Members' Business — S6M-09705 Katy Clark: Fire Service Cuts

That the Parliament notes, with concern, reports that the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) has ordered the temporary withdrawal of fire appliances at 10 stations across Scotland, including Greenock Community Fire Station in the West Scotland region; understands that the Fire Brigades Union has expressed deep concern that this reduction will risk the safety of both firefighters and the wider public; further understands that the SFRS is expected to receive a flat cash budget settlement from the Scottish Government over the next four years, and that the service claims it must make £36 million in cuts as a result; believes that this follows a decade of cuts, the reported loss of 1,100 firefighter jobs, and, it understands, a 14% increase in average response times per incident; notes SFRS Chief Officer Ross Haggart’s comments that there is also a £630 million backlog in the service's capital investment; further notes reported freedom of information (FOI) findings that 75% of buildings in Scotland’s fire estate are assessed as being of "bad" or "poor" suitability, and that around 45% are assessed as being in either "bad" or "poor" condition; believes that the combination of withdrawn appliances and what it sees as a dilapidated fire estate puts firefighters, who are exposed to health risks from encountering dangerous fire contaminants in their job, at further risk; further believes that firefighters work hard to ensure the safety of people in Scotland's communities; notes the view that firefighters deserve to be well-equipped, well-resourced, well-protected and well-paid to do the job that they do, and further notes calls for the Scottish Government to come forward with emergency funding for both day-to-day spend and capital budgets, in order to prevent further cuts to staff and equipment, and to modernise the fire estate.