Primary care trusts will for the first time have to fund ambulance services to be prepared for terrorist attacks and other major emergencies from next year.

The Department of Health is working to set up hazardous area response teams across the country.

Teams are trained and equipped to work at the centre of dangerous incidents such as chemical attacks or train crashes.

Traditionally paramedics have been excluded as ambulance services faced problems persuading PCTs to support and pay for training and equipment for major emergencies.

Two of the teams have been in place in London for 18 months but progress elsewhere has been slow. Teams in Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester will be established by the end of this year.

DH strategic ambulance adviser Russ Mansford said he expected the first national standard contract for ambulance services, to be introduced next year, to require commissioners to take the issue seriously.

"[PCTs' reluctance] has been overcome in so much as emergency preparedness will be part of the new contract," he said. "For the first time this is not something that is nice to do, it is something we have to do.

"Services have to be ready to respond to major incidents by law. This says PCTs have to pay for that."

The DH is expected to provide direct funding for 18 teams to be established but in future commissioners will have to meet costs.

Mr Mansford said the moves had been partly driven by the terrorist threat, but response teams were important for major train crashes and traffic incidents that could happen anywhere.

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