2pc rise for firemen with more next year

THE Fire Brigades Union last night declared the public sector pay cap was dead in the water after they were offered a 2 per cent pay rise.

The 1 per cent cap on average pay rises in the public sector is supposed to run until 2020.

But last night it emerged that firemen have been offered double that, followed by a potential 3 per cent rise next year.

Downing Street said the offer had been agreed by local authorities, not central government.

But it will be seen as a sign of the end of public sector pay restraint, which has been in place for seven years.

The FBU insisted the proposal was still unacceptable.

General secretary Matt Wrack said: ‘It is sickening to hear politicians praising firefighters for the outstanding work they do every day of their working lives only to be told they have to tighten their belts as a result of economic problems caused by bankers.

‘This offer demonstrates that the 1 per cent cap is dead in the water but the offer is simply not enough.

‘It does not recognise the extra work firefighters have been doing, it fails to address their falling living standards and does not make clear what they will be earning in future years.’

Firemen’s pay is not covered by a pay review body, unlike the situation in schools, hospitals and the armed forces.

Instead it is subject to collective bargaining through a national council representing the fire and rescue services.

A Government source said the offer had no bearing on the pay cap as it was not set by central government and would be funded from existing budgets.