MORE than 1000 Scottish firefighter posts have been lost since 2010, raising concerns about “unsustainable” cuts in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
A new report from the Fire Brigades Union showed the number of frontline jobs down by 1,024 in seven years, or 13.3 per cent, including 75 jobs in 2016/17.
The percentage drop was greater than in Wales and Northern, both down 8.1 per cent since 2010, but far short of the 21.1 per cent fall in England.
Across the UK as a whole, around 11,100 posts were lost, a fall of 18.7 per cent since the Tories returned to power.
Around two-thirds of the Scottish losses were after Scotland’s regional fire services were merged into the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service (SFRS) in 2013.
Scottish LibDem justice spokesperson Liam McArthur events such as the Grenfell tragedy, which killed at least 80 people, showed cuts to the Scottish service were “unsustainable”.
He said: “Our fire services do essential work in the most difficult of conditions but these figures show that their jobs are being made harder and harder.
“This year’s cuts take the number of fire officers lost in the past seven years to over 1000. In the wake of horror stories like the Grenfell Tower disaster, the public will be shocked to hear that the number of fire officers in Scotland has fallen so drastically.
“SNP ministers must now explain how the loss of so many fire officers in Scotland is likely to improve public safety.”
Labour MSP Claire Baker said: “Our firefighters do valuable, life-saving work and deserve every support.
“People across Scotland will be shocked to hear that more than 1,000 firefighters have been lost since 2010 – especially in the wake of the Grenfell Tragedy.
“The SNP’s management of our valued public services has been nothing short of shambolic – and drastic cuts like this could put public safety at risk.”
Assistant Chief Officer Lewis Ramsay, director of resilience at the SFRS, said the UK’s largest fire service faced a “very challenging financial environment” but continued to respond to every emergency call while adopting more efficient working.
He said: “Through effective prevention and protection and front line response, the number of dwelling fire deaths in Scotland continue to reduce, from 76 in 2004-05 to 39 in 2015-16.
"Moving to a common duty system (CDS) in agreement with the FBU has ensured a more efficient and effective staffing model, providing stations with greater stability.
"Earlier this year, we marked the graduation of 101 new firefighters, the largest ever single intake, and we will recruit again in the near future.
“Since its creation the SFRS has delivered over £54m of savings while our resource budget has had a real terms cut of £2.6m this year alone.
“It is therefore imperative that we now look at new and efficient ways to deliver our service while maintaining the safety of our firefighters and our communities.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said firefighter numbers were a matter for the SFRS board and its chief officer, adding: “We are investing in Scotland’s world-class Fire & Rescue Service and have increased the SFRS operational budget this year by £21.7m to support investment in equipment and resources.
“Investment in frontline emergency services would go much further if the SFRS could recover VAT like other fire services in the UK. This deprives the SFRS of £10m per year.”
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