Councillors in bid to get York fire service cuts reversed
At a meeting of the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel earlier today (13th November), Lib Dem councillor representing York hit out at the Conservative Commissioner’s cuts Huntington Fire Station and sought for plans to be reversed if call out times increase.
The panel discussed the controversial risk and resource model, which was approved by the Conservative North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner earlier last week. Councillor Darryl Smalley, representing York on the regional panel, hit out at the decision to go ahead with the plans, which will see Huntington fire station change from a full time station to an ‘on-call’ station. The decision was made despite overwhelming opposition from councillors and residents, and was the only part of the plans which were clearly not supported through the Commissioner’s own consultation.
Councillor Smalley welcomed the additional requirement that an assurance review of on-call response time data be undertaken, but urged for specific actions to be outlined if there was an increase in response times, calling for the Conservative Commissioner to keep the option of the reversal of the plans on the table.
Councillor Darryl Smalley, member of the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel and Lib Dem councillor for Rawcliffe and Clifton Without, commented:
“It is outrageous that despite overwhelming opposition by the local communities who will be most directly impacted, the Commissioner is pushing ahead with her plans. I know just how strong the feeling in the community is on these plans, with residents feeling like their legitimate concerns have been completely ignored by the Commissioner.
“If the Commissioner is not willing to reverse the plans right now, it’s crucial that residents are able to see the impact of the decision including through call out time data. The option for scrapping the plan must be left on the table if the response times increase and put our communities at risk. We know that every single minute matters in an emergency, so any plan that makes our firefighter’s job more difficult is dangerous.
“We will not let the Commissioner simply move on - we will continue to keep her to account for this decision and will continue to fight for full time Huntington Fire Station crew to be saved.”
Councillor Keith Aspden, Council Leader and Vice-Chair of the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel, added:
“York residents and the Council is clear in our condemnation of these plans. We will continue to voice our strongest opposition and serious concerns over plans which would directly impact the safety of our communities.
“A decade of national underfunding of fire and rescue services has seen a lack of investment in staff, facilities and services. Things are only going to get worse, unless the Conservative government takes action, recognises the importance of the fire service to communities and changes the funding formula.”