EMERGENCY ambulance response times in Gwent were among the poorest in Wales in December, as a new system of measuring performance was introduced.

Four areas - Blaenau Gwent, Monmouthshire, Caerphilly and Torfaen - were among the five worst performing of Wales' 22 council areas in terms of responses arriving at the scene within eight minutes.

But the Welsh Government is stressing that the figures are not directly comparable with previous ambulance statistics, as the new system involves around 4,000 more calls to be classed as emergencies, with a consequent increase in category A (immediately life-threatening) calls.

The new system is more focused on improved outcomes for patients and from early in December only the most serious - those category A calls - are guaranteed a blue light response.

All other calls receive either face-to-face or telephone assessment, based on clinical need. The system does away with category B calls, with the most serious of these now recorded as category A calls.

In December, there were almost 36,000 emergency calls, 14,000 of which were category A, with an eight-minute response target.

In Newport, 63.1 per cent of these were answered inside eight minutes, the best result in Gwent and the 10th best in Wales.

But Torfaen (56 per cent), Caerphilly (55.3 per cent), Monmouthshire (54.4 per cent), and Blaenau Gwent (53.9 per cent) were 18th-21st respectively, missing the all-Wales target - 65 per cent or more of category A calls to be reached inside eight minutes - and the 60 per cent target for individual council areas.

The Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust is analysing the results, and it will be several months before new system trends can be identified.