Mr Patsy McGlone (Mid Ulster): To ask the Minister of Health to detail the number of ambulances out of commission, in each Health and Social Care Trust.
Minister of Health: Responsibility for the ambulance fleet rests with the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS), which operates across five operational divisions broadly aligned to Health and Social Care Trust boundaries: Belfast, Northern, South Eastern, Southern and Western.
At present, there are no ambulances out of commission within any NIAS division. All operational divisions have a full complement of serviceable ambulances available for deployment, with additional vehicles in use to meet increased demand.
The number of ambulances currently available in each division is provided in table 1.
Table 1 – Number of Ambulances available by Division
| Belfast Division | 42 ambulances |
| Northern Division | 73 ambulances (including 9 additional vehicles) |
| South Eastern Division | 45 ambulances (including 1 additional vehicles) |
| Southern Division | 39 ambulances (including 2 additional vehicles) |
| Western Division | 49 ambulances (including 2 additional vehicles) |
NIAS has an established fleet of 234 ambulances but is currently operating 248 vehicles, reflecting a temporary increase of 14 ambulances in response to sustained service demand.
As of 1 April 2026, a total of five vehicles (three emergency ambulances and two patient care service vehicles) have been withdrawn from frontline use and are awaiting disposal. These vehicles are no longer operational and do not impact service delivery.
NIAS operates a five-year vehicle replacement policy. However, due to increased demand and COVID-related supply chain pressures, a small number of vehicles beyond five years of age remain in use where they are safe and reliable to do so. All ambulances retained within the fleet are fully operational, and none are designated solely as spare vehicles, ensuring flexibility to manage maintenance, unplanned downtime and contingency requirements.
ENDS
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