BT has apologised “sincerely” for technical faults as the primary 999 emergency call service was restored.

The telecommunications company, which manages the 999 phone system, said the issues were resolved earlier this evening.

Emergency services across the country were impacted by the system failures from around 8.30am, which prevented 999 calls from connecting.

Minor issues persisted after BT switched to a “back-up system” at around 10am, with some services reporting a delay in calls being received.

A BT spokesperson said: “We are sincerely sorry for the distress this has caused. There was a short period of time as we switched over to the back-up system during which calls could not get through.

“In this instance, we are still able to see who is trying to reach the operator, and our handlers reconnect calls as a matter of urgency.

“Our back-up platform took calls throughout most of Sunday, with people able to call 999 as usual.

“The primary 999 service was restored earlier this evening and we are no longer relying on the back-up system.

“We are monitoring the service, and we continue to work hard to determine the root cause and the impact this has had.”

A Government spokesperson confirmed the system issues were fully resolved.

They said: “There was a technical issue with the 999 call system earlier today.

“This is now fully resolved and the service is running as normal, and so anyone with an emergency should call 999 for assistance in the normal way.

“A full investigation is under way to understand what caused this problem.”