Reacting to an announcement by George Osborne, the chancellor of the exchequer, that the government would scrap inheritance tax for emergency service workers killed on duty, Matt Wrack, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, said:
“Inheritance tax only applies to those leaving more than £325,000, so it is hard to assess how many would actually benefit. Meanwhile, the families of all firefighters, including those killed at work, will be worse off as a result of government attacks on our pensions.
“Far too many firefighters are dying on duty as a result of a near total failure of the authorities to learn lessons from previous tragedies.
“Rather than gimmicks, the chancellor should focus on ensuring a properly-funded fire and rescue service — that puts firefighter and public safety first — and should honour promises made in the past over firefighter pensions.”
