Fire service in crisis as cuts hit ability to cover emergencies, say town hall bosses

The Local Government Association (LGA) said fire and rescue authorities in England and Wales were starting the new financial year with a third less money from central government than four years ago. A further 10 per cent cut is expected for 2015/16, leading to more “tough decisions” having to be made.

The LGA, which represents all 46 fire and rescue services in England and Wales, said the funding gap of a typical authority was increasing by £3m a year and was set to reach £17.5m by 2020.

A report said millions of pounds had been saved by changing shift arrangements, cutting jobs, freezing recruitment and pay and cutting office costs.

Kay Hammond, head of the LGA’s Fire Services Committee, said: “The reality is that fire services are reaching the limit of efficiency savings and the next few years will be very challenging for them all. If fire and rescue services are expected to keep playing a key role in national resilience, then they must be given the funding to do so effectively.”

The LGA called on ministers to protect services from further cuts and to give more support to authorities merging or sharing services.

A Government spokesman said independent reports had identified ways to find millions in savings and pointed to 46 per cent reduction in call-outs and incidents over the past decade.