Features

A delegation of trade unionists led by the Justice for Colombia campaign travelled to Colombia this November. National officer Mark Rowe reports back. Justice for Colombia (JFC) was set up in 2002 by the British trade union movement to support Colombian civil society in its struggle for human rights...

Do governments have to “balance the books” – and why is it always workers who pay the price? Professor Gregor Gall debunks the spin. At times of economic and political crisis, governments often erode and undermine – in other words, attack - public sector workers and their terms and conditions of...

The government has announced that Police, Fire and Crime Commissioners will be scrapped. FBU general secretary Steve Wright explains what this means for fire and rescue services It matters who oversees fire services. The Fire Brigades Union plays a crucial role in keeping chief fire officers...

When a watch in Cleveland faced a medical emergency on shift, their teamwork proved to be life-saving. Steve Morgan reports ‘Safer, stronger, together’ runs the FBU mantra. For Alex Sutherland and his colleagues at Cleveland’s Grangetown Red Watch – laughing and joking as they shift seats, musical...

My husband was the first UK firefighter to have his death from cancer officially recorded as caused by the job. Now I’m fighting for a legal precedent that could force employers to act, writes Anne Davies My husband Jeff Simpson was a wonderful man. He joined the London Fire Brigade in 1983 before...

FBU members in Manchester met with the Trade Union Blues, a group of football fans taking on profiteering club owners and organising as trade unionists. Steve Morgan reports You’ll never walk alone may be the preferred terrace anthem at Anfield. But as Manchester’s football-loving firefighters – be...

Firefighter reports from TUC and Labour Party conference 2025 This September, FBU delegates travelled to Brighton for the annual Trades Union Congress – a conference that brings together trade unions from across the movement to discuss, debate and decide on policy. And as a Labour affiliated union...

The judges give their verdict on the winners, runners up and calendar favourites this year. Members’ submissions were greatly varied in their subjects and compositions, and of impressive quality this year. Some images made us laugh and others were simply mesmerising. Many photos had interesting...

This summer, two major wildfire incidents at opposite ends of England pushed firefighters to the limit. With fire services facing deeper cuts, Barrie Clement investigates. Two massive incidents this summer gave a graphic illustration of the scandalous lack of resources in Britain’s fire service...

In the Gaza Strip, where the relentless grind of war has erased homes, neighbourhoods, and almost entire cities, firefighters have been lifelines in a collapsed world. Gaza based journalist Ghada Abdulfattah presents a snapshot of life on the run in Gaza during the last two years, in an extract from...