A 'NIMBYISM' award should be given to Princes Risborough after concerns were raised over the number of ambulances using the town's roads, a councillor claimed.

The town is halfway between Stoke Mandeville and Wycombe hospitals, meaning an above average number of emergency vehicles go through it.

Speaking at a County Hall meeting this week, Buckinghamshire County Council chairman Carl Etholen said: "Princes Risborough Town Council wrote a letter expressing concerns about the number of ambulances that are going along the A4010. With centralisation of services, that's going to happen."

He said concerns had also been raised over the noise levels created by the vehicles' sirens.

Cllr Julia Wassell responded: "If there was a national award for the most nimby town in Britain, Princes Risborough Town Council must win for not wanting dying patients going through its town."

Health and Adult Social Care Select Committee chairman Lin Hazell called for Cllr Wassell to retract her comments, but she refused to backtrack.

Cllr Etholen added emergency vehicles could face further problems during disruption caused by the mooted construction of HS2 near Princes Risborough.

He said: "With HS2 potentially being constructed, there will be more problems on that road and we really need to look longer term as to how ambulances can get through the amount of traffic. There are 20,000 vehicle movements on that road every day."

Annet Gamell, Chief Clinical Officer for the Chiltern Clinical Commissioning Group, said: "As part of the planning for any major upheaval, they have to have a route prepared for emergency services."

She added ambulances are fitted with state-of-the-art GPS systems that can warn drivers where there are queues.