Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of people detained under section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 were conveyed to hospital by (a) an ambulance and (b) a police car in each year from 2013-14 to date.
In 2016/17, the first year in which this information has been collected, a police vehicle was used to transport the person being detained to a place of safety in 10,846 (52%) of cases where the method of transport was known, and an ambulance was used in 9,142 (44%) cases.
Source: Police powers and procedures, England and Wales, year ending 31 March 2017, Home Office. http://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/658099/police-powers-procedures-mar17-hosb2017.pdf