Army Supporting Welsh Ambulances
Service facing huge demand as military personnel brought in to help
More than 100 military personnel will be supporting the Welsh Ambulance Service as it faces unprecedented demand.
The Ministry of Defence said 110 staff would be working as non-emergency drivers from October 14 until the end of November.
It is the third time since the start of the coronavirus pandemic that military personnel have supported the Welsh Ambulance Service.
They will not operate under blue light conditions and will attend lower priority calls to allow ambulance staff to deal with life-threatening emergencies.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: "I am proud of the tireless work of all our service personnel during this pandemic.
"They continue to provide important support, working alongside our dedicated emergency services across the UK.
"The deployment of 110 personnel to support the ambulance service will ensure Welsh Ambulance Service Trust can continue to deliver their life-saving services."
Secretary of State for Wales Simon Hart said: "Once again the UK's armed forces are playing a key role in the fight against Covid-19 by supporting the critical work of the Welsh Ambulance Service. I am hugely grateful for their commitment and expertise.
"I would like to extend my gratitude to all those who have worked incredibly hard to ensure our public services deliver for the people of Wales throughout the pandemic."
Conservative shadow health minister Russell George said: "While it has been necessary for the armed forces to assist, it is only because the extraordinary combination of pent-up demand from lockdown and long-term incompetent Labour management has made it so.
"Bringing in the armed forces should not be a medium or long-term bail-out option for the Labour Government in Cardiff Bay.
"It is the responsibility of ministers to ensure the NHS is well-staffed and well-run, but it is failing with 3,000 staff vacancies and its worst-ever A&E waiting times, longest ever waiting list, and second poorest ambulance response times.
"It is time now the Welsh Government reverse the 28% cut in NHS beds since devolution, produce a comprehensive winter pressures plan to deal with higher demand, and bring in Conservative proposals for diagnostic hubs to handle the Covid-built backlog in treatment."
Jason Killens, chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service, said: "We're proud and grateful to be working alongside the military once again, who did a superb job of assisting us on two occasions previously last year.
"The pandemic has presented a challenge like no other, but the last couple of months in particular have meant significant and sustained pressures on our ambulance service, including high levels of demand and an increase in Covid-19 related activity.
"Winter is our busiest time and having military colleagues on board once more will bolster our capacity, and put us in the best possible position to provide a safe service to the people of Wales."
Last month, the Welsh Government rejected calls from the Conservatives to declare an emergency in the ambulance service due to increasing demand and rising waiting times.
However, a new report revealed ambulance crews are facing long delays stuck outside hospitals waiting for patients to be admitted.
Healthcare Inspectorate Wales said crews had to wait over an hour to transfer a patient on 32,699 occasions - with around half of the patients being aged over 65.