Fire authorities fear annual 5pc budget cuts will hit services

Fire service finance officials have already been given warnings to expect hardship for at least the next three years and the figures of five per cent reductions every year for three years are regarded as realistic.

The reality could be more severe, however, and the chairman of South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority, Coun Jim Andrews, said: "People are talking about larger cuts than that.

"Unfortunately, the fire service is low in the food chain when it comes to local government," he said.

The authority's treasurer, Bill Wilkinson, has prepared forecasts anticipating a five per cent annual reduction in Government grants for the service, which would leave a black hole of 6.5m, more than 10 per cent of the entire budget, by the end of three years.

Even an "optimistic" forecast of three per cent annual reductions would leave the service more than 4m short of the money it would need to meet current commitments.

It is also possible that a new Government could impose spending changes midway through the next financial year as part of a post-election budget.

As a result South Yorkshire Fire Authority has increased its share of the council tax by 2.9 per cent for the year ahead.

That is only a whisker short of the three per cent limit imposed by Ministers where they would consider "capping" authorities.

The money will be used partly to help boost the service's financial reserves, so they can be used to offset the worst effects of the cuts when they come in.

Already, the service is planning to consult fire authority members on potential savings.