Ambulance delays force Essex police to make A&E trips Essex police haven take patients to A&E over 180 times in the past year, the BBC has found. Figures show that in March, 22 patients taken to hospital because of "excessive ambulance delays" or "no shows." Tony Hughes, the GMB ambulance organiser for the eastern region, told BBC Radio 5 live's Eleanor Oldroyd: "It's only a matter of time before somebody dies because of what's going on." A spokesman for Essex police said it was "concerned" at the "increasing demand moving from the ambulance service onto police resources." A spokesman for the East of England ambulance service said: "We recognise we do not currently have sufficient ambulances to respond to all emergency calls as quickly as we need to.