News

Trade unions are pushing for Labour to reverse plans to cut the winter fuel allowance, branding the policy “cruel and unnecessary”. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced that around 10 million pensioners in England and Wales will lose their winter fuel payments. The number of pensioners eligible...

On Thursday 10 October, the government unveiled its Employment Rights Bill. The legislation, which will now begin its journey through the House of Commons, would be the biggest expansion in workers’ rights in a generation. As Labour has a majority of 174, it is very likely to become law. It includes...

Dorset and Wiltshire FBU has launched local campaigns across the region, calling on councillors and the fire authority to reverse plans to slash fire cover. Fire and rescue service bosses announced the plans only a month before removing fire engines from stations in September. Firefighters were...

Fire and rescue response times in England for the year ending March 2024 reinforce the need for national standards, the FBU has warned. The average total response time to primary fires in England was nine minutes and three seconds, only 10 seconds better than last year’s figure, which was the...

The first report by the UK Covid-19 inquiry, published in July, confirmed the impact of austerity on pandemic preparedness. The inquiry is examining the state of the UK’s structures and procedures to plan for and respond to a pandemic. Inquiry chair Baroness Hallett concluded that: “The UK entered...

Firefighters staged a rally (above) outside a meeting of the Merseyside fire authority to oppose a dangerous reduction to crew sizes, resulting in a vote on the policy being delayed. The fire authority’s community risk management plan (CRMP) includes proposals to send firefighters to “non-life” risk...

An investigation into misconduct in the fire and rescue by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has highlighted the need for reforms to build processes firefighters can trust. Potential whistle-blowers fear marginalisation or victimisation, while nearly one...

A mural honouring firefighters Billy Faust and Adam Meere, who lost their lives responding to a fire in Bethnal Green, East London, 20 years ago has been unveiled. Local artist David Speed was commissioned to paint a tribute on the side of Whitechapel fire station, where the two worked. On 20 July...

After 14 years of austerity there are too few firefighters to guarantee resilience and public safety, according to new figures obtained by the FBU. Freedom of information requests reveal that, since 2010, more than 8,000 wholetime firefighter jobs have been cut, while one in five retained...

Firefighters have joined thousands of anti-racist protesters in taking to the streets in opposition to far-right rioting this August. After three young children were killed in a horrific stabbing attack on 29 July in Southport, far-right networks used the tragic deaths to launch a series of racist...