Fire crews attacked


The FBU fire brigades’ union has condemned recent attacks on fire crews around Bonfire Night, Halloween and other public festivals and events, including an incident in Manchester where a crew was pelted with bricks and fireworks. And it has warned that the downward trend in such attacks over recent years could be undermined or reversed if firefighters’ neutrality is undermined by a police takeover.


The government has recently consulted on plans to allow responsibility for fire and rescue services to be taken over by Police and Crime Commissioners as part of wider proposals on closer collaboration between emergency services.


But FBU general secretary Matt Wrack warned that if the fire and rescue service is seen as an extension of the police force, “we will likely see an erosion of the public trust that we rely on daily”.

www.fbu.org.uk/news/2015/11/attacks-on-firefighters-condemned

www.fbu.org.uk/circulars/all-members-circ-0509mw-police-and-crime-commissioners-an-attack-on-the-fire-and-rescue-service

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/459986/Consultation_-_Enabling_closer_working_between_the_Emergency_Services__w__2_.pdf