Fire cuts plan angers MEP who led campaign to save Warwickshire's retained firefighters

3.25.20pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 15th Sep 2009

Lib Dem MEP Liz Lynne

Plans announced yesterday by the Conservative county council to close seven of the county's 19 fire stations are a betrayal of the people of Warwickshire, says county Euro MP Liz Lynne.

The Lib Dem MEP led a successful campaign this spring to save retained firefighters from the threat of a 48 hour weekly working limit in the EU working time directive. She took her campaign petition to Kenilworth fire station in March with leaders of the Retained Firefighters Union.

Now it emerges that the fire service review which led to the draconian closure plans was being drawn up this spring, before the county council and European elections, but kept secret during the election campaign. The review was approved at a closed meeting of the council cabinet in July, but the closure plans were only announced yesterday afternoon.

Liz Lynne said: "I am horrified by the scale of these closure proposals. It is laughable to pretend that closing 7 out 19 fire stations and sacking 100 brave firefighters is some kind of improvement.

"This spring, the Conservatives in the European Parliament backed the campaign I led to protect retained firefighters from plans to scrap the opt out from the 48 hour week limit under the EU working time directive, which would have meant the end of our retained firefighter system. We won that campaign and the proposed changes were dropped.

"I visited Kenilworth fire station this spring with my petition and it was very clear that the fire crew firecrew there are performing a vital service, saving lives.

"It is staggering to now discover that plans to devastate the retained firefighting service in Warwickshire have been drawn up since March. Warwickshire residents, especially those served by these seven fire stations, will feel betrayed. To announce something like this out of the blue just after an election campaign is an insult to the democratic process."

"I don't blame the chief fire officer, he is working to a brief he has been set by his political masters. The fire service does need to use modern equipment but if you close fire stations in rural areas it doesn't matter how modern your fire engine is if it has to take longer to get to a fire. Let us hope that a massive campaign of protest by residents can convince Warwickshire's Conservative leaders to think again."

After a twelve week consultation process, formal proposals are expected to be put before the County Council Cabinet in January 2010.

County councillor John Whitehouse (Liberal Democrat, Kenilworth Abbey), whose ward includes Kenilworth fire station, one of the seven proposed for closure, has asked the head of the Fire and Rescue service to organise public meetings in both Kenilworth and Burton Green, so that local people can make their views clear.

He said: "Rumours have been circulating for a long time, and the Conservatives running the County Council have done residents a great disservice by keeping their plans and intentions secret for so long. The plan was agreed by the Cabinet in July, but it is only now that county councillors are free to talk about it..

"It is claimed that the fire service can meet the County Council's current response standards (10 minutes urban, 20 minutes rural) for the Kenilworth area from the fire station based in Leamington Spa's congested town centre. Kenilworth residents will find that very hard to accept, especially given the traffic delays between the two towns at peak times."