inbox and on the doorstep, with constituents across Powys citing lengthy delays for an ambulance – often with devastating consequences.

"Whilst I am aware of the unprecedented pressures the pandemic has placed on our hardworking NHS staff and services, clearly urgent action needs to be undertaken to overcome these problems."