‘THESE fire stations belong to the people of London and it’s the people of London who say that these buildings are ours and we are taking them over and not allowing them to close.’
This was the message delivered by Fire Brigades Union General Secretary Matt Wrack to over 500 angry firefighters who had massed outside the Fire Brigade Headquarters in Union Street, central London yesterday.
While the rally took place outside, fire chiefs were voting on whether to accept government cuts which would see 75 fire stations close around the country.
In London this would mean 12 fire station closures, the removal of 18 engines and the loss of 520 jobs.
Wrack continued: ‘I say to Cameron you have no mandate for destroying the fire service nationally and I say to Boris Johnson you have no mandate for destroying the fire service in London.
‘Look at the scale of the cuts – 75 fire stations facing closure, so much for a government saying they are protecting front-line services.
‘When we saw the floods up and down the country last week, when we had the terrible tragedy involving the copter crash, Cameron praised the wonderful job that the public service workers did.
‘We are sick of being patronised and patted on the back. Put the money into the essential services and stop these cuts.
‘We know that cuts cost lives, we have to look at the options open to us and this means thinking about industrial action.’
RMT General Secretary Bob Crow addressed the rally, saying: ‘This is not a time to cut the fire service, they should be building more and more fire stations to keep people safe in their homes.
‘Who really runs the country? If an investment banker doesn’t turn up for work does anybody notice?
‘The TUC had better wake its ideas up. At the TUC conference there was a call to look into the practicalities of a general strike.
‘It’s alright praising Greeks, Italians and Spaniards, it’s about time we started doing it here in Britain.’
The chair then announced that a delegation had joined the rally from the campaign to save Chase Farm Hospital, he said: ‘They are having a demonstration on Saturday 2nd February that starts in Enfield Town at 1.00pm and marches to Chase Farm Hospital and I would like to encourage everyone to come down and join that demonstration and I think we should show them our support today’, and a big cheer went up from the crowds of firefighters.
Dave Williams, a Unison Branch Secretary who works in the London Fire Brigade, addressed the rally saying: ‘The cuts we are facing are devastating, 20 million this year, 28 million next year.
‘Why should Londoners pay for this economic crisis, why should they pay for the criminal greed of the Tory Coalition and their banker friends in the city.
‘Our health service is also facing devastating cuts and privatisation.
‘Public sector workers have to be striking together to stop these cuts.
‘We have to kick the Tories out and fight to defend our fire service now!’
Before the rally Karl Haider, branch rep for Homerton Fire Station in Hackney, told News Line: ‘Out of the four fire stations in Hackney, Kingsland fire station has been proposed to be shut entirely.
‘I am angry and members of the public are angry, if you are in the area that Kingsland covers the next station would add an another five minutes, depending on traffic, and that can be the difference between life and death. Smoke inhalation can kill you in minutes.
‘I also support the march for Chase Farm Hospital, why are they closing hospitals when millionaires in the city are getting million pound bonuses.’