Paramedics may be put up in hotels to ensure they can get to work if Brexit causes travel disruption.

Councillors in Medway probed managers from the South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb) about their preparedness for Brexit and the potential impact of the end of transition period on December 31.

Operating unit manager for the Dartford and Medway SECAmb teams, Will Bellamy, said planning had been carried out which involved looking at where staff live and how they commute to work.

Some options which are being looked at are using hotels and operating within different sites "closer in the community" to ensure they could maintain their life-saving work.

He added, "We have coupled it with winter and adverse weather plans because that is also a key consideration we need to put on top of that."

There are fears of wide-spread travel disruption once the UK's transition period comes bringing more checks at the border, which could hamper the emergency service's efforts.

Mark Ely, SECAmb's associate director of operations in the east, said senior managers had been asked to come up with their worse-case scenarios which will be tested in the coming weeks.

Mr Ely addressed a virtual meeting of Medway Council's Health and Adult Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Thursday, November 12.

He said: "Please let me assure you we are working with all the partners engaged in this to ensure that we are as prepared for what may come from EU transition."

Mr Ely also affirmed his confidence of his team's response to Coronavirus this winter.

He said: "I think we are in a good position to meet the challenges and pressures in the next wave of Covid as it comes through."

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