What: Launch of anti-cuts campaign in Merseyside
Where: The Boardroom, Jack Jones House, 2 Churchill Way, Liverpool L3 8EF
When: 6:30pm, Friday 29 June 2018
A campaign is being launched by the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) to stop alarming budget cuts to Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service which has seen the number of firefighters and fire appliances fall dramatically.
Current spending plans mean that between 2010 and 2020 firefighter numbers will reduce by 37% from 927 to 580 and almost half of all fire appliances will be axed. From 42 to 22. Since 2010, there has been an overall upward trend in fire deaths in Merseyside. Between 2010/11 there were five fire deaths. This increased to 16 during 2015/16.
Mark Rowe, regional secretary of the FBU in North West England, said: “The relentless cuts to Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service mean we have now passed beyond crisis point. Further cuts will result in Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service not being fit for purpose. The cuts put the public and firefighters at increased risk of serious injury, or worse, on a daily basis.”
Members of Parliament will be attending the campaign launch including Liverpool Walton MP Dan Carden.
A raft of stations in Merseyside have closed, or been earmarked for closure, including West Kirby, Allerton, Whiston, Huyton, Eccleston, Upton and St Helens.
Cuts have also meant the size of fire crews has decreased to just four firefighters, rather than five, severely limiting the response they can provide at emergency incidents.
