LONDON Ambulance Service has announced plans to cut 890 jobs over the next five years to save money.

The service is aiming to cut £53m in spending between now and 2015, including axing 560 frontline jobs dealing directly with patients.

Chief Executive Peter Bradley CBE said it would be “impossible” to make the necessary savings without job cuts, but said it is hoped most of the reductions will be made through “natural wastage” as staff leave the service voluntarily.

He said: “Unfortunately we are not immune to the financial pressures facing the NHS.

“This means all areas of our business will face closer scrutiny as we look for ways to make savings while improving the care we give to patients.

“But with nearly 80 per cent of our budget spent on staff costs it would be impossible to make the savings required without removing posts.”

The news, announced yesterday as part of a package of measures to cut costs across the service, was greeted with dismay by union leaders.

Phil Thompson, regional organiser for Unison, the ambulance workers' union, said the cuts amount to cutting a fifth of the workforce who care directly for Londoners and blamed the Government for “forcing” the cuts on the service.

He said: “These cuts are so deep they may not heal. If allowed to be carried out they will put at risk the many Londoners who rely on the LAS every day.

“With demand escalating and nearly 1,000 fewer staff, no one can now be sure of a safe service.”

Eric Roberts, a London Ambulance worker and Unison branch secretary, slammed the “disgusting, morally wrong, and unacceptable” cuts, and added: “Have they forgotten the Olympics? How will we cope with the biggest sporting event in the world with hundreds fewer skilled staff?

Mr Bradley said: “We are committed to managing these reductions so that the impact on staff is minimised and at the same time creating an improved and efficient service for patients.”