Cuts

Invest in fire service to protect public from emerging risks of e-batteries, says FBU leader

28 Jul, 2025 By Alice Dann

Firefighters need resources to keep public safe from emerging risks of e-batteries and climate change, says the leader of the Fire Brigades Union. The Office for Product Safety recently reported that there were at least 211 e-scooter and e-bike fires last year, including five that caused fatalities...

FBU members rally with flags outside fire authority meeting

Hampshire and Isle of Wight firefighters protest against “dangerous” cuts at fire authority meeting

11 Jul, 2025 By Alice Dann

On the weekend of 28 June, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight fire and rescue service were reduced to just 23 out of 80 fire engines available due to a lack of resources. The Fire Brigades Union says that this shows that the frontline is already severely overstretched and under-resourced, and that...

A fire engine in Blackpool outside a colourful arcade

Blackpool: on the frontline

Blackpool’s firefighters battle to keep people safe in a seaside town that has come to symbolise “left behind Britain”, hit hard by austerity. Helen Hague reports on life on the frontline – and hope for the future.   Blackpool – home to the union’s conference in May - boomed as a seaside town in the...

FBU conference 2025 delegates holding signs saying fund our fire service

Conference round up: 2025

Every year hundreds of delegates, elected from FBU brigades across the UK, travel to the union’s annual conference to democratically decide the union’s priorities, policies, and rules.  Firefighter reports on the main decisions and debates from the conference floor in Blackpool’s Imperial hotel this...

Starmer must reverse course on "shameful" welfare cuts, warns union leader

24 Jun, 2025 By Alice Dann

As more than 100 Labour MPs announce that they will oppose the welfare cuts, Fire Brigades Union leader Steve Wright has told Keir Starmer that he must reverse course. He said that the party leadership would "never be forgiven" if it went ahead, and warned that the measures could rely on Tory votes...

Fire Brigades Union leader responds to spending review: "Labour must break with austerity"

11 Jun, 2025 By Alice Dann

Today, Rachel Reeves has set out budgets for government departments in the Spending Review 2025. Commenting on the Spending Review, Fire Brigades Union general secretary Steve Wright said: The Spending Review must represent the end of the austerity era. The fire service has been battered by nearly...

Fire Brigades Union comments on HMICFRS report into Devon and Somerset

23 May, 2025 By Alice Dann

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has published its report into Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service (D&SFRS) The report finds raises concerns that senior management of the service are failing to promote positive values and culture, and fairness...

Fire Brigades Union calls for funding for fire services in Wales following HMICFRS report

22 May, 2025 By Alice Dann

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has today published its first report into South Wales Fire and Rescue Service. The report raises “concerns about the service’s performance in keeping people safe and secure from fire and other risks”. This follows a...

Firefighters union warns UK is “vulnerable to disasters” in call for Labour to fund the fire service

22 May, 2025 By Alice Dann

The Fire Brigades Union has today called for the Labour government to provide urgent funding for the fire and rescue service, saying austerity has left UK “vulnerable to disasters”. Fire and rescue services have been decimated by cuts in the past fourteen years, with 1 in 5 firefighter posts axed –...

Steve Wright speaking at the podium of FBU conference

Reeves must tax the rich, says union leader

21 May, 2025 By Alice Dann

FBU general secretary Steve Wright has commented on a report that a memo from Angela Rayner to the Chancellor called for a series of alternatives to welfare cuts, such as increasing the rate of corporation tax on banks. It suggested extending the freeze on the threshold at which the 45% tax rate is...

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