Firefighters’ group claims vital positions not filled
The Fire and Emergency Services Association says that budget cuts are affecting training and that vital positions within the service are not being filled. The organisation is also concerned about the number of fire stations being closed around the country.
“Already in Co Offaly three part-time stations have been closed in the former taoiseach’s constituency,” said association chairman John Kidd. “They closed the fire service in three stations to save €100,000. We had 1,550 full time firefighters and we are now down to 1,350 nationally.”
Mr Kidd, speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, added that the number of part-time firefighters had been cut from approximately 2,500 to 2,000.
This contrasted sharply with the situation in the North where there were 1,000 full-time and 1,000 part-time firefighters for a population one third of the Republic.
The association claims up to €70 million could be saved in financing the service by reducing the number of management positions. It is calling on the Government to amalgamate fire services with other emergency services to achieve a more cost-effective and efficient service nationally.
“Since 9/11 in the United States they have gone for an integrated fire and ambulance service and that is the way they are also going in Europe. We need to be taken out of the control of local authorities and the Department of Health and be put under one administration to create a civil protectorate.”
Mr Kidd, who is proposing a rationalisation of fire service management, said there had also been substantial waste of funds within the fire service and he wanted the Dáil Public Accounts committee to carry out a review of the expenditure within the service.
