AMBULANCE workers in Wiltshire have been fiddling emergency response times in a bid to keep up with Government targets, it was revealed this week.

A damning report released this week by watchdog The Audit Commission shows control staff at the former Wiltshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust doctored almost 600 response times manually between April 1 2005 and July 17 2006 to meet the eight minute response target for Category A emergencies.

Dozens of Category B call outs were also changed to meet targets of 19 minutes.

Investigators found the system used to monitor the data also had the capacity to alter it.

The report said: "In a culture where managers' jobs depend on achieving specific targets, there will be pressure to meet those targets. If the system is properly managed, it can be used to monitor and improve performance as a whole.

"But a system can also be used to manipulate the data, rather than changing the way the service is delivered. Data that is easily manipulated gives people both the motive and the opportunity to do so."

The Wiltshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust merged with the Avon and Gloucester trusts to from the Great Western Ambulance Service.

Tim Lynch, chief executive of the trust, said: "The report dates back to 2005/06 and we would like to stress that we have since taken a number of steps to ensure current recording is more robust and reliable.

"Improvements to record keeping and management of response times have also been made in Avon and Gloucestershire. We can now be confident that they accurately reflect performance across the Trust area.

"The public can be reassured that we have decided to introduce regular audits of all systems as standard practice."

Richard Lott, the appointed auditor of the report, said: "It is crucially important the public has confidence in the integrity of the data used to produce this indicator. Similar practices were identified by the Department of Health at other ambulance trusts last year.

"I am pleased that the new Trust and the Department of Health have already taken action to prevent alterations taking place again."