FIREFIGHTERS in Cornwall have slammed ‘dangerous’ plans to cut frontline cover which ‘will seriously affect public safety’ and demand that they are immediately withdrawn. They also fear that these cuts will be rolled out across the country.
The cuts have been put forward by Cornwall County Council as part of plans to slash £196m from the budget over the next four years.
The cuts include proposals to drive down firefighter numbers through ‘vacancy management’, introduce detrimental crewing systems, cut community safety work and make direct cuts to frontline cover by cutting fire officers, frontline firefighters and fire engines in the county. Also affected are training arrangements and support structures throughout the service.
Cornish firefighter and local FBU rep, Stuart Pulley, has demanded that these cuts be withdrawn and said: ‘These are irresponsible proposals to cut vital frontline emergency cover which the public rely on in times of need. Cornish firefighters have already suffered a series of cuts over recent years that have adversely affected our Service and there is a huge reliance on the goodwill of firefighters to work in our own time in order to keep fire engines on the run and support community safety events.
‘But enough is enough: our message to the County Council is clear – these cuts are dangerous, they will seriously affect public safety and we demand that they be withdrawn.’
South West regional secretary, Trevor French said: ‘These cuts are a direct result of political decisions taken by Cornwall County Council who would rather introduce council tax freezes than provide vital emergency cover to the citizens of Cornwall.
‘The Council were warned of the consequences of their political game-playing but they have pressed ahead, choosing politics over public safety. Now they have gone too far. The simple fact is that these cuts will compromise the safety of Cornish people and, on that basis, they must be withdrawn.
‘We will not pay for their cuts with our jobs, our service and the safety of firefighters and the public.’
Jamie Newell, brigade secretary for Eastern FBU which covers the Bedfordshire area, told News Line: ‘These cuts have been going on since 2008, the financial crash.
‘We have had cuts in Bedfordshire, 40 jobs; more than 10% of our operational workforce has been cut in the last 3-4 years; we have all suffered a 25% cut in government grant.
‘Bedfordshire is on the tipping point. We have only just the amount of firefighters needed to cover the duty system and any more would mean potential station closures.
‘There have been cuts at Merseyside in Liverpool; Manchester have suffered cuts; London has suffered very public cuts in terms of 500 jobs and 10 stations.
‘They attempt to justify the cuts because they say that the risk is down because incidents of fires are down. However, fire deaths and firefighter deaths have gone up over the same period, so the public and firefighters have suffered as a result, some paying the ultimate price.
‘Attendance times have gone up, which means that if you do have a fire it takes us longer to get there.
‘The FBU has a saying that cuts cost lives, there has to be a more co-ordinated response against the cuts. The FBU have begun a national campaign against the cuts called “The ring of fire tour” but all this should have happened sooner.
‘We need to ballot for action against the cuts!’
