On 8 October, 1,000 firefighters gathered in Westminster for a national rally and lobby of parliament to demand urgent action from the government. Firefighter reports
On a Tuesday in early autumn, politicians setting out for a routine day in Westminster were confronted with a different spectacle to the usual crowds.
Around 1,000 firefighters had descended on central London, travelling from all corners of the UK to demand a future for the fire and rescue service.
Later that day, the corridors of the Houses of Parliament were packed with firefighters in tunics. Each had arrived with a clear purpose: to speak to their MP face to face.
At midday on 8 October, FBU members from across the UK had gathered for a national rally at the Emmanuel Centre. Some had journeyed over 500 miles to be there. Many brought stories of fire services devastated by cuts and fragmentation.
The rally took place around 100 days into the new Labour government’s time in office. After 14 years of austerity and decades of fragmentation, the change in government offers the opportunity to turn the tide.
Firefighters filled the historic auditorium as speakers began to address the audience. Rank and file speakers from across the UK spoke eloquently about the damage caused by austerity, the dangers of crews of three, the FBU’s DECON campaign, the fight for equality in the fire and rescue service and right to strike.
The rally also heard from a number of guest speakers, including Mauro Giulianella of the FP CGIL union representing firefighters in Italy; Nikolaos Lavranos, president of the Panhellenic Federation of Fire Service Employees in Greece; and Zarah Sultana MP, chair of the FBU’s parliamentary group.
FBU general secretary Matt Wrack reminded the rally of the achievements of members in recent years. “They haven’t privatised us,” he said. “The NJC is still there. The Tory White Paper is all but dead. And that is because of this union, and the thousands of firefighters who have stood together. Together, we’ve mobilised and we’ve pushed them back.”
He noted the union’s recent pay settlements – 7% in 2022, 5% in 2023 and 4% in 2024 – and the recent increases to the retaining fee and maternity pay.
“This is what we can achieve when we speak with one voice”, he said.
This was the first trade union rally of its kind since the general election, and the FBU was keen to use the event to drive home its message to the new government.
“Whatever you think of this government, what we have now is an opportunity,” he said, “not just to win better conditions for ourselves, but to shape the future of our profession and the fire service for decades to come”.
The FBU is focussing its lobbying efforts on three key areas:
INVESTMENT
After 14 years of austerity, we need to repair the damage inflicted on the fire and rescue service and public safety. We need investment to make our service resilient for a future with a changing climate and emerging new technologies, and we need resources to create better, safer working conditions for firefighters on the frontline.
STANDARDS
Fragmentation of the fire service has made the public less safe. Response times are slower than ever, and in some areas fire engines are sent to fires without enough firefighters to safely tackle incidents. We need a national body with legal standing to set standards on fire cover, training, equalities and health and safety, with firefighters given a voice.
WORKERS’ RIGHTS
Firefighters and other workers have endured years of attacks on their pay, pensions, collective bargaining, and right to take industrial action. The government must deliver the New Deal for Working People in full, scrapping the Tories’ anti-union laws to give workers a proper voice and improve the living standards of all working people.
On the agenda
The Labour Party promised in its manifesto to re-introduce national standards in the fire and rescue service, and to scrap many of the Tories’ recent anti-union laws. This is not an accident, but the result of years of careful work by FBU members who have rallied, lobbied and campaigned. This rally marked the beginning of a collective effort to get the fire and rescue service on the agenda of every MP. The FBU will now push Labour to deliver on its promises – and to go further. We took the message to parliament on 8 October. now we must take it to MPs’ local offices, meetings and surgeries across the UK
