DO readers understand the contents of the Bain Review and the proposed modernisation of the Fire Service?
The flexible working conditions that the government wish to introduce are, in effect, the removal of wholetime fire crews at night and their replacement with retained crews.
This in effect reduces the level of fire cover at night and increases the response times to incidents. At a house fire seconds are vital and not the extra four minutes it would take retained crews to reach the fire station, never mind the house that could be on fire with a family trapped inside.
The Chairman of the Greater Manchester Fire Authority , Fred Walker, is on record as saying that fewer firemen are needed at night because there are fewer fires. How can he reconcile this view with the seven tragic deaths of the last two nights? I urge readers to support their local firefighters in the current dispute. We have not taken the decision to strike lightly and are proud of the communities we serve.
John Duffin
Farnworth Fire Station.
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