The Fire Brigades Union has formally responded to the government’s fire and rescue white paper, describing it as a coordinated attack on pay and conditions.

In its consultation response submission the union criticised a range of elements to what it termed “a coordinated attack on firefighters’ pay and conditions and the fire and rescue service, in the middle of a cost of living crisis”.

It said these elements include an attack on firefighters’ right to have a say on their pay and conditions, including many conditions relating to safety and proposals that could result in industrial action – a last resort to protect the fire service and firefighters’ pay and conditions – being weakened or undermined.   

The FBU claimed that the white paper’s attacks on the fire and rescue service more broadly comes in the form of a lack of any direct plans or resources to improve the service the public receives, together with plans to boost chief fire officer powers, including over areas that have a direct effect on the service the public receives such as reducing the number of firefighters, how quickly fires are responded to, reducing night cover and shift systems.

Next week firefighters are set to visit parliament in an attempt to persuade MPs to stop the government removing their voice, and to protect their pay and conditions, with many more set to follow during the course of this campaign.

Matt Wrack, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, said: “It is absolutely scandalous that the government has launched this coordinated attack on the pay and conditions of hard-working firefighters, and on the fire and rescue service itself. Apparently it is not enough that firefighters, like everyone else, are going through a cost of living crisis ultimately of the government’s making. Instead, the government thinks that now is the right moment to try and strip them of hard-won rights that protect their pay and conditions. We have firefighters struggling to pay bills and pay the mortgage. These changes would only make things worse for them.”

“Firefighters go to work to save lives. They risk their health, safety and sometimes their own lives in doing so. The very least they deserve is to be free from coordinated attacks on their livelihoods and safety, and to be paid properly and treated fairly.

“When it comes to the fire and rescue service itself we are clear. Chief fire officers cannot be trusted to get it right on their own, especially on vital matters such as how quickly we respond to fires and the number of firefighters in each service. Debacles such as chief fire officers standing by whilst deep cuts were made to their services, and wasting millions of pounds of public money on equipment that didn’t work or wasn’t suitable, show that to be the case. More power for them over matters like the number of firefighters, attendance times or night cover will make the public’s fire and rescue service worse – the evidence on that is absolutely clear.”