Town fire chief alarmed by Euro hours rule
SELKIRK'S fire chief has admitted he is worried by a Euro ruling that will limit the number of hours the town's part-time crew members are available to answer emergency calls.
His bosses in the Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service have also said they are concerned at the directive and local politicians are claiming life-saving fire cover is being put at risk.
Britain has so far opted out of the working hours directive, but the European Parliament has said the country must now follow the rules.
And that means part-time – or retained – firefighters across the country who normally provide 24-hour cover, seven days a week, 52 weeks of the year will now be restricted to 48 hours. That figure includes not just the hours a crew member is fighting fires or attending road crashes, but the time they are available for an emergency call-out.
Garage owner Johnnie Munro has been a retained fireman in Selkirk for 32 years and has been the station's boss for 25 years.
He told The Wee Paper: "During that time I have provided cover 24/7, but these regulations have already been creeping in and will become inevitable. New retained firefighters are being told by the fire board that they need to take 48 hours off each week.
"About 18 months ago the minimum staffing to allow an engine to go out was increased from three to four, so that is an added pressure.
"More firefighters are having to be recruited, but in some areas it is already difficult to recruit. At a couple of stations in the Lothians appliances are taken off the run during the day because there is no crew available."
A spokeswoman for Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service in Edinburgh told us: "We are obviously very concerned over the implications of this for our retained firefighters, which provide a vital and cost-effective service across much of the area we cover, and particularly in the Borders.
"We have added our views to the debate over the working time directive and now await the outcome, where the full impact on our retained service will have to be addressed in the light of any changes introduced."
Of Scotland's 391 fire stations, 321 are staffed by 3,429 retained firefighters.
The hundreds of square miles in the Borders are covered by part-time crews in West Linton, Peebles, Innerleithen, Lauder, Selkirk, Jedburgh, Newcastleton, Kelso, Coldstream and Eyemouth. Duns has a full-time day crew, with night-time cover maintained by part-timers. The two full-time stations in Galashiels and Hawick are also backed-up by retained crews.
Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale Lib Dem MSP Jeremy Purvis says the directive – if implemented – will seriously impact on life-saving fire and rescue cover, with remote areas such as the Borders especially at risk.
He told The Wee Paper: "This European directive will seriously impede upon the ability of voluntary firefighters in my constituency to continue providing the life-saving cover they currently provide.
"Our retained fire stations will all be under threat unless Westminster undertakes to protect retained firefighters from the opt-out. It is vital that our local fire services are protected."
His Westminster colleague, Michael Moore, spoke in yesterday's debate in the Commons and highlighted the need to keep a flexible service.
He's already had talks with Lothian and Borders firemaster Brian Allaway and discussed the fear of station closures.
The MP told us: "The Government could – and should – be taking urgent steps to ensure that retained crews are able to provide vital cover across Scotland. Many of our smaller communities in Scotland do not have the size of population needed to maintain full-time services, including my constituency."
And he added: "This debate is not about whether or not we should end the UK's opt-out from the working time directive – it is about the UK Government planning now to ensure that any changes are implemented in such a way as to enable retained firefighters to continue to provide their valuable service."
A petition urging retained firefighters to be exempted from the Euro rule has been launched.
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Weather for Selkirk
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 16 mph
Wind direction: East
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Sunny
Temperature: 7 C to 18 C
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